If you’re one of those people who often reminisce about the time when tomatoes were filled with flavour, this could be the reason your love apples aren’t tasting so great – their genes are too chilled.
That’s what researchers at the University of Florida are suggesting following their in depth research into maximising the flavour and aroma of tomatoes.
Apparently cooling tomatoes below 12 degrees Celsius stops them from making some of the substances that contribute to their taste, robbing them of a full flavour. In fact, cool storage can decrease the amount of flavour molecules in your standard ruby red by as much as 65 per cent.
The research, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that after seven days being stored at 4 degrees Celsius (temperature of most fridges) it was hard to get the flavour back, even if the tomatoes sat at room temperature for three days.
The scientists are now looking at how to grow tomatoes that can be kept in the cold and still keep their flavour.
But until then, the experts advise you store tomatoes on a bench top.
