With green beans got a good review tonight!
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I am glad to have learned the term Thoran and educated myself a bit. I rarely follow recipes, but I lean heavily on techniques. I use my own variation on this technique as a base for quick and easy curries like tofu, squash, onion, and peppers, but I follow with a splash of coconut milk, a splash of oyster or fish sauce, and a wee bit of sugar, serving the whole with rice, chutney, and sometimes mustard pickle and peanuts. Quick comfort food. Next time I plan to stop at stage one and give it a go, probably as a dish served alongside something else. I made this quick curry the other night but had no flat bread for mopping. I found myself standing at the sink cleaning the wok with a spatula!
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I just got some Mutti datterini tomatoes. I often use their cherry tomatoes; I’ll try these just out of curiosity. I ordered them - none in any local stores that I know of.
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My former friend (he’s a complete jerk now but that’s another story) worked at Italian restaurants in Vancouver, and their trick was to melt butter into the tomato sauce right before serving. He used to do this. I don’t tend to do it, but I can see it having a similar lift as adding good olive oil right before serving.
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If you have somewhere that sells frozen grated (fresh) coconut nearby (Indian or Asian or Central American store), you’ll love the thoran even more, because: texture and sweetness of fresh coconut.
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That’s a Marcella cheat to me, works even with crappy jarred tomato sauce
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I didn’t know who Marcella was in 2001, when this guy wrecked my new Cuisinart saucepan’s finish with a stainless steel spoon, making tomato sauce out of crushed tomatoes and butter, for spaghetti at 3 am, after the bar. I still have the saucepan.
I had a final falling out with him in January 2020. 
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Oy.
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There’s a strange shortage of Cento tomato products in the smaller cans. I went to three or four markets, and none of them had the petite diced variety. I have a few cans in the cupboard, but I think I’m going to go into hoarding mode when they’re available again.
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I like the small cans of Kirkland organic diced tomatoes from Costco.
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I forgot to mention I also like Rotel original tomatoes.
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A Texas staple!
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Same here. I can find Mutti in 14 oz., but the Cento whole peeled, my go to, are always in 28 oz. Since I usually cook for two, the need for a large can is pretty rare, and that half can of tomatoes sitting in the fridge staring from the prison of its Pyrex container makes me sad. I also wish Cento offered ceci and cannellini in small cans. I have a container of those in the fridge, waiting impatiently for me to collect enough vegetable trimmings to make vegetable stock and send them to their destiny, minestrone. Shockingly, Central Market used to be a good source, but they seem to be phasing out Cento (along with other things like Mr. Mustard, Little Scarlet Strawberry Preserves, Keiller’s orange marmalade, and piccalilli, to name a few).
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I only know of one store around me that carries these, and it’s a family-owned store, not a chain.
Cento customer support replied to my email:
Hi,
Thank you for bringing this issue to our attention, we’d like to apologize for the inconvenience you have experienced. The Cento Petite Diced Tomatoes are not a discontinued item and we are working hard to get these restocked in stores.
Thank you for supporting Cento Fine Foods. Please feel free to reach out with any additional questions.
On Fri, 17 Jan at 5:54 PM , ernie_in_berkeley wrote:
I can't find the 14oz cans of Cento petite diced tomatoes in any store here in Berkeley, California. Has this product been discontinued? Are there supply line problems?
3002:2561625
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Your email address and first and last name are visible, just a heads up in case you care.
I saw that, too late to edit.
Still out of stock at two markets.
And out at Amazon.
(Mods changed for me, thanks for pointing it out)
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I made pasta e fagioli using Muti canned diced tomatoes today. They’re much better than TJ’s, but still not as good as the Cento petite diced, which are still not back on the shelves here.
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I get the no salt ones when I can, because I’m supposed to restrict my salt. But I always keep a couple of cans on hand.
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