Gardening

Five Tips on How to Ripen Green Tomatoes

• Leave them on the Vine as long as possible.  Take the time to cover them with plastic if your temperatures are low.  Don’t be tempted to pick them just because it feels like the season is over. They will ripen the best left on the vine.
• Place them on a sunny window sill. This is a hit or miss solution and works best with cherry tomatoes (tiny ones).  Tomatoes are more stable sitting on their stem side however, they will rot less readily if you can place them blossom side down.
• Wrap individual green tomatoes in newspaper and layer in a box, no more than 2 layers deep. Place the box in a dark, dry spot and check weekly for progress. It usually takes 3-4 weeks for the tomatoes to ripen, but check frequently and remove any fruits that show signs of rotting.
• Place the green tomatoes in a paper bag with a ripe apple or banana. The fruit gives off ethylene gas, which speeds up ripening. Check the bag daily.
• Place the green tomatoes in a cardboard box and place fruit inside of the box.  It’s important not to let them touch each other – you want space between each tomato and the fruit.  Cover box and store in a dark location.  Check daily and remove ones as they ripen.

See Related Post: Green Fried Tomato Recipe