By the time I was 21 you couldn’t convince me to eat these two things: A dill pickle, and a raw tomato. While I still stand by the dill pickle, I will eat one on occasion if in the middle of a fried chicken sandwich. The later, thankfully, I’ve seen the error of my ways.
I was on summer break from college when my mom handed me half of her sandwich. I saw nothing but white bread, an obscene amount of mayo, salt and fresh cracked pepper. My college diet consisted of pizza, pop tarts, and the oatmeal cookies I’d bake up when I missed home. I was in no position to pass up real food. So, I took a bite.
The warm juice from the garden tomato spilled down the webs of my fingers and I licked a glob of mayo/pepper from the corner of my mouth. This wasn’t just a tomato sandwich; it was a holy experience.
“You haven’t had a tomato until you’ve had a summer tomato” and she was correct, as moms tend to be.
The warm tomato sandwich is the reason I grow tomatoes in my own garden every summer. So, I can sit out on my back porch with a tomato sandwich, heavy on the mayo, light on the bread. If I have any luck, the tomato is still hot from the sun. And this summer, there’s been plenty of luck. My garden has never been so overrun with tomatoes.
Today I’m using a square from a focaccia I was testing but on a usual day it’s white, country bread, or buttermilk. Don’t toast the bread. You want it soft. Lather on a layer of mayo to your preference.
Slice a garden tomato. Today this Mortgage Lifter (yes, that’s the name of the tomato) was ready for the taking. Deep red all the way through. Sprinkle with flur de sel, and crack pepper directly over the top. The juices will start flowing.
Layer on top of the mayo and close the sandwich. You won’t regret one minute of this experience. I’d suggest a pairing of diet coke and salted kettle chips. A crisp glass of Sauvignon Blanc and a wedge of brie will work too. It’s casual. It’s expensive.
Now take it outside – a back porch, a garden, the front door, a nearby park. Eat. Slurp. Lick. And be thankful.
18 Responses
Tomato sandwiches from home grown or local farm grown tomatoes are the best sandwiches. BLTs are second best.
I like chopping up the tomatoes and getting rid of the seeds and gelatinous stuff. I don’t really like messy sandwiches.
I mix the chopped tomatoes with mayo, salt, pepper, and a little drizzle of balsamic or wine vinegar. The mixture means you get tomato in every bite and don’t have to deal with slippery tomatoes.
I also do this for BLTs and crumble the crispy bacon into the tomato mayo mixture. I can’t eat lettuce, but I’d still lay the leaves down on top of the tomato mixture.
I love tomato sandwiches. I like my bread toasted lots of mayo, sea salt and fresh pepper. Try adding some sliced cucumbers preferably fresh from the garden.
One of my all time favorite sandwiches! Give them a try on toasted bread of your choice, s&p, good quality EVOO and a sprinkle of oregano. You won’t be disappointed!
I grew up eating fresh garden tomato and fried egg sandwich on white bread with lots of mayo, salt and pepper and chips on the side. I’ve said if I’m ever given the choice of a last meal, that would be it!
Have eaten these for years.. Love it! If you prefer toast try it with cream cheese slathered instead of the mayo. Either way it’s the best!!!
Turn this into the classic BLT! Can’t go wrong with salty bacon, tomato, mayo, sometimes cheese.
I try so hard to like raw tomatoes, and I just don’t. For a long time I claimed I didn’t like tomatoes because I thought I wouldn’t like tomatoes, but in my mid-20s I moved in with green thumbs who grew tomatoes, and I decided to finally see if I actually didn’t like them. I’ve tried every summer since, and still no dice. It’s a very sad things.
I’m not above it.
interesting, not one tomato sandwich in my history, never would have imagined it, but love your story so, good time of year to try one, thank you!
Your post is power filled for me. In Sherman Oaks we have a farm stand called Tapia’s and their summer tomatoes are glorious. For this sandwich I always bring out my bread machine to craft a classic white bread. “Un” toasted slices of the bread with the mayo and slabs of tomato….but a slight tweak. A big scoop of creamy based (think K.F.C.) cole slaw on top of the tomatoes before the second slice goes on. For 2 bites you can pick up this sandwich to eat properly….and then the fun of some mess when eating the rest, as the bread soaks up the yummy juices, becoming dumpling like. It becomes knife and fork worthy.
Thank you for sharing this wonderful idea and it is really amazing. Thank you so much. Looking forward for more such creative stuff.
For dinner tonight I had a CBT–cheese (smoked provolone), basil, and tomato on multigrain bread with mayo. Love it!
You’re right, I had forgotten how much I loved tomato sandwiches with mayo! Thanks for the reminder since summer isn’t over and I’m 85!
WHAT GOOD IS SUMMER IF YOU CAN’T HAVE A GARDEN FRESH TOMATO SANDWICH ?????
I have to disagree. Tomato sandwich on white toast, s&p & mayo is also delicious.
Now, fried red tomato on soft white bread with butter is another summertime favorite.
Like you, my mom introduced me to tomato sandwiches, but I was just a child. At 72 I have now consumed a mountain of them. I was surprised to see that our sandwiches are exactly the same. You really have to add the pepper. I put mayo on the bread and season the mayo – especially with the pepper. I believe it releases some of its spicy goodness into the oils. So simple, but so perfect.
Adding basil is great too
I ate this sandwich three lunches running, it’s just heaven, sometimes I make basil mayonnaise, sometimes I add cheddar cheese, but always mayo and salt on the tomato. Basil is a great add too. Yum, best summer sandwich! Tom Flinn