Need help with a piriform ID

[gorbelly]

Cuor(e) di bue can be a variety that is an actual heart, or it can be a piriform tomato. Whether it's cuore or cuor depends on the region of Italy and whether or not they tend to drop final vowels there. I think these things tend to be vague because food is very regional there, so in Albenga, people probably used to just call the local piriform tomato "cuor di bue", and it was only outsiders who would specify that it was from Albenga. And so forth.

Other very similar tomatoes are called "pera" (pear) or "canestrino" (a small basket), often with a place name after it (pera d'Abbruzzo, canestrino di Lucca).

"Coeur de boeuf" is French. The same problem exists in that some coeurs de boeuf are oxhearts and some are piriform. Many are Italian piriform varieties that the French adopted, so coeur de boeuf d'Albenga is just the French translation for cuor di bue di Albenga. There's a lot of culinary exchange between parts of France and parts of Italy. And Switzerland has influence from both countries.

A tomato bought at market in Europe is probably just as likely to be a hybrid as one bought at a market here.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by gorbelly

Cuor(e) di bue can be a variety that is an actual heart, or it can be a piriform tomato. Whether it's cuore or cuor depends on the region of Italy and whether or not they tend to drop final vowels there. I think these things tend to be vague because food is very regional there, so in Albenga, people probably used to just call the local piriform tomato "cuor di bue", and it was only outsiders who would specify that it was from Albenga. And so forth.

Other very similar tomatoes are called "pera" (pear) or "canestrino" (a small basket), often with a place name after it (pera d'Abbruzzo, canestrino di Lucca).

"Coeur de boeuf" is French. The same problem exists in that some coeurs de boeuf are oxhearts and some are piriform. Many are Italian piriform varieties that the French adopted, so coeur de boeuf d'Albenga is just the French translation for cuor di bue di Albenga. There's a lot of culinary exchange between parts of France and parts of Italy. And Switzerland has influence from both countries.

A tomato bought at market in Europe is probably just as likely to be a hybrid as one bought at a market here.

Yes, you've just noted again the many reasons I gave in this thread for different areas and spellings,but what I forgot to say is that seeds travel as well, which you mentioned, when folks move to a different country, and then the name is changed again.

An excellent example of that was when a red Huevos de Toro, the same name was used for different colored ones as well, from Spain got to France and was renamed Couilles de Taureau,actually one of my most favorite tomato varieties.

Carolyn