Soups & Salads · European

Caprese Salad

Name: Caprese Salad
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 3 unit tomatoes (ripe, room temperature — the whole dish); 8 oz mozzarella (fresh, room temperature); ½ cup basil (leaves, torn); 3 tbsp olive oil (the good bottle); ½ tsp salt (flaky if the kitchen has it); ¼ tsp black pepper

6 ingredients · 10 minutes · 2 servings

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532kcal22.3g protein45.6g fat10g carbs~$2.84/ serving*

VegetarianPescatarianNo porkNo alcohol

Contains: dairy

Ingredients

Servings:

3 unit	tomatoes (ripe, room temperature — the whole dish)
8 oz	mozzarella (fresh, room temperature)
½ cup	basil (leaves, torn)
3 tbsp	olive oil (the good bottle)
½ tsp	salt (flaky if the kitchen has it)
¼ tsp	black pepper
1 tbsp	balsamic vinegar (a restrained drizzle — the non-purist fork)optional

Method

slice5 min
tomatoes and mozzarella in matched thick rounds
quarter-inch rounds of each, shingled alternately on a platter — the matched thickness is the only knife work the dish contains, and it matters: equal slices mean every bite carries the pairing the salad is named for. The tomato commandment stands above all: a refrigerated tomato has already lost, and no assembly recovers it
season3 min
salt on the tomato faces first, then oil, then basil
salt directly onto the cut tomatoes and two minutes of patience — the salt pulls their juice to the surface, and that juice mingling with the oil IS the dressing; then the oil over everything, torn basil scattered, pepper, and the drizzle for the non-purists. Served immediately at room temperature, which is the dish's second commandment and the reason it belongs to summer