Perfectly sliced tomato on a sandwich is a beautiful thing. How do you get the perfect slice of a tomato though? Well, it turns out that it isn’t all that difficult to slice a tomato but there are few valuable tips that will make all of the difference in the world.We love Caprese salad so we find ourselves slicing tomatoes often. I prefer to slice the tomatoes into thicker slices but how thick or thin is up to you. The biggest key, as you will see below, is to make sure that your tomato is ripe and that your knife is sharp.
A few tips about slicing tomatoes
- Using the proper knife will keep your tomatoes slices from turning into a soupy mess. The safest bet is to use a serrated knife. However, you can also use a super sharp paring knife. If you use a paring knife perhaps consider sharpening it first. A dull knife will rip the tomato flesh and essentially tear the tomato instead of slice it.
- Pick a firm-ripe tomato to slice. Pick the tomato up in your hand and give it a gentle squeeze. If it feels firm but has a small bit of give it is perfect for slicing.
- The thicker the tomato slice the better it will stay together. If you slice the tomato too thin it doesn’t keep its structure well.
- Cut the tomato across the spokes “core” of the tomato so that the slice stays intact. If you cut along the core instead of across the core the tomato slices will not be as stable.
How to slice a tomato
When slicing a tomato be sure that your knife is sharp. You shouldn’t need to force the knife to slice the tomato. Allow the knife to do all of the work. Just use your hands to guide the knife as it slices through the tomato.
- Step 1: Wash and dry the tomato.
- Step 2: Place the tomato with the stem side facing to your right (for right-handed folks or to the left for left-handed folks.)
- Step 3: Cut off a small slice of the tomato to remove the stem. This should only be about ¼” of the top of the tomato.
- Step 4: Start cutting the tomato in straight even slices. The thickness is up to you but I recommend that you keep the slices between ¼” to ½” thick. The thicker the slice the better that they will stay together for plating or adding to sandwiches.
- Step 5: Continue cutting even slices. Adjust your hand location as needed. Stop cutting slices when you can no longer safely grip the edge of the tomato and hold it while you slice.
