Mexican natives Domesticated Tomatoes
History of Tomatoes
The exact origin of Tomato plant is not known, although it is speculated that it evolved from the prehistoric plant Nighshade over millions of years ago in South America (together with potato, tobacco and chili peppers) and slowly moved to north until it was domesticated in the lands of Mesoamerica Mexico .This land was a home of several advanced Pre-Columbian society who flourished there until arrival of Europeans in the Age of Discovery. During 500 BC, one of those cultures managed to domesticate tomato and integrate it into their cuisine. That culture was from Mexico . From that point on, tomato slowly spread across the central and South America, somewhere being used as a food, but somewhere also being used as a hallucinogenic (a use that will later on be a cause of many misconceptions about this vegetable).
The first European contact with tomato came with Christopher Columbus who possibly encountered it in 1493, but it was Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés who first saw the potential of this plant in the city of Aztec city of Tenochtítlan and took its seeds back to Europe. There, seeing that tomato could grow without a problem in a warm Mediterranean climate, Spanish government started encouraging its production in both Europe and its distant colonies. As early as 1540s tomato started being produced in Spanish fields, and was used regularly as a common food in early 17th century. Other European countries did not adopt tomato immediately. For example, even though Italian nobility and scientists found out about tomato from 1548, (which is now famous for their tomato and ketchup industry), they used it only as a tabletop decoration fruit until late 17th and early 18th century. They cherished their beauty, and experimented with selective breeding, managing to create tomatoes of many colors and shapes. Tomato received similar fate in England, where it was introduced in 1597, but it remained viewed as unhealthy, poisonous and unfit to eat in both England and its North American colonies.
In early 19th century tomato finally arrived in Asia. It arrived there under the guidance of British consul in Syria John Barker who directed first cultivation efforts. By mid-19th century, tomato gained much popularity and started being used widely in Syria, Iran and China.
In 2009, worldwide tomato production rose to 158.3 million tons, surpassing the previous year by 3.7%.
All dishes that use Tomatoes have Mexican influence. Later on i will post dishes foods that use Tomatoes.
