Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 8 green tomatoes, sliced 1/2″ to 3/4″ thick.
- 4 tsp. freshly-cracked sea salt
Garlic-Buttermilk Coating
- 2 cups whole buttermilk
- 1 large egg
- 4 tsp. chili sauce
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
Breading
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups yellow cornmeal
- 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp. freshly-cracked black pepper
Garlic, Bacon Buttermilk Sauce
- 4 slices thick-cut bacon
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup whole buttermilk
- 2 Tbsp. fresh Italian parsley, minced
- 2 Tbsp. fresh chives, chopped fine
- 1 tsp. French Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp. chili sauce
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp. (each) freshly cracked sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
Prepare the Garlic, Bacon Buttermilk Sauce
- Cook at least 4 slices of bacon until nicely browned and cooked thoroughly.
- Allow bacon to cool and then chop it up into tiny pieces.
- Combine and mix the buttermilk and mayonnaise in a small mixing bowl.
- Add the chopped bacon, Italian parsley, chives,mustard, chili sauce, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Mix well, cover and chill.
Prepare the Tomatoes
- Lay paper towels on top of several cookie/baking racks and place in a baking sheet.
- Lay the tomato slices on the paper towels, generously sprinkling each layer of sliced tomatoes with approximately 1 – 2 tsp. of salt (on each layer).
- Allow the salted tomatoes to sit and sweat for 30 minutes.
- Shake the liquid from the tomatoes and pat dry with clean paper towels.
- Heat a deep heavy pan half-way full of canola or vegetable oil, on the highest setting.
Prepare the Garlic-Buttermilk Coating
- In a medium sized, shallow baking dish, mix the buttermilk, egg, chili sauce and garlic powder together.
Prepare the Breading
- In another medium sized, shallow baking dish, mix the flour, cornmeal, Italian breadcrumbs, garlic powder, and ½ tsp. each of salt and pepper.
Preparation of the Fried Green Tomatoes
- Place each slice of tomato in the buttermilk mixture and coat well on both sides, and allowing extra milk to drip off.
- Place buttermilk-coated tomato slices in the flour-cornmeal mixture, covering both sides and slightly pressing down for the dry coating to stick.
- Repeat the dipping into buttermilk and back into the flour-cornmeal mixture a SECOND time, again gently pressing so that the double-coating sticks.
- Immediately and carefully place the coated tomato slices into the ‘very’ hot oil in a heavy cast iron skillet, being careful not to splatter the hot oil and not overcrowding the tomatoes.
- I like to cook about 5 or 6 slices at a time so that the temperature of the oil does not drop and cause the tomatoes to cook slower and become more greasy.
- The slices of tomatoes should be golden grown after about 2 – 4 minutes.
- When cooked, carefully remove tomato slices from the hot oil with a large slotted utensil and place on clean paper towels to absorb oil.
Notes
- Very adapted from Taste Of The South, most especially by adding the garlic and Italian breadcrumbs to the recipe, making it 10 times better! You’ll taste the difference!!!