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Posted by Michael Vyskocil Feb 10, 2007 |
Sun-dried tomatoes were long only relegated to gourmet dishes and specialty food stores. In fact, you couldn't even walk into a supermarket and expect to find them on the shelves. I remember years ago how difficult it was to hunt these down at my neighborhood grocery store, particularly since I wanted to make an Italian pasta dish that called for sun-dried tomatoes. Lately, they're beginning to be used more frequently in daily cooking and you can now find them in most supermarkets.
Generally, sun-dried tomatoes are usually available packed in oil, but this luxury does come with a consequence: oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes tend to be expensive. One economical idea that will save you money is to make your own version of the oil-packed tomatoes with the dry-packed variety. To do this, bring some water to a boil in a medium-sized saucepan. Add a pinch of salt and a drop of red-wine vinegar to the boiling water. Next, add the dry-packed tomatoes to the water, turn off the heat, and allow the tomatoes to steep in the water for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, drain off the water. You can then use your tomatoes immediately for a salad or you can cover them with a layer of extra-virgin olive oil in a glass jar and refrigerate them for up to three weeks.