How to easily dice a tomato. There are quite a few ways to dice tomatoes including using a knife and cutting board or even your food processor.
The key factor is to follow a few simple steps and practice.
Before we start, you should know what things you will need for dicing a tomato. Cutting tomatoes into cubes is simple and easy.
You can use a knife, food processor or dicer to cut tomatoes into cubes. For the simplest method you only need:
- A knife
- A cutting board
- A spoon or table knife
What is the Best Knife to Cut Tomatoes?
A serrated knife is best for cutting through the tomato skin. Cutting with a paring knife or a fancy chef knife can tear and crumble the skin of the tomato.
So, the same serrated knife we use to cut a loaf of bread works fine with tomatoes. Like bread, tomatoes have a solid exterior that protects the soft pulp inside.
Using the sawing method is the best way to cut through the tomato skin without squishing the soft interior.
What are the Alternatives for Knives?
As mentioned earlier, there are two methods for dicing tomatoes. If you have to dice a lot of tomatoes, dicing with a knife can be a long and exhausting process.
A food processor is the perfect appliance to dice tomatoes in less than a minute. You can use the pulse feature to prevent the appliance from making a sauce out of your tomatoes.
The second alternative is to use a dicer. This alternative is best if you are to dice small and medium-sized tomatoes. You just have to push down the lever to dice a tomato into fine and uniform cubes.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Dicing With a Knife
Before dicing the tomatoes, remove the produce stickers and wash the tomatoes. Now follow these steps to dice tomatoes uniformly:
- Place the tomato on its side and use a serrated knife to trim off any stems or leaves.
- Cut the tomato half crosswise to expose the seeds and pulp in the middle.
- Gently squeeze the seeds and use a spoon or table knife to seed tomatoes from the middle. Then, discard the seeds.
- Placing the seeded half tomatoes on the cutting board, make vertical and evenly spaced slices. You can choose the thickness depending on how large or small you want the cubes to be.
- Rotate the tomato slices 90 degrees and slice in the opposite direction to make cubes.
Some Bonus Tips
- If you feel that seeding tomatoes with a spoon can be messy, you can cut off the sides of the tomatoes, leaving the core.
- Do not use overripe or raw tomatoes for making tomato cubes. Overripe tomatoes are too soft and squishy for dicing, while raw tomatoes would not taste good.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Dicing With Food Processor
Dicing tomatoes with a food processor is a convenient alternative. This method helps you cut tomatoes into cubes of equal size within seconds.
Here’s how to dice tomatoes in a food processor:
- Cut the tomatoes with a knife into pieces that will fit into the bowl of the food processor. You can also cut the tomatoes into halves and seed tomatoes before putting them in the processor.
- Use the regular blade that came with the appliance, and do not overload the bowl with tomato pieces.
- Press the pulse button to cycle the blade for two or three seconds.
- Empty the bowl once you have diced the tomatoes to the desired size.
- Repeat the process with a new batch.
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Some Bonus Tips
- You can strain the diced tomatoes in a colander or strainer if you do not want the tomato juice.
- Using the Pulse function of the processor for longer will give you finer tomato cubes. But, overdoing it can turn the tomatoes into puree.
- Use only firm tomatoes for dicing.
- Empty the bowl before putting in a new batch of tomatoes for dicing. This will help you keep the size of the tomato cubes consistent.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Cutting with a Dicer
If you find it hard to dice the tomatoes with a knife and you do not have a food processor either, you can use a dicer. Dicers are both convenient and budget-friendly.
Follow these steps to dice a tomato with a dicer:
- Choose a dicer with a suitable sized blade frame and secure it in place.
- Cut the tomato half crosswise.
- Seed the tomatoes before dicing them.
- Place the tomato on the blade frame and press the lever down.
- Empty the preservation box when it is full before dicing another piece.
Some Bonus Tips
- Press the lever down in a quick motion to prevent pieces of tomatoes from sticking to the blade.
- For dicing soft fruits or vegetables, like tomatoes, I suggest you use the larger 13.6mm dicing blade.
- Cut the tomatoes into smaller pieces if they are bigger than the size of the blade frame.
Best Uses for Diced Tomatoes
I have found that using diced tomatoes in recipes distributes the flavor throughout the dish. They also make the dish appear more presentable.
I use small tomato cubes for topping and to make sauces. Medium tomato cubes work best for salsas and sides, while larger are best for salads, soups and stews.
From my Pico de Gallo recipe to my Tabbouleh one, I prefer medium-sized tomato cubes most of the time.
Here are some of the best uses for diced tomatoes:
- Nachos: Tortilla chips topped with ground beef, shredded cheese, jalapenos, diced tomatoes, avocados, and sour cream.
- Pico De Gallo: A Mexican dish made from diced tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, and lime juice.
- Tacos: Tacos with ground beef or grilled shrimp, avocado, cream, diced tomatoes, and lime juice.
- Greek Tomato Salad: A salad of diced tomatoes, cucumber, onion, red wine vinegar, and olive oil.
- Fresh Tomato Pizza: A regular pizza topped with mozzarella cheese, diced tomatoes, basil leaves, and olive oil.
The bottom line
Diced tomatoes work great with different types of recipes. Whether you are using them in the recipe or only for topping, diced tomatoes will enhance the presentation of food.
You can also use them with most kinds of meat. Diced tomatoes also stand out when you pair them with meat as sides.
I absolutely love the color and flavor they bring up in my recipes.
5 of our favorite pieces of cookware lately!
- Large Saucepan
- Le Creuset Baking Pan
- Le Creuset Frying Pan
- Le Creuset Spatula
- Cuisinart Food Processor
How to dice tomatoes
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Ingredients
- 1 tomato
Instructions
- Wash and dry the tomato
- Cut the tomato into small enough pieces to fit in the food processor. (Seeding them is optional but preferred.)
- Use the regular blade that came with the appliance, and do not overload the bowl with tomato pieces.
- Press the pulse button to cycle the blade for two or three seconds.
- Empty the bowl once you have diced the tomatoes to the desired size.
- Repeat the process with a new batch.
