This quick tomato and olive salad is the perfect condiment, side, or addition to any dish, and it takes less than 10 minutes to make.
My boyfriend Gabe made this quick tomato and olive salad as an accompaniment to a really delicious dinner of Mediterranean marinated tuna steaks and lemon roasted potatoes. And as delicious as the entire dinner was, I think this salad was my favorite part. I’m calling it a salad for lack of a better description, but this dish doesn’t actually include any lettuce. Instead, it’s a combination of super fresh and flavorful ingredients like chopped kalamata olives, capers, grated garlic, and tons of parsley/green onion and lemon. It’s almost like a tabouleh (a bulgur wheat and parsley salad) or the topping for bruschetta. And while this dish isn’t Italian per say, it embodies what I love about Italian cooking: it takes a bunch of really simple but super fresh and flavorful ingredients and turns them into something special.
As the weather finally transitions from spring to summer, this tomato and olive salad is going to become a staple in my kitchen. Its ingredients are super fresh, and the addition of lemon makes it feel especially light and bright. In fact, if you’re anything like my and grow a vegetable garden, you can forage the bulk of the ingredients (the tomatoes, parsley and green onions) from your own backyard in the summertime. When it’s hot out and the last thing you feel like doing is lighting the oven or stove and staying cooped up in the kitchen, you can use this recipe to make a quick side that will go with any and every one of your grilled favorites.
A SIMPLE BUT VERSATILE RECIPE
I know this tomato and olive salad is super simple and barely counts as cooking, but I decided to post the recipe simply because of how versatile it is. While a fantastic addition to seared tuna steaks, this salad would be just as good on anything from roast chicken to a burger (especially a lamb burger).
But don’t feel limited to using it simply as a side. You can mix it into cooked pasta and top with feta cheese for a perfect summertime pasta salad (this is what I did with the leftovers the next day), toss it with toasted cubes of bread for panzanella, or even with beans for a vibe similar to my kale and cannellini bean salad. You can put it on top of toasted bread as a bruschetta, or mix it into hummus for some extra flavor, or even add in some grains like quinoa or farro to make a simple yet protein-packed vegetarian lunch or dinner.
Quick Tomato and Olive Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh parsley, minced
- 1/2 cup green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced or grated
- 2-4 tbsp capers
- 1/4 cup kalamata olives, pitted and roughly chopped
- 2-3 large tomatoes, seeded and diced
- 1 lemon, juiced and zested
- 1/4 cup olive oil, more as needed
- salt, pepper, and chili flakes to taste
Optional to make the salad a full meal
- cooked and cooled grains, pasta, beans or bread cubes
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Let set in the fridge 30 minutes for the flavors to come together before serving. You can also add grains, beans, toasted bread cubes or cooked and cooled pasta to make this salad a full meal.
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