How to Make Fried Green Tomatoes
There are about a hundred ways you can fry a green tomato. Everyone has an opinion, and most of them will get you a tangy, tasty final result. This recipe is a good basic (because I like the basics) and you can easily adjust or build the flavors to your preference.
Key
points
- Green tomatoes are firm and tangy
- Season your tomatoes well with salt and pepper in your dry ingredients and add more salt after frying
- Buttermilk and hot sauce add a nice tang for breading
- After coating, let the tomatoes sit four or five minutes before frying so the breading can “set”
- Fry your tomatoes in batches in a heavy skillet so they don’t steam, adding a bit of oil as you go
Season properly: I recommend adding plenty of salt and pepper to the flour (as opposed to adding it directly to the tomatoes).Give the fried tomato a taste test at the end and sprinkle with a bit more salt and pepper if needed.
Keep them crispy: One of quickest ways to end up with soggy fried food is allowing steam to build and soften the breading, causing it to fall off. To avoid this, do not stack the crunchy fried tomatoes once they have been cooked.Instead arrange them in a single layer on a cooling rack to allow for maximum airflow.
To air fry: Cook times will vary depending on the thickness of the tomato slices. I suggest slicing the green tomatoes into ¼” slices.
Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F and arrange the sliced and battered tomatoes in a single layer in the basket of the air fryer.
Spray or brush them with avocado oil before frying for 5-6 minutes. Flip the tomatoes over, spray or brush the other side with avocado oil, and fry for an additional 5 minutes.
To freeze: These do not freeeze.
Dipping sauces:
- Homemade Mayonnaise. Try a classic mayo. You could even add some sriracha to it or make an avocado mayonnaise instead.
- Garlic Aioli. I am a big garlic aioli fan. It’s super easy to whip up and goes great with these tomatoes.
- Thousand Islands. Grab some from the store or make your own.
- Ranch. Try making your own with my homemade ranch dressing mix.
- Remoulade. I love the sweet and tangy taste of remoulade paired with these crunchy fried green tomatoes.
What to serve with them:
How to fry green tomatoes
Ingredients
- 3 to 5 medium green tomatoes cores removed and sliced thin
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup self rising cornmeal mix see Note 1
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- oil for frying refined coconut oil, good lard, avocado oil or other flavorless oil
- hot sauce optional
Instructions
- In a small bowl, add the buttermilk and a couple dashes of hot sauce if you want it, then stir to combine.
- In a separate shallow dish add the flour, salt, pepper, and cornmeal mix.
- Batter your tomatoes in this order: first into the flour/cornmeal, then into the milk and back into the flour.
- Add about four tablespoons of oil to a regular skillet and warm over medium-high until the oil sizzles as soon as a tomato touches it. As they cook, some of the oil will absorb, so you may need to add a tablespoon more between each batch.
- Fry the tomatoes in batches, being careful not to crowd them. Fry about 5 minutes per side and the breading should be golden brown. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with a little extra salt if needed. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
can the fried green tomatoes be prepped and battered the day before frying?
You could slice them if you had to but I wouldn’t put the batter coating on in advance.It would fall off and eventually suck a lot of the moisture out of the tomatoes. It’s really a recipe that has to be made fresh. –Rachel
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Love fried green tomatoes, I use in one bowl white corn meal and flour (same amount of each) mix, in another bowl I use a egg, cut tomato about 1/4 ” thick, then dip, tomato slice in egg, then cornmeal mix. In Indiana neighbors and friends would give me some and in Florida there a vegetable stand I can get them Thanks for sharing your recipe I will have to give it at try. New sub here found you looking up rolls, and you have more recipes I want to try. Thank you.
These are great!
I love this! I definitely want to try it out… unfortunately our tomatoes didn’t grow this year. The garden isn’t growing the same since H. Sandy knocked a tree on it. I will check out the farmer’s market on Sunday for the perfect tomato though!
Thanks for the awesome recipe!
Mother nature sure can do a number on our gardens, that’s for sure Jenna. The farmer’s market is a great place to try or if you have a friend who is raising a garden, hit them up for a couple. Around here everyone has a garden and it’s easy to get what you need but I know it’s not that way everywhere. Maybe you can get that tree out of the way for next year or consider growing one plant in a large pot next season. Thanks for your kind words–come hang out with me some more!
–Rachel