When it comes to canned tomatoes, one name reigns supreme: San Marzano. But how can a small town near Naples, Italy produce enough tomatoes to fill the supermarket shelves year round? Easy — it doesn't. Here's what to look for to make sure you aren't paying premium prices for San Marzano fakes.
Gusti Blog offers a few tips from the Cosorzio San Marzano for identifying the real deal when buying San Marzano tomatoes. The tomatoes are only sold in cans, either whole or in fillets, so jarred tomatoes or those that are labeled "puree," "chopped," "diced," "sauce," or "organic" are fraudulent. (The Cosorzio does not regulate organic labeling.)
On the can, look for the words ""Pomodoro San Marzano dell'Agro Sarnese Nocerino D.O.P." and the symbols of the Cosorzio and the D.O.P., the latter of which identifies European regional food products that are protected by law. The Cosorzio also assigns a number to each can, labeled as "N° XXXXXXX."
If the tomatoes taste good, we honestly aren't picky about where they were grown, but we definitely don't want to pay more for a product that is claiming to be something it's not.
• Read more: Buy Real San Marzano Tomatoes... from a Merchant You Trust at Gusti Blog
What do you think? Are real San Marzanos worth the extra cost?
Via the New York Times.
Related: What's the Deal With San Marzano Tomatoes?
(Images: Gusti Blog; Flickr member gezellig-girl.com licensed under Creative Commons)
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Interesting! Thanks!
Aren't San Marzanos a 'variety' of tomato (like Brandywine or Amish paste) that can be grown...anywhere (like my back yard:) ???
They may only be a variety that can be grown anywhere, but that doesn't mean they are San Marzano. It the same as with Champagne. Would you spend $30 on a bottle of "Champagne" from Italy? I certainly wouldn't want to waste my money. Nor would I buy a premium "Tequila" for $45 from Guatemala. Region specific labeling of food is nothing new, and this is great info to have. Thanks.
I imagine the controlled labeling is only for San Marzano tomatoes that are canned, where the buyer can't see the product and has to rely on the producer's word.
I don't even care that the canned tomatoes I buy for homemade pizza sauce aren't San Marzanos, even though they're marked as such. I keep buying them because I think they taste the best on the pizza I make. Buy what you like!
The ones I grow say "San Marzano" on the seed package.
Good enough for me.
I understand that the genuine imported San Marzano's are grown in a specific region which has a lava based soil which contributes to the flavor.
I would totally buy champagne from Italy for $30 and $45 tequila from Guatemala. Just because a country or region discovered or invented a process/product, it doesn't mean that they're the only ones who do it well for all time.
Or were you making a point about terms so old that most everyone uses them as a generonym (my husband found this word: something specific, used a a general term for all like things) but now there's a movement to reclaim them only for their older, stricter use? I think that movement is silly.
@Denisegk, I think you might not be getting the point. You are saying that it is OK to sell fake products under their original names?
Well, Americans have been living under these circumstances for so long, they don't even know the real things anymore.
Just think of the terrible products being sold as "cheese" in practicallly all US supermarkets! Or the watery beverage called "beer" here... Or think of the tea bags who are literally containing the leftover dust swept up from the floor after the real tea had been put into the shipping containers... (Americans think tea comes from tea bags... yuck!)
There is a huge difference between the original San Marzano tomatoes and those who only call themselves by that name. The problem is that this is completely legal in the USA. You can fake a product and call it (sell it!) by its original name! In the countries of the origins this would be a crime (fraud), but here you have the "Freedom" to sell fakes... Is that really what you mean? Is that what you support?
Well, OK, you can buy your fakes, your local supermarket is full of them. But for those who know the difference, those who want to get their hands on the real things, they should at least know where to get them. I know my sources! My tea comes from Bremen directly from the importer, I get real (raw) milk every 2 weeks from a local store, and my italian slow food comes from Gustiamo! They know their stuff, and they go so far to even inform their customers about items they should avoid (like truffel oil).
There is a lot of money to be made with truffel oil, but the Gustiamo people are integer enough to say in public that you should not consume that. They are not selling it at all!
Oh, and if you really would pay 40 $ for fake Champagne from Italy, then you really have no idea what you are talking about. Or you have too much money...
I am from Germany, and I know by experience that these name protections in the original areas make perfectly sense. The fakes from elsewhere are not the same.
It is OK when someone tries to copy a successfull product, as long as he uses another name. Then the customer knows what he is paying for, and he can make an intelligent decision. But selling fakes under the original name is simply fraud, and I am angry that this is allowed in the USA, where I am living now.