Tomato Salad with Feta and Cumin-Yogurt Dressing

Salting the tomatoes seasons their juice, which we use to add flavor to the salad dressing.

Tomato Salad with Feta and Cumin-Yogurt Dressing
SERVES 6 FAST VEG
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS Fresh, juicy summer tomatoes make a great salad, so we set out to create one with complementary flavors and a creamy dressing. Tomatoes exude lots of liquid when cut, which can quickly turn a salad into soup. To get rid of some of the tomato juice without losing all its valuable flavor, we looked to a method that had proven successful in our other tomato salad recipes: salting the tomatoes before making the salad. Simply cutting the tomatoes into wedges, tossing them with salt, and letting them sit for 15 minutes provided enough time for the juice to drain. This also seasoned the tomatoes and their juice at the same time. We reserved a measured amount of the flavorful juice to add to the dressing without watering down the salad. Greek yogurt laid the foundation for a creamy, spice-infused dressing, and we boosted its tang with lemon juice and the reserved tomato juice. To that we added fresh oregano, cumin, and garlic, but some tasters found the cumin and garlic too harsh. A quick zap in the microwave was all it took to effectively bloom the spice and cook the garlic, successfully mellowing their flavors. We tossed the tomatoes with the dressing, finishing with just the right amount of briny feta to add richness and another layer of flavor. Both regular and low-fat Greek yogurt will work well here; do not use nonfat yogurt. The success of this recipe depends on ripe, in-season tomatoes.

2½ pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into ½-inch-thick wedges
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 scallion, sliced thin
1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano
3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (¾ cup)

1. Toss tomatoes with ½ teaspoon salt and let drain in colander set over bowl for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Microwave oil, garlic, and cumin in bowl until fragrant, about 30 seconds; let cool slightly. Transfer 1 tablespoon tomato liquid to large bowl; discard remaining liquid. Whisk in yogurt, lemon juice, scallion, oregano, and oil mixture until combined. Add tomatoes and feta and gently toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.
Coring a Tomato

Remove core of tomato using paring knife.

Tomato Salad with Tuna, Capers, and Black Olives
SERVES 6 FAST
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS We wanted to create a salad reminiscent of salade niçoise , only simpler. Fortunately, choosing just one ingredient to build our new salad around was pretty easy; tomatoes stood out as a refreshing and colorful choice, but the treatment of the tomatoes was key in developing this modest salad. Tomato-centric salads tend to be drowning in liquid and suffer from washed-out flavors. To keep our salad from this fate, we tossed the tomato wedges with salt and let them sit to draw out their excess moisture. Not wanting to waste any valuable tomato flavor, we added some of the expelled juice to the base of our dressing and added lemon juice and extra-virgin olive oil to create a light dressing that coated the tomatoes but didn’t mask any of their fresh flavor. These well-dressed wedges tasted great but needed a few more ingredients to conjure the spirit of salade niçoise. To keep it simple, we ruled out anything that needed to be blanched or cooked. Since olives, capers, and red onions are boldly flavored Mediterranean standbys, they were in. Using 2½ pounds of tomatoes ensured that they remained the focus. Recalling that our inspiration included both anchovies and tuna, we added a can of tuna to elevate the flavor of our tomato salad and add a little protein. Tuna was a preferred addition over anchovies for its meatier texture and milder flavor. The success of this recipe depends on ripe, in-season tomatoes.

2½ pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into ½-inch-thick wedges
Salt and pepper
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
⅓ cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped coarse
¼ cup capers, rinsed and minced
¼ cup finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 (5-ounce) can solid white tuna in water, drained and flaked

1. Toss tomatoes with ½ teaspoon salt and let drain in colander set over bowl for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Transfer 1 tablespoon tomato liquid to large bowl; discard remaining liquid. Whisk in oil, olives, capers, onion, parsley, and lemon juice until combined. Add tomatoes and tuna and gently toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.

NOTES FROM THE TEST KITCHEN
Buying and Storing Fresh Tomatoes
Buying tomatoes at the height of summer won’t guarantee juicy, flavorful fruit, but keeping these guidelines in mind will help.
CHOOSE LOCALLY GROWN TOMATOES
If at all possible, this is the best way to ensure a flavorful tomato. The shorter the distance a tomato has to travel, the riper it can be when it’s picked. And commercial tomatoes are engineered to be sturdier, with thicker walls and less of the flavorful juice and seeds.

