Fried Green Tomatoes, a Crispy Southern Tradition

Photo courtesy of “Ed Mitchell’s Barbeque.” Ecco Publishing, June 2023

Famed Southern pitmasters Ed Mitchell and his son Ryan have penned a wonderful book, “Ed Mitchell’s Barbeque.” If you’re a barbecue lover, this is a book for you. You’ll find cultural history woven through the pages along with taste-tempting recipes. Think mac n’ cheese, pineapple upside-down cake, fried chicken, and, of course, all things barbecue.

The book is broken up into chapters, making it easy to find what you want to prepare. As a Californian, I was intrigued by his fried green tomato recipe. This isn’t on any California menu I know about. I decided to try his version, compliments of his mama. She always served these crisp green tomato gems along with barbecued meats.

This recipe is seriously simple. And as Mr. Mitchell would say, “Season your tomatoes, batter them in flour, put them in your oil, and let ’em roll.”

Wherever you live, this season is prime time for green tomatoes. True, I had to order them from my farm stand, so check with your greengrocer to make sure they’re available when you want to prepare them.

Ed has a few suggestions for preparing the tomatoes.

• Make the flour coating super thin for the crispiest tomatoes—you want to be able to see a hint of skin underneath.
• Don’t try to fry all the tomatoes at the same time. Just like with all fried foods, you don’t want to crowd the pan. Cook the tomatoes in batches for the best results.
• Before you start frying, line a baking sheet with paper towels and place a cooling rack on top. This will allow the fried green tomatoes to drain without becoming soggy.

You can serve the tomatoes with pimento cheese, a creamy remoulade, or even a spicy aioli.

Ed Mitchell’s Fried Green Tomatoes

Serves 4

• 4 green tomatoes
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• Dash of sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups breadcrumbs
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• Vegetable or canola oil, for frying
• Pimento cheese and cooked bacon or fried pork belly, for serving

Cut each green tomato into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Pat with a paper towel to remove some of the moisture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

In a shallow dish, combine the flour, garlic powder, and sugar, plus salt and pepper to taste. Whisk the eggs in a medium bowl. In another shallow dish, combine the breadcrumbs, onion powder, and Italian seasoning.

Coat each green tomato slice in the flour mixture, then dip it into the egg mixture, and finally dredge it in the breadcrumb mixture, making sure that each slice is fully dressed.

Fry 3 or 4 slices at a time for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden brown in a fryer or in a deep pan on low-medium heat. Drain them on paper towels.

Top with pimento cheese and cooked bacon or fried pork belly.