This Popular Tomato Variety Was Nearly Wiped Out In The '70s And Now It's A Chef Favorite

From a simple tomato sauce to the quintessential summertime sandwich, tomatoes boost acidity and sweetness in many cuisines and dishes. San Marzano tomatoes, prized for their sweetness and low seed count, is one of the most well-known varieties of tomatoes in the world — and yet we almost lost them forever. 

Hailing from San Marzano sul Sarno, Italy (which is nestled between Naples, Sorrento, and the Amalfi Coast), these oblong gems are a culinary delight due to the rich volcanic soils from nearby Mount Vesuvius. (Use them to make sauces that taste straight out of Italy!) Legend has it that the tomatoes made their debut in the 18th century when the Viceroyalty of Peru gifted the seeds to the King of Naples. The tomatoes thrived off of the Italian soil and microclimate, and soon became a staple ingredient in Campania cuisine; they're the shining star of classic Margherita pizza, for example.

One wouldn't think that such a renowned crop would face near-extinction, but in the 1970s, widespread blight — the complete destruction of a plant's leaves, stems, and flowers — hit the Campania region and San Marzanos were nearly knocked out entirely. The crop took such a hit that farmers switched to hybrids, including Roma tomatoes.

Today, it's not difficult to find San Marzanos in grocery stores — thanks to the Slow Food movement. Enraged by a McDonald's built near the base of the Spanish Steps in Rome, Carlo Petrini founded the movement — which champions local food traditions, sustainable farming, and fair treatment for producers — in 1986. As part of their work, Slow Food launched the Ark of Taste and Presidia initiatives in 1996 to focus on the research and resurgence of Italian foods nearing extinction. Funded by the Campania Regional Authority, the Presidium revived the production of 30 San Marzano ecotypes. The same year, the Protected Designation of Origin was given to processed and canned San Marzano tomatoes, establishing them as unique to the area. 

The organization's efforts helped reestablish San Marzano crops, allowing the tomatoes to regain popularity and become a favorite of professional chefs and home cooks alike. Due to their unique and naturally sweet flavor profile and low acidity (a result of containing fewer seeds), the San Marzanos can be adapted into many dishes. Containing more tomato flesh (or meat), they also give dishes a thicker texture without hours of low and slow cooking.

Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten swears by the canned version and Lidia Bastianich uses them to make a simple spaghetti sauce since it's easy to extract their pulp. If you're interested in using them at home, beyond making a classic marinara or Neapolitan pizza, use them to make the ultimate tomato soup or blend them with carrots to take your tomato sauce to the next level. You can also roast them in the oven, breaking down their sugars even further and giving them a caramelized flavor, and add them to pastas, salads, or sides. Buon appetito!