Fresh Italian tomato salad “ insalata di pomodori “ with red onion, herbs and capers. Fresh oregano, dill, chives or basil are just the perfect compliment to the sweet and fragrant heirloom tomatoes and zesty salad dressing.
There’s nothing as easy and simple as making a salad. Choosing the right tomatoes is a different story and it is what will break or make your salad. So stay away from watery half ripened tomatoes and wait until the heirlooms hit the farmers market.
Choosing the Tomatoes:
Go for heavy irregular shaped heirlooms that are heavy for their size, they are a real treat for the tastebuds. You can mix a variety of colors if you’d like, I wanted to stick with the classic red ox heart variety or “cuore di bue” for this particular recipe.
Stay away from the plum shaped variety like San Marzano that are best used to make sauce.
What is so special about heirloom tomatoes ?
Heirloom tomatoes are grown from seeds passed down from generation to generation and are at least 50 years old. They are always open pollinated meaning they rely on the wind and insects to naturally pollinate them.
Non-GMO and grown on a small scale they produce way better flavor than commercially grown hybrids therefor being ideal for use in classic dishes like this Italian tomato salad. Usually irregular in shape, size and color the seeds have been saved by growers from what they considered to be the best plants then passed down to the next generation.
The Onion:
A sweet red onion or purple Italian spring onions are ideal. Scallions work great as well and the sweet Maui onions would be lovely too. Try and stay away from sharp white onions if at all possible.
This Italian Tomato Salad is Summer in a Bowl!
Some add Ins Ideas:
yellow peaches + peach balsamic vinegar <—seriously Divine!
vegan feta or ricotta
black olives
toasted pine nuts
steamed green beans
avocado
crunchy cornmeal croutons
pesto or pomegranate drizzle
stale bread or cubed garlic bruschetta to make it a Tuscan Panzanella or Pugliese Cialledda.
How to make Italian tomato salad dressing:
Keep it simple: classic red wine vinegar and a light drizzle of cold pressed extra virgin olive oil is all that’s needed here. Remember, it’s about the perfection of the tomatoes. You can also make it oil-free by replacing the oil with a juicy heirloom tomato blended with the vinegar and a couple of basil leaves.
The classic vinegar used in Italian tomato salads is always red wine vinegar. Of course you can get creative and experiment with white wine, apple cider vinegar and even balsamic.
Salad Maceration Period:
Allowing the tomato salad to sit for a few minutes and macerate in the dressing really brings out the individual flavor of its ingredients.
The Salt:
Normally I do not encourage the consumption of salt at all, however when making Italian tomato salad a little pinch of Fleur the Sel flakes or a little coarse pink salt takes it to perfection. Not too much, not too little. The Italian word “insalata” itself means salted.
Let’s make this Italian Tomato Salad! It’s:
healthy
sweet and zesty
loaded with fresh flavor
simple to make
& absolutely divine!
P.S. If you make this recipe please come back here to rate it, snap a photo and tag me with #VeggieSociety on Instagram, it always makes my day seeing what you recreated from the blog ~ Florentina Xo’s
Italian Tomato Onion Salad
Fresh Italian tomato salad “ insalata di pomodori “ with red onion, herbs and caper in a red wine vinegar dressing.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 0 minutes
Maceration period 5 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 4 people
Calories 133kcal
Ingredients
- 2 lb red heirloom tomatoes
- 1 small purple onion
- 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1/4 c chives chopped
- 1/4 c fresh dill roughly chopped + more to taste
- 2 tbsp fresh oregano leaves
- 4 tbsp capers
- chive blossoms for garnish (optional)
- 1/2 tsp Fleur de Sel sea salt + more to taste
WFPB Oil-Free Dressing:
- 1 heirloom tomato peeled
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- sea salt to taste
- 5 leaves basil
Instructions
- Using a very sharp knife slice the tomatoes into small wedges and add them to a serving bowl with the capers.
- Slice the purple onion into thin strips or rounds and sprinkle on top of the tomatoes. Add the fresh oregano, dill, chives and basil.
- Drizzle the salad with the olive oil and red wine vinegar.
- Season with the Fleur the Sel sea salt and gently toss to coat. Allow to macerate at room temperature for 5minutes.
- Garnish with the chive blossoms and serve promptly with a few extra flakes of Fleur de Sel on top to your taste.
- OPTIONAL: Add vegan feta cheese on top if you desire, I love the one from Follow Your Heart or you can make your own.
Make the Oil-Free Dressing:
- Peel the tomato and blend together with the vinegar until smooth. Add a little water if you need to stretch it out then season to taste with sea salt.
Notes
If you plan to swap the fresh oregano in the recipe for dry you must be very mindful. The flavor is more intense and can easily overpower the rest of the herbs and tomatoes and greatly alter the taste of your salad.
Nutrition
Calories: 133kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 547mg | Potassium: 704mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 2555IU | Vitamin C: 41.7mg | Calcium: 82mg | Iron: 2mg
Tomato Salads:
Cucumber Tomato Onion Salad
Avocado Tomato Salad
Italian Tomato Salsa
Favorite way to use up all my tomatoes . Nothing beats a big bowl of homegrown tomatoes, onions and herbs. I just learned about the red wine vinegar in Italian vinaigrette and I must say I love it better than all other vinegars that are more acidic. A Perfect salad everyone should know how to make!