Grill Hills -Know your passata from your purée

.These days, I am faced with a sea of tomato products on the supermarket shelves when all I'm really looking for is a bog-standard can of tomatoes. Not long ago, there was one, maybe two brands of canned whole tomatoes. Most of the products start with a P and I don't know one from another. Cans, jars, bottles . and recently I stumbled on what I thought was a tube of tomato toothpaste. Fluoride tomato sauce? An idiot's guide to these products would be helpful in getting this novice through the tomato minefield.

Q: These days, I am faced with a sea of tomato products on the supermarket shelves when all I'm really looking for is a bog-standard can of tomatoes. Not long ago, there was one, maybe two brands of canned whole tomatoes. Most of the products start with a P and I don't know one from another. Cans, jars, bottles . and recently I stumbled on what I thought was a tube of tomato toothpaste. Fluoride tomato sauce? An idiot's guide to these products would be helpful in getting this novice through the tomato minefield. - Brian Stott, Benoni

A: Brian, it's time to smell the rosas, get a new recipe book and celebrate the wonderful selection of tomato products on our shelves. You're right that, up until fairly recently, all we could get was locally canned tomatoes. Finally our supermarkets have realised that we do watch food shows on television and buy international cookbooks and magazines and have been hungry for more than a peeled South African tomato. I, for one, am delighted.

This guide will hopefully set you on your way to breaking some new ground.

TOMATO PURÉE

Not as strong, dark or thick as tomato paste, purée is a liquid made from tomatoes that have been cooked and strained, imparting a more intense flavour than that of canned tomatoes. Larger amounts of purée can be used in cooking than tomato paste. I often add a can of whole tomatoes and 2 to 3 tbsp of purée to a dish that calls for tomatoes.

TOMATO PASTE

Available in standard small cans, the paste is made from tomatoes that have been cooked for several hours, strained and reduced to a thick, rich concentrate. Hugely flavour intensive, tomato paste should be used sparingly.

Handy foil sachets of tomato paste mean the days of mouldy, half-used cans are gone. It also comes in resealable plastic tubs and the really clever "toothpaste tubes". It's not great as a toothpaste, but the packaging makes it super-handy - and usually a tube means it is Italian.

Tomato paste is used in all tomato-based dishes such as ragù, sauces, soups and stews, but remember it can be harsh and acidic: you only need 2 to 3 tbsp per dish.

CANNED TOMATOES

Whole canned tomatoes:

Usually the firmer plum tomato variety goes into cans. Peeled, the tomatoes are sealed in the can and undergo a heating process. They are usually packed in tomato juice - or even tomato purée for added flavour. The local brands of canned tomatoes are far sharper than the imported Italian products, which are sold at competitive prices - I always add a spoonful of caster sugar when cooking with the local ones. To intensify the flavour of canned tomatoes, roast them in the oven before using. Empty the contents into a pan and roast uncovered at 200°C for 30 minutes. A handy tip courtesy of Jamie Oliver: avoid breaking up whole tomatoes when they're cooking as the seeds can make your dish bitter.

A fairly new innovation is cans of whole, peeled cherry tomatoes. Dinky and dainty, they add a decorative touch to a dish and are sweeter than the standard tomatoes, if you don't overcook them.

Chopped canned tomatoes:

These are peeled tomatoes which have been chopped before canning. They are usually cheaper than whole tomatoes, as many canneries use second-grade produce. I find chopped tomatoes quite watery.

TOMATO PASSATA

Packed in distinctive tall, wide-necked glass jars or in cardboard cartons, passata is an Italian product made from ripe tomatoes that have been puréed and sieved to remove the skin and seeds.

Thinner than a purée, passata is used in dishes that require a more subtle tomato flavour, such as the sauce spread over pizza bases, as well as other sauces, stews and soups.

Passata is made by boiling up roughly chopped tomatoes, which are then passed through a blender and sieve. I often freeze leftover passata in ice trays and use the cubes in cooking or tomato drinks, such as Bloody Mary.

Once opened, store passata in the fridge and use within two weeks.