The Easiest Way to Slice, Dice, or Cut a Tomato

Cutting up tomatoes is a common kitchen task—and one that's easy if you use the correct technique and right knife. Then, even the juiciest, ripest tomatoes will slice beautifully. Whether you are making perfect slices for turkey burgers, dicing tomatoes for pico de gallo, or preparing one of our fresh tomato recipes, follow our methods for slicing (and dicing) tomatoes and cutting wedges. Plus, get our tips for how to cut tomatoes of various sizes, from tiny cherries to giant heirlooms.

The Best Knife for Slicing Tomatoes

When you cut tomatoes, reach for a serrated knife. "The sharp teeth pierce and easily cut through the tomato skin," says recipe developer and food stylist Lindsay Leopold.

While it might seem natural to reach for your chef's knife (which is suitable for most types of produce), this blade won't work on tomatoes. "Unless you're regularly sharpening your knives, the average chef's knife will not easily slice through a tomato due to the contrast between the taut skin and softer flesh," says Leopold. "Even a slightly dull knife will encounter resistance at the skin, which squishes and damages the flesh, squeezing out the seeds and juice."

What Size Knife?

For small- to medium-sized tomatoes like cocktail, Roma, or tomatoes on the vine, use a 6-inch utility knife with small, serrated teeth, says Leopold. A larger 8-inch serrated knife, like a bread knife, works well for larger tomatoes, like beefsteak or heirloom. If you're in a pinch, you can turn to a sharp steak knife (especially one with finely serrated teeth).

Now that you have the right knife, you're ready to cut tomatoes. There are two methods, and the one you choose will depend on whether you're cutting wedges or slices. From there, either can be used as is or turned into an easy dice.

Buying and Preparing Tomatoes Before Cutting

How to Choose the Best Tomato: Look for tomatoes with bright red, wrinkle-free skin. When you gently squeeze the tomato, it should be somewhat firm, according to the experts at the University of Minnesota. Fresh tomatoes will also smell vegetal, almost like basil, especially near the stem.

Preparing Tomatoes for Cutting: Remove any produce stickers and wash the tomato under cool running water. Pat dry with a clean cloth or paper towel.

How to Cut Tomato Wedges

If your goal is to cut tomato wedges (or if you want to remove the seeds and core before dicing the tomato), this is the method for you.

1. Place the tomato stem side up on a cutting board. Remove the stem.
2. Hold it firmly, then use a gentle sawing motion through the center of the core to cut the tomato in half.
3. Using the tip of your serrated knife or a paring knife, cut a "v" shape into the top of each tomato half to remove the core by the stem.
4. Slice each tomato half into the desired amount of wedges. (If you are deseeding the tomato, cut it into four wedges total.)

Deseeding and Coring Wedges

Place a wedge skin side down on your cutting board and run the knife along the flesh to cut out the seeds and core.

How to Slice a Tomato

Slices are perfect for burgers, sandwiches, bagels, and some salads, such as a caprese salad. The slices can also be easily turned into a dice if you are not planning to remove the core and seeds.

1. Place the tomato stem side up on a cutting board.
2. Remove the stem and core using Leopold's culinary school method. "Put the tip of a paring knife into the tomato near its core at a 45-degree angle about a 1/2-inch deep (the point of the blade should then be underneath the core). Rotate the tomato so the paring knife cuts around the core in a complete circle. You should then be able to lift out the cone-shaped core," she says.
3. Place the tomato on one of its sides. Find the sweet spot where it can rest on its own so it won't slip or slide when you cut it.
4. Firmly hold the tomato and use a serrated knife to slice. Use a gentle sawing motion and make parallel slices.

How to Dice Tomatoes

Dicing Wedges

After deseeding tomato wedges, you can cut them into diced pieces.

1. Slice each deseeded wedge into strips.
2. Line the strips up and cut crosswise to create diced pieces.

Dicing Slices

You can also create diced pieces from slices, which are useful for salads, stews, and sauces.

1. Make a small stack of flat tomato slices.
2. Cut the stack into strips, then rotate the stack 90 degrees and cut crosswise into a dice.
3. Do the same with each rounded end, but slice those separately so they don't slide.
   

Cutting Small Tomatoes

Ignore online advice that says to slice small tomatoes, like grape and cherry tomatoes, between two plates or lids. "While this does work, it doesn't provide much control in cutting the tomatoes evenly in half," says Leopold. She opts for a less fussy technique: "I prefer to pinch the tomato between my thumb and pointer finger and slice through the center of each tomato between my fingers individually."

Cutting Heirloom Tomatoes

While conventional tomatoes are bred to withstand long-distance transportation, are picked underripe, and have tougher, firmer skin to prevent damage, heirloom tomatoes you find at farmers' markets are picked closer to ideal ripeness, says Leopold. As a result, they're juicier, more fragile, and easier to bruise—and more delicate to slice. Cut them the way you would other varieties (the methods hold, despite their unique shape) and definitely use that serrated knife. The riper the heirloom tomato, the more important the knife you use really is.

Do You Need to Deseed?

You wouldn't remove the seeds from a tomato if you're slicing it for a sandwich—you want the juice and the seeds. So, when should you deseed a tomato? "It's a good idea to deseed a tomato if you're looking to avoid extra moisture or the texture or appearance of the seeds in the final dish," says Leopold. Otherwise, it's an additional step that isn't typically necessary for most recipes.