Source: Sunset magazine, August 2010

Total: 1 hour
Yield: Serves 6

Ingredients

• 4 1/2  pounds  ripe tomatoes
• 2  teaspoons  vegetable oil
• 1  teaspoon  garam masala
• 1  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 1/2  cup  chopped red onion
• 2  teaspoons  minced garlic
• 1  serrano chile, seeded and chopped
• 2  tablespoons  grated fresh ginger
• 1  to 1 1/2 cups reduced-fat coconut milk
• 3  tablespoons  tomato paste
• 2  tablespoons  lemon juice
• 1  tablespoon  sugar
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  kosher salt
• 1/2  cup  chopped fresh cilantro, plus small cilantro leaves

Preparation

1. Dip tomatoes in a pan of boiling water until skins pull off easily with a knife tip, 15 seconds. Cool, peel, core, quarter, and seed.

2. Warm oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add spices and stir until fragrant, 1 minute. In a blender, purée onion, garlic, chile, ginger, 1 cup coconut milk, the tomato paste, and spice mixture.

3. Add half of tomatoes and their juices and whirl until very smooth. Pour into a stainless steel bowl. Set aside 2 tomato pieces. Purée remaining tomatoes and stir into bowl with the lemon juice, sugar, and salt.

4. Nest bowl in ice water; stir often until cold, 15 minutes. Stir in chopped cilantro and more coconut milk if you like. Chop reserved tomato. Garnish bowls with tomato and cilantro leaves.

Nutritional analysis