Cherry vs Grape Tomatoes: What’s the Distinction?

Whether or not you’re perusing a bountiful farmstand or brightly lit grocery store show, it’s useful to know the variations between cherry and grape tomatoes. These smaller varieties, which each develop in clusters, can be utilized interchangeably in lots of recipes — however their measurement, form, texture, and cooking purposes differ. Right here’s all the pieces you might want to know earlier than snacking on them or utilizing them in recipes like mouth-watering garlic butter spaghetti or roasted tomato crostini. 

What are cherry tomatoes?

Cherry tomatoes are a kind of spherical, candy tomato which might be usually smaller than a golf ball and bigger than a marble. Their skinny, delicate skins might be crimson, orange, or yellow. Cherry tomatoes have smooth, juicy interiors, so don’t be shocked if you must wipe your chin with a serviette after popping one into your mouth. 

Cherry tomatoes are scrumptious eaten straight or on a crudité platter with lemony herbed tofu dip. You can even mix uncooked cherry tomatoes with inexperienced beans and olives to make a Spanish-accented facet dish, or toss them into grain salads.

Due to their excessive moisture content material, cherry tomatoes break down rapidly throughout cooking and are perfect for fast sauces. Use them to make stovetop spaghetti sauce with garlic butter, roast them on a sheet pan with salmon and capers, or simmer them right into a crimson wine ragout to spoon on high of creamy polenta.

The dimensions and form of cherry tomatoes make them prime candidates for stuffing, too. Hole them out and spoon in cheese, breadcrumbs, and different different savory fillings. Higher but, marinate cherry tomatoes in gin and olive brine, then spear them with toothpicks to make F&W editor-in-chief Hunter Lewis’s Martini Tomatoes. 

What are grape tomatoes?

Oval-shaped grape tomatoes are usually smaller and thicker-skinned than cherry tomatoes. They’re much less candy and hardier than cherry tomatoes, and have firmer flesh that’s much less apt to squirt juices while you reduce or chew into them. Attributable to their decrease moisture content material and thicker skins, they have a tendency to have an extended shelf life than cherry tomatoes.

Grape tomatoes are arguably simpler to eat out of hand, since they’re much less juicy. Attempt serving them as crudités with a spicy kale-pistachio or tangy fermented soybean dip. You can even toss halved grape tomatoes with grilled asparagus and kalamata olives for a satisfying summer season salad, or quick-pickle them and function a part of a chic grilled hen caprese dish. 

Roasting grape tomatoes in garlic and olive oil intensifies their sweetness, and creates a jammy condiment that’s scrumptious on high of toasted ciabatta or as a sauce for grilled hen or gentle, flaky fish. Their agency texture works effectively in tossed pasta dishes, too, like a spicy garlic shrimp spaghetti that’s on the desk in below half-hour.