Macheesmo

No, I haven’t started talking in the third person. This isn’t my Greek Tomato Salad recipe. Betsy’s brother-in-law also shares my name (and blogs!) and this is his lovely recipe that I first had while we were on vacation last week.

And just so there is no confusion: if you vacation with me, I will absolutely, unabashedly steal your recipes. Especially if they are this good and this easy.

I can’t help myself. I have to peer over shoulders… taking mental notes… only to rush home and reproduce it as best I can.

What makes this salad so wonderful is using the ripest tomatoes you can find. The juice from the tomatoes helps flavor the dressing, which is mostly just red wine vinegar and a lot of it.

Don’t let August tomatoes go by without making this simple bowl of food.

Greek Tomato Salad

by Nick

Serves:

Serves 6

Prep Time:

15 mins

Total Time:

20 mins

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Greek Tomato Salad is a simple but super tasty Greek salad recipe that is really at it’s best with the ripest tomatoes you can find.

Ingredients

3-4 ripe tomatoes, chopped

1 cucumber, chopped

1/2 red onion, chopped

1 teaspoon fresh oregano

1/3 cup olive oil

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Pinch of black pepper

Instructions

1) In a large bowl, whisk together oil and vinegar and season with a big pinch of salt and pepper.

2) Run the tines of a fork down the side of a cucumber and chop into half rounds. Slice red onion into rough slices. Add cucumbers and onions to the bowl and toss to coat with dressing.

3) Roughly chop tomatoes and add to the bowl with any juice. Stir to combine.

4) Sprinkle fresh oregano over salad and season it to taste with salt and pepper. It’s best to let this sit for a bit before serving. Toss it together before serving and don’t be afraid to add another splash of vinegar.

Greek Tomato Salad

Summer Veg

Don’t get too caught up by the amounts in this Greek Tomato Salad. 3-4 tomatoes is about right though and I wouldn’t add too much more onion to the salad. It’s all extremely flexible though.

Ripe tomatoes are the key. Don’t even bother trying to make this Greek Tomato Salad in February.

Make it now. Today. With bright red, juicy tomatoes.

A little trick I learned from Nick while I sleuthed the recipe out of him is to take a fork and run it down the sides of the cucumber before you slice it.

Not only does this make your cucumber beautiful, but it lets the dressing penetrate the cucumber a bit easier.

Then chop it up!

For this salad, you can chop roughly. You want the vegetables to be chunky.

The Dressing

There is nothing fancy about the dressing for Greek Tomato Salad. It’s olive oil and red wine vinegar. You want a lot of vinegar as it makes the flavors really pop in the salad.

In fact, I recommend dashing on a bit more before serving, but that’s just me.

Once you whisk together the oil and vinegar, add the cucumbers and onions and toss them together. Season it with a pinch of salt at this point.

Use a big pinch of kosher or sea salt while seasoning. This salad lives and dies by vinegar and salt.

Then add those beautiful tomatoes. As the salad sits, the tomatoes will lose some of their liquid, adding to the dressing.

I finally got around to planting some herbs on our balcony a few weeks ago and my herbs are taking off like crazy. I think I might actually break even on the costs of them.

I planted some Greek oregano which is just perfect for a salad like this.

If you add fresh oregano, which is nice but optional, go very light on it. Oregano has a strong flavor and can quickly take over the salad.

Toss it together. More salt? More vinegar? You’re done.

Could you fancy this Greek Tomato Salad up with olives or feta? I guess so. But it seems like overkill if you can find yourself some really nice vegetables.

It’s the perfect side salad for a hot summer night.