Rouses Everyday - May & June

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AT SEASON’S PEAK
CREOLE TOMATOES
by Chef John Besh
The Creoles of my childhood were ugly, deformed and
split to the point of bursting.They were picked the day
they were sold at the market or set on the windowsill to
wait for the next meal.These tomatoes were not good
at hanging around for very long! Creole tomatoes
should be eaten right off the vine while still warm.
I’m not saying that I don’t love herbs and cheeses, but
a good ol’ ripe Creole doesn’t need any help. It just
needs to be eaten.
The Creoles I ate as a kid were all grown in either St.
Bernard or Plaquemines parish. These are the parishes
that flank the Mississippi south of New Orleans pretty
much all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.That fertile farmland
was formed by hundreds of years of rich silt deposits that the
mighty Mississippi brought downstream. Cattle, a gift from the
king of Spain brought here in 1779 by the Islenos, once grazed
on these same lands. Descendants of the Islenos still grow many
of our Creoles today. This rich soil, with its low acidity, makes our
tomatoes particularly sweet tasting; our moderate climate gives us a
gloriously long growing season.
Much mystique surrounds the identity of the famed Creole tomato.
It turns out that it is not so much a variety as an idea of a tomato,
evoking a memory of the field-picked, just-ripe tomatoes of our
childhood before hybrids and industrial farming took the flavor
away. Experts say the definition comes down to geography.A Creole
is defined as any red, ripe tomato grown
in the state of Louisiana, but most often
in the southeast in the parishes along the
Mississippi. It can be grown from any seed
variety, such as the Celebrity, favored by
Jim Core, or those newer, hardier varieties,
like Amelia and Christa. Historically, St.
Bernard and Plaquemines parishes were
tomato central, but following Hurricane
Katrina the area shrank to the upper
Plaquemines.
Today, more than 250 growers cultivate
the almost 500 acres of Louisiana that
are dedicated to this buxom fruit so
fundamental to Creole cooking. The
crops are mostly sold locally at wholesale
warehouses, farmers’ markets, roadside
stands, and supermarkets, and there is rarely
enough of a surplus to cause a Creole ever
to head out of state. Nowadays, some of us
feel that the Creole is looking a little too
pretty and uniform, but in general locals
will tell you with pride that a Creole tastes
the way a real tomato should.
For more from Chef John Besh, follow
his blog at
Chef John Besh – photo courtesy Maura McEvoy
MAY / JUNE 2015
FOOD FESTIVALS
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival, May 1-3
62nd Annual Tomato Festival, Chalmette, May 1-3
Poke Salad Festival, Blanchard, May 4-9
Rayne Frog Festival, May 6-9
Taste of Ocean Springs, May 14
Plaquemines Parish Seafood Festival, May 15-17
New Orleans Wine & Food Festival, May 20-23
Greek Festival, New Orleans, May 21-23 Opa!
Jambalaya Festival, Gonzales, May 22-24
New Orleans Oyster Festival, May 30-31
Red, White & Blueberry Festival, Ocean Springs,
June 6
Louisiana Corn Festival, Bunkie, June 11-13
Blueberry Jubilee, Poplarville, June 13
BluesBerry Festival, Lafayette, June 13
Blues music and a blueberry cookoff at the Blue
Moon Saloon. The contest features some of the
best chefs and restaurants in Acadiana.
French Market Creole Tomato Festival,
New Orleans, June 13-14
Louisiana Catfish Festival, Des Allemands,
June 19-21
In 1975, Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards
signed a proclamation declaring Des Allemands
the Catfish Capital of the World.
Alabama Blueberry Festival, Brewton, June 20
Louisiana Peach Festival, Ruston, June 26-27
St. Tammany Crab Festival, Lacombe, June 26-28
Beauregard Watermelon Festival, De Ridder,
June 25-27