Marinated Tomato Salad

This tomato salad recipe is bright, beautiful and a bowl of summer sunshine! We use a quick marinade, add basil, arugula, and Chevre. Delish!

Course Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword How Do I Make Marinated Tomato Salad, How to make Marinated Tomato Salad, Marinated Tomato Salad, Marinated Tomato Salad Recipe

Prep Time 45

Cook Time 15

Total Time 1

Servings

Calories 133kcal

Author Kathleen

Ingredients

4 large ripe tomatoes, cored and cut Into 1/2 inch wedges
1/2 teaspoon plus 1/8 teaspoon (or to taste) salt- divided
2 cups baby arugula
1/4 cup fresh basil chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 teaspoon black pepper or to taste
1/2 cup Chevre crumbled

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

In a medium bowl, sprinkle tomatoes with 1/2 teaspoon salt and gently mix. Transfer tomatoes to a baking sheet layed with three layers of paper towels. Allow tomatoes to drain for 15 minutes. Flip the tomatoes and continue to drain for another 15 minutes.
Place drained tomatoes to a medium bowl. Add arugula (2 cups), basil (1/4 cup), oil (1 tablespoon), vinegar (1 tablespoon), garlic (1 clove), 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Very gently, toss until seasoning is evenly distributed. Allow salad to marinate for 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning is needed. Sprinkle salad with cheese (1/2 cup) and serve.

Notes

Add Protein: I like this best served as a side, but I occasionally add protein. If you'd like to do so, try it with cooked shrimp, cooked shredded chicken, or cooked sliced sausage.
Dressing: We drizzle all our dressing ingredients over the salad, then gently toss. I like to use red wine vinegar, but when it comes to tomato salad, balsamic vinegar is never a bad choice! It’s a little sweet, so it would add some complexity to the vinaigrette, and combined with the basil, it would give this salad a Caprese twist. In a pinch, you can use white vinegar. It doesn't have the nuanced flavor profile, and it's very slightly more acidic, so add a bit less. Sherry vinegar is also excellent in this recipe. I make a delicious Sherry vinegar salad dressing that I serve on my strawberry salad. It illustrates how delicious this ingredient is when used in salads.
Different Cheese: This salad is great with feta cheese or burrata. Fresh mozzarella gives it a Caprese salad spin! Each cheese adds a different flavor.
Add Olive: Salty, briny olives are a great addition. I love them in my Spanish influence 1905 salad, a lovely example of olives paired with tomatoes (and other deliciousness!).
Red Onion: I love to add thinly shaved red onions to this salad.
Avo: Adding avocado is a delicious thing to do!
Crunch: This salad is delicious topped with toasted pine nuts or slivered almonds. The crunch gives it some nice texture.
Different Herbs: Try this salad with fresh rosemary. Rosemary has a strong aromatic flavor. Start by adding just a little at a time. Too much can become overpowering. Try it with parsley, dill, or thyme. You can also add a combination of fresh herbs.
Timing: Make sure to read through the whole recipe before you get started so you have an idea of how the timing works for each step. The tomatoes need to rest for a while after you salt them, which helps them absorb the excess liquid so the finished salad doesn’t turn out watery. It’s an important step, so don’t skip it!
- After salting and resting the tomatoes, they need about 15 minutes to marinate in the dressing and really soak up those flavors. This is a very simple tomato salad, but the resting and marinating combined take about 45 minutes, so be sure to plan ahead! Believe me, it's worth the passive time investment.

Nutrition