Tomato Shark
Tears through tomatoes
I have dozens of tools and gadgets in my kitchen. Years working in the restaurant and catering world left me with an inventory of items that I bought for this job or that party. Some were quite expensive and most were probably only used once or twice (I’m looking at you, Mother of Pearl Caviar Spoon!).
But there’s one tool that cost me less than $2.00 at a restaurant supply store over 10-years ago that I still use on a fairly regular basis, at least during the summer. Anytime I need to core a tomato or hull a strawberry I reach for my Tomato Shark ($8).
It’s a simple little metal spoon with sharp teeth that digs into your tomato or strawberry, removes the core or hull cleanly, and leaves you with just the fruit to work with. Unless you have super sharp knives and great paring knife skills you are probably used to coring a batch of tomatoes for sauce being a time-consuming and sometimes messy job; the Tomato Shark makes this job easy, tidy and quick.
This is one of those items where you should buy the actual Tomato Shark brand. I’ve found similar items just don’t hold up over time: the teeth get dull quicker, and you just don’t need to spend the extra money on a fancier version (unless you have problems with your hands and need a plastic handle for ergonomic reasons).
06/10/19(The original Tomato Shark is remarkably difficult to find online, and your best bet might be hitting up a restaurant supply store. With that being said, Amazon reviewers have good things to say about these off-brand stainless steel tomato corers being sold for $10 a dozen.--OH
This is a Cool Tools Favorite from 2011 — editors)
Tomato Shark ($8)
