Skip to main content
Salad

Summer Tomato Salad

A salad of sliced tomatoes, thinly sliced onions, and mozzarella, dressed with a vinaigrette of vinegar and olive oil.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 6 ingredients
Jump to recipe ↓

Why it works: Olive and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Summer Tomato Salad

Ingredients

Directions

Make the vinaigrette

  1. Place the onions in a small mixing bowl.

  2. In a small saucepan, bring the vinegar just to a boil. As soon as it reaches a boil, pour it over the onions.

  3. Let it sit until it cools.

  4. When cool, drain the vinegar from the onions into a food processor or blender.

  5. With the machine running, add the olive oil in a slow, steady stream until all of the oil has been added and the mixture is pale and creamy.

  6. Add season salt and pepper.

Assemble and serve

  1. Place the tomato slices on each serving plate.

  2. Arrange the onions on top of the tomatoes and sprinkle the cheese over the onions.

  3. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the vinaigrette on each just before serving.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

279Calories
9 gProtein
20 gFat
17 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Mozzarella Cheese1 oz (28g)85
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Olive + tomatotop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,539 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Olive + mozzarella cheesetop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,773 recipes

    Shared aroma: methyl 2-methylbutyrate (apple, fatty).

  3. Pepper + tomatotop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together17,923 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  4. Tomato + mozzarella cheesetop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,577 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  5. Onion + tomatotop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together20,633 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Red onion
Its sharp flavour is mellowed by the hot vinegar and adds bite to the dressing.
Distilled white vinegar
Provides the acidity that gives the vinaigrette its tang and balances the oil.
Olive oil
Emulsifies with the vinegar and onion to make the dressing pale, creamy and rich.
Vine-ripened beefsteak tomatoes
Supply the juicy, sweet body of the salad that the dressing coats.
Mozzarella cheese
Adds mild, creamy richness that softens the acidity of the dressing.

The step that matters

Adding the olive oil slowly while the machine runs. Adding oil in a slow, steady stream lets it disperse into the vinegar as tiny droplets, forming a stable emulsion. Pouring it in quickly can make the dressing separate into oily and watery layers.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, olive, pepper, tomato, mozzarella cheese):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Eggplantfits better
  3. Cucumberfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, olive, pepper, tomato, mozzarella cheese. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

You might also like

Tomato SaladTomato Salad179 recipesChicken SaladChicken Salad623 recipesSalad DressingSalad Dressing491 recipesCold SlawCold Slaw160 recipes