Tomato and berry salad with tomato water, watermelon and chives
Item 1 of 1
- medium
- 6
- 60 minutes
Steve Smith's vibrant salad recipe celebrates a variety of tomatoes, pairing their natural acidity with sweet strawberries, raspberries and watermelon for a riot of red in this refreshing starter. Combined with a decadent shot of Champagne, tomato water and a little creamy mozzarella, this salad recipe makes a perfect dinner party starter.
First published in 2016
Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
Tomato water
- 250g of plum tomatoes
- 4 basil leaves
- 100ml of Champagne
- sugar to taste
Compressed watermelon
- 1/2 watermelon, peeled and cut into 1cm thick slices
Croutons
- 1 ciabatta, cut into very thin slices
- olive oil
- salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Salad
- 6 tomatoes, a mixture of local varieties, halved or quartered (depending on size)
- 10 strawberries, hulled and halved
- 20 raspberries
- 1 mozzarella cheese
- 50g of dried olives, preferably Kalamata, finely chopped
- 10g of chives, finely chopped
- 5g of fennel cress
- micro herbs, to garnish
Dressing
- 50ml of extra virgin olive oil
- 25ml of malt vinegar, or beer vinegar if available
SAVE RECIPE
Equipment
- Blender
- Muslin cloth
- Vacuum bags
- Chamber sealer
Method
1
For the tomato water, place the plum tomatoes and basil leaves in a blender and blitz to form a rough purée
- 250g of plum tomatoes
- 4 basil leaves
2
Line a colander or strainer with a muslin cloth and place over a bowl. Pour the purée into the cloth and place in the fridge to strain for 24 hours – this should result in a clear, golden liquid in the bowl
3
For the compressed watermelon, deseed the melon slices as much as possible and place in a vacuum bag. Seal with a chamber sealer to compress and reserve until ready to serve
- 1/2 watermelon, peeled and cut into thick slices
4
Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4
5
To make the croutons, place the ciabatta slices on a baking tray and drizzle with a little olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, then bake for 5 minutes until crisp and lightly toasted. Cool and store in an airtight container until ready to serve
- 1 ciabatta, cut into very thin slices
- olive oil
- salt
- freshly ground black pepper
6
Just before serving, discard the tomato purée from the sieve and add a little sugar to the strained tomato water to take the edge off the acidity of the tomatoes. Mix in the Champagne and set aside
- sugar to taste
- 100ml of Champagne
7
Remove the watermelon from the vacuum bag and dice all except one of the slices into 1cm cubes. Place the cubes in a bowl and add the tomatoes, 12 of the strawberry halves and 12 of the raspberries
- 6 tomatoes, a mixture of local varieties, halved or quartered (depending on size)
- 6 strawberries, hulled and halved
- 12 raspberries
8
Gently toss the fruits together and divide between serving plates. Tear the mozzarella over the salads and scatter over pieces of the toasted croutons, the dried olives, cress and herbs to garnish. Whisk together the olive oil and vinegar for the dressing in a small bowl and drizzle over the salads
- 1 mozzarella cheese
- 50g of dried olives, preferably Kalamata, finely chopped
- 10g of chives, finely chopped
- 5g of fennel cress
- micro herbs, to garnish
- 25ml of malt vinegar, or beer vinegar if available
- 50ml of extra virgin olive oil
9
To finish, finely dice the remaining slice of compressed watermelon, the remaining 8 strawberry halves and 8 raspberries and divide between 6 shot glasses. Pour over the chilled tomato water and serve on the side of the salads
- 4 strawberries, hulled and halved
- 8 raspberries
First published in 2016
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