LOOKS AREN’T EVERYTHING
When selecting tomatoes, oddly shaped tomatoes are fine, and even cracked skin is OK. Avoid tomatoes that are overly soft or leaking juice. Choose tomatoes that smell fruity and feel heavy. And consider trying heirloom tomatoes; grown from naturally pollinated plants and seeds, they are some of the best local tomatoes you can find.

BUY SUPERMARKET TOMATOES ON THE VINE
If supermarket tomatoes are your only option, look for tomatoes sold on the vine. Although this does not mean that they were fully ripened on the vine, they are better than regular supermarket tomatoes, which are picked when still green and blasted with ethylene gas to develop texture and color.

STORING TOMATOES
Once you’ve brought your tomatoes home, proper storage is important to preserve their fresh flavor and texture for as long as possible. Here are the rules we follow in the test kitchen:
• Never refrigerate tomatoes; the cold damages enzymes that produce flavor compounds, and it ruins their texture, turning the flesh mealy. Even when cut, tomatoes should be kept at room temperature (wrap them tightly in plastic wrap).
• If the vine is still attached, leave it on and store the tomatoes stem end up. Tomatoes off the vine should be stored stem side down. We have found that this prevents moisture from escaping and bacteria from entering and thus prolongs shelf life.
• To quickly ripen hard tomatoes, store them in a paper bag with a banana or apple, both of which emit ethylene gas, which hastens ripening.

Cherry Tomato Salad with Feta and Olives
SERVES 4 to 6 VEG
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS Cherry tomatoes can make a great salad, but they exude lots of liquid when cut. To get rid of some of the tomato juice without throwing away flavor, we quartered and salted the tomatoes before whirling them in a salad spinner to separate the seeds and juice from the flesh. After we strained the juice and discarded the seeds, we reduced the tomato juice to a flavorful concentrate (adding garlic, oregano, shallot, olive oil, and vinegar) and reunited it with the tomatoes. Feta cheese added richness and another layer of flavor to this great all-season salad. If cherry tomatoes are unavailable, substitute grape tomatoes cut in half along the equator. If you don’t have a salad spinner, wrap the bowl tightly with plastic wrap after the salted tomatoes have sat for 30 minutes and gently shake to remove seeds and excess liquid. Strain the liquid and proceed with the recipe as directed. If you have less than ½ cup of juice after spinning, proceed with the recipe using the entire amount of juice and reduce it to 3 tablespoons as directed (the cooking time will be shorter).

1½ pounds cherry tomatoes, quartered
½ teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper
1 small cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut into ½-inch pieces
½ cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped
4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (1 cup)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 shallot, minced
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1. Toss tomatoes with sugar and ¼ teaspoon salt in bowl and let sit for 30 minutes. Transfer tomatoes to salad spinner and spin until seeds and excess liquid have been removed, 45 to 60 seconds, stopping to redistribute tomatoes several times during spinning. Add tomatoes, cucumber, olives, feta, and parsley to large bowl; set aside.
2. Strain ½ cup tomato liquid through fine-mesh strainer into liquid measuring cup; discard remaining liquid. Bring tomato liquid, shallot, vinegar, garlic, and oregano to simmer in small saucepan over medium heat and cook until reduced to 3 tablespoons, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to small bowl and let cool to room temperature, about 5 minutes. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in oil. Drizzle dressing over salad and gently toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.

VARIATION
Cherry Tomato Salad with Basil and Fresh Mozzarella VEG
Omit cucumbers, olives, feta, parsley, garlic, and oregano. Substitute 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar for red wine vinegar. Add 1½ cups fresh basil leaves, roughly torn, and 8 ounces fresh mozzarella, cut into ½-inch pieces and patted dry with paper towels, to tomatoes with dressing.

Making Cherry Tomato Salad

1.SALT TOMATOES Toss tomatoes, ½ teaspoon sugar, and ¼ teaspoon salt together in bowl and let sit for 30 minutes.

2.DISCARD SEEDS Transfer tomatoes to salad spinner and spin until seeds and excess liquid have been removed, 45 to 60 seconds. Combine seeded tomatoes with cucumber, olives, feta, and parsley.

3.STRAIN TOMATO LIQUID Strain ½ cup tomato liquid into measuring cup. Bring tomato liquid, shallot, vinegar, garlic, and oregano to simmer over medium heat and cook until reduced to 3 tablespoