We used to grow tomatoes in our backyard and farm, in the rural town where we lived in the Philippines, so, my mother often made these Tomatoes Stuffed with Cucumber Salad. My father could do magic with anything he planted in the ground, even if the soil was as dry and arid as that of Tarlac, my hometown.
Someone once told me I had an idyllic childhood. That’s after I told friends stories of all the fruit trees and vegetable crops that grew in our yard and our farm. It was the norm for my mom to use vegetables from the garden for supper. Or if we needed a refreshment for a hot summer day, then we had several dayap (Filipino lime) trees in the yard, and it was easy to make a tall glass of freshly-squeezed juice on a whim.
When summer set in, the huge salad tomatoes my dad grew were bright red, fully ripe, and very sweet. Mom did not hesitate to make these delightful stuffed tomatoes. I remember these distinctly and the fresh, crunchy flavors of the vegetables in it. It was my favorite way to serve tomatoes. If we had guests coming for lunch or dinner, Mom got busy, made these stuffed tomatoes ahead, and chilled them in the refrigerator. When friends dropped by, especially after a long drive from Manila, they relished these tomatoes stuffed with salad.
I live in New Jersey now, the garden state that has the best tomatoes in America, or what we call Jersey tomatoes. Its origins are in a past post here. I don’t hesitate to buy these bright red, vine-ripened, succulent beauties at the market. And today, in my own kitchen, in the midst of a sweltering summer heatwave, this is my go-to recipe for an easy make-ahead, chilled salad.
Tomatoes Stuffed with Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
- 6 whole large salad tomatoes
- 1 whole large cucumber, peeled, seeded, cubed into 1/4 inch pieces
- 1 whole medium-sized red bell pepper, seeded, cubed into 1/4 inch pieces
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- ½ cup cooked corn kernels
For the salad dressing:
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon white pepper powder
For garnish:
- 5 to 6 whole lettuce leaves
- 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
To prepare the tomatoes:
- Wash and dry the tomatoes.Cut the stems off. Using a serrated knife or a grapefruit spoon, scoop out the tomato filling.Chop the tomato filling in cubes, and set aside.
To make the Tomato Salad:
- In a large bowl, mix the cubed tomatoes with the cucumbers, celery, corn kernels and bell pepper.Toss in the mayonnaise and sour cream. Season with salt and white pepper.
To assemble:
- Stuff each of the hollowed tomatoes with around 2 tablespoons of the tomato-cucumber salad. Arrange tomatoes stuffed with cucumber salad on a platter, garnished with lettuce leaves. Sprinkle chopped parsley all over for garnish.Chill the tomatoes in the refrigerator till ready to serve.
Cook's comments:
- Large salad tomatoes are best for this recipe. This is a forgiving recipe. You can add the salad vegetables in season or those convenient for you.
Copyright Notice:
- Notes on Nutrition: The nutrition information provided in the recipe links is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and specific brands of ingredients used.Copyright Notice: Hello, Friends! Please DO NOT LIFT OR PLAGIARIZE Asian in America recipes on this blog, my original recipes, stories, photos or videos. All the images and content on this blog are COPYRIGHT PROTECTED and owned by my media company Besa-Quirino LLC by Elizabeth Ann Quirino. This means BY LAW you are NOT allowed to copy, scrape, lift, frame, plagiarize or use my photos, essays, stories and recipe content on your websites, books, films, television shows, videos, without my permission. If you wish to republish this recipe or content on media outlets mentioned above, please ASK MY PERMISSION, or re-write it in your own words and link back to my blog AsianInAmericaMag.com to give proper attribution. It is the legal thing to do. Thank you. Email me at [email protected]
Nutrition
Notes on Nutrition: The nutrition information provided in the recipe links is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and specific brands of ingredients used.
Copyright Notice: Hello, Friends! Please DO NOT LIFT OR PLAGIARIZE Asian in America recipes on this blog, my original recipes, stories, photos or videos. All the images and content on this blog are COPYRIGHT PROTECTED and owned by my media company Besa-Quirino LLC by Elizabeth Ann Quirino. This means BY LAW you are NOT allowed to copy, scrape, lift, frame, plagiarize or use my photos, essays, stories and recipe content on your websites, books, films, television shows, videos, without my permission. If you wish to republish this recipe or content on media outlets mentioned above, please ASK MY PERMISSION, or re-write it in your own words and link back to my blog AsianInAmericaMag.com to give proper attribution. It is the legal thing to do. Thank you. Email me at [email protected]
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