Tag Archives: tomato salad

  • 5 Minute Eats: Tomato & Bocconcini Salad

    Welcome to the second recipe in my 5 Minute Eats series, which features my favourite recipes that can be made in five minutes or less.

    I’ve made this gorgeous Tomato & Bocconcini Salad many times before but was reminded of what a lovely combination it is when I ate something similar at a friend’s house recently.

    Two things to remember: make sure the tomatoes are at room temperature (chilled tomatoes are tasteless) and that you dress the salad and let it sit for a while before eating. The flavours will mix and meld and the dressing will soak nicely into the cheese. Salt flakes and ground black pepper should be added just before serving so they don’t make the tomatoes weep. The salt will also make all the flavours pop.

    This recipe is almost fool-proof so it’s perfect for those moments someone wanders into the kitchen and asks if they can give you hand with anything. Instead of politely demurring, show them the ingredients, a knife and a chopping board and let them get on with it while you put your feet up and enjoy a glass of wine.

    I call that a win-win.

    5 Minute Eats: Tomato & Bocconcini Salad

     
    Author: 
    Recipe type: Salad, Appetizer
    Cuisine: Australian
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    A gorgeous, colourful salad that's almost fool-proof
    Ingredients
    • 1-2 punnets baby tomatoes
    • 1 small tub bocconcini
    • A few sprigs basil leaves
    • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
    • 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
    • ½ teaspoon honey
    • Salt & pepper to taste
    Instructions
    1. Slice tomatoes thinly and arrange on a plate.
    2. Tear bocconcini and place on top before garnishing with basil leaves.
    3. Make up dressing by whisking EVOO, red wine vinegar and honey and drizzle over plate.
    4. Finish with sea salt flakes + ground black pepper.

     

  • Fiery Smashed Cucumber Salad

    If you’re a chilli addict like me, you’ll love this dish.

    For this is no ordinary cucumber salad. This dish was inspired by the ‘hot salad’ we used to buy from the Xinjiang restaurant opposite our old apartment in downtown Shanghai.

    Xinjiang food refers mainly to Uyghur cuisine and is characterised by the use of lamb, mutton, tomatoes, peppers (capsicum) and onion, with lots of dumpling, noodle and rice dishes. Our favourite dishes were this salad, completely addictive mutton kebabs flavoured with cumin, Szechuan peppercorns and chilli (watch out for an upcoming recipe), and a fragrant lamb pie.

    When my husband was travelling – his job took him all over the Asia Pacific – I would sometimes stop at the Xinjiang restaurant on my way home from work. My regular order was six mutton kebabs, this hot salad, and a serve of rice.

    This smashed cucumber salad is a wonderful study in contrasts; it’s lip tinglingly hot yet cooling at the same time. It’s a great side dish to any kind of barbequed meat.

    INGREDIENTS

    4 small Lebanese cucumbers
    2 small tomatoes
    1/5 diced small Spanish red onion
    1 small clove garlic, diced
    1 teaspoon salt
    Chilli oil
    Sesame oil
    Rice wine vinegar

    METHOD

    Peel cucumbers and chop off ends. With the flat side of a cleaver, smash them on a chopping board so they split lengthwise.

    Cut the smashed cucumbers into medium slices.

    Put them into a bowl and add one teaspoon salt. Mix to combine and then cover and leave for half an hour.

    After 30 minutes, a few teaspoons of water will have drained from the cucumbers into the bowl. Drain the cucumbers and rinse with water to remove some of the salt. Drain cucumbers again and place back into a serving bowl.

    Add diced onion, diced tomato and diced garlic.

    Dress with a few shakes of chilli oil and sesame oil and 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar. Taste then add more of whatever you fancy until it tastes the way you want it to.

    Me? I  like it hot, hot, hot!