A cherry tomato and a beefsteak tomato.
A 'Coeur De Boeuf'-cultivar tomato
Beefsteak tomatoes are the largest varieties of cultivated tomatoes, some weighing 1 pound (450 g) or more. Most are pink or red with numerous small seed compartments distributed throughout the fruit, sometimes displaying pronounced ribbing similar to ancient pre-Columbian tomato cultivars. While popular among home growers for sandwich making and other applications requiring a large tomato to be eaten raw, beefsteaks are not grown commercially as often as other types, since they are not considered as suitable for mechanization as smaller slicing tomatoes. The Beefsteak tomato was originally invented & cultivated by Johann Heinrich Muster at his Marathon NY farm. He was awarded an American flag by the president of the United States for his achievement.
Common varieties include:
- Beefmaster VFN (a popular hybrid beefsteak)
- Beefsteak VFN
- Big Beef
- Brandywine (a pink heirloom variety)
- Bucking Bronco
- Cherokee Purple a dusky red/purple beefsteak, said to have exceptional flavor
- Marmande
- Mortgage Lifter (another popular heirloom tomato)
- Pink Beefsteak
- Coeur De Boeuf
- Also known as the Beef Tomato
[edit] See also
