subject: Fried Green Tomato BLTs [print this page] The first time I visited Louisville, Kentucky, my boyfriend insisted that we go to a famous local restaurant,Lynn's Paradise Caf, as mentioned in atravel article about the city. They're famous for their amazing Bloody Marys and delicious breakfast items, but the one thing that really stuck in my mind when I went there was their fried green tomato BLT.
Before I started dating a southerner, I had heard of fried green tomatoes but had no desire to try them. Once I finally did, I realized that I was really missing out. The unpleasant sourness of the unripe tomato is transformed into something sweet and deliciously tart once fried; putting it between bread with bacon, lettuce, and mayo makes for a BLT like you've never had before. I knew that once the season was right, I had to try to recreate it.
Right now is the perfect time of year to make your own fried green tomato BLTs. Tomatoes are in season, which means so are green tomatoes, which are just unripe tomatoes picked early. While a regular grocery store will not likely carry them, a trip to your local farmers' market should until the end of tomato season. I'll admit, I bought green tomatoes for this recipe, but by the time I used them they had turned orangey-red. So, if you can't find green tomatoes, just use a very unripe red tomato.
If you want to make this vegetarian, just eliminate the bacon and use oil in place of the bacon fat to fry the tomatoes.
I tried to keep this as simple as possible, relying on the typical ingredients of a BLT. Though you probably could make this more sophisticated if you'd like, I think the simplicity of the ingredients let flavor of the fried green tomatoes shine through.
Fried Green Tomato BLTs:
Ingredients - Serves Two:
4 slices toasted white bread
6-8 slices bacon (or oil, for frying)
2 green tomatoes, sliced about inch thick
Flour, for dredging
1 egg, beaten lightly
2 tbsp milk
Panko (or regular breadcrumbs), for dredging
teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
2 tsp paprika
Salt & pepper
Mayo
Iceberg lettuce leaves
Directions:
1. Put bacon slices in an unheated pan and cook over medium-low heat, until crispy. Reserve rendered fat. Keep bacon warm in a low oven.
2. Season both sides of the tomatoes with salt and pepper. Season panko with paprika and cayenne and whisk milk in with the egg.Dredge the tomatoes in flour, then egg mixture, then panko. Raise heat in the same pan the bacon was in to medium-high heat. Cook the dredged tomatoes in the bacon fat for about 3-5 minutes per side, or until golden and crispy.
3. Spread the toasted bread with mayo, and layer the bread with a few leaves of lettuce, bacon, and the fried tomatoes, then top with second piece of bread. Repeat with second sandwich.
