Tomatoes

The tomato plant (Lycopersicon esculentum) originated in South America but was domesticated in Central America in pre-Columbian times. When Europeans arrived in the New World, tomatoes were being consumed only in Central America. The lack of widespread diffusion suggests that tomatoes were a late addition to the culinary repertoire of Mesoamerica. The Spanish first encountered tomatoes after their conquest of Mexico began in 1519. They disseminated tomato plants to the Caribbean and then into Europe, where the fruit was consumed in southern Italy and Spain by the mid-sixteenth century.