No. 2841

Tomatoes a la Gibbons-Sauted and Fried

Tomates Sautees et Frites a la Gibbons

Split the tomatoes in two through their thickness, drain off their liquid and season; saute them in butter and oil, half of each, strew over chopped parsley and place them in the center of a dish; garnish around with fried tomatoes prepared as follows: Plunge some small tomatoes in boiling water, peel and cut them in four even parts; season with salt, pepper, oil and vinegar, dip them into frying batter (No. 137), then in hot frying fat, drain, salt and arrange them around the sauted tomatoes.

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For the Modern Kitchen

Two preparations on one plate: halved tomatoes browned in a pan, ringed with quartered tomatoes in batter. The whole thing hinges on getting water out of the fruit before it meets either hot fat or batter.

Drain properlyRanhofer's "drain off their liquid" most likely means clearing the seeds and jelly from the cut halves; salting them and letting them sit cut-side down on a rack or towel for 15-20 minutes is a modern way to do it. Otherwise the halves stew rather than saute, and the batter on the quarters is less likely to cling.
Choose firm, underripe fruitUse fruit that is just short of ripe, or Roma-type plum tomatoes, which hold their shape in the pan and in the fryer; many modern beefsteak and heirloom varieties are juicier and harder to handle here.
Butter and oil, half of eachCombining oil with the butter is the usual way to keep the butter from scorching at saute heat. A wide skillet over medium-high heat, cut side down first, undisturbed until well colored.
Frying batter No. 137The batter itself is not reproduced here; frying batters of this type generally run to flour with a little oil or melted butter, salt, water or beer, and stiffly whipped egg whites folded in at the end. Any light tempura-style batter of that construction works; make it just before frying so the whites keep their lift.
The marinade is a problem for the batterDressing the quarters with oil and vinegar before dipping them is authentic but leaves them slick and wet. Drain them well and dust with flour before the batter, or it will not cling.
Frying fat temperatureThe recipe gives no temperature; modern practice for this kind of batter frying is roughly 360-375F. Below that the batter absorbs fat and goes limp; fry in small batches so the temperature does not crash, and salt the pieces the moment they leave the pan.
Blanching to peelTen to twenty seconds in boiling water is enough to loosen the skins on small tomatoes, then into cold water. Longer and the flesh under the skin begins to cook and the quarters collapse when you cut them.
Yield and serviceThe original gives no quantities. Figure one large tomato and two small ones per person, and serve immediately as a hot vegetable course or alongside grilled meat; fried tomato quarters soften within minutes of plating.

A Little History

The Epicurean (1894) is Charles Ranhofer's record of his long tenure as chef at Delmonico's in New York, and its 3,000-odd numbered recipes are cross-referenced like a technical manual, which is why this one simply points to "frying batter (No. 137)" rather than repeating it. Names like "a la Gibbons" were standard restaurant practice of the period: Ranhofer is often said to have attached the name of a patron, a public figure, or the occasion a dish was first served to, and the person behind many of them is now unrecoverable. What the recipe really shows is the era's fondness for putting two treatments of one ingredient on a single dish, a garnish of fried quarters around a center of sauteed halves, so the plate offered contrast in texture without introducing anything new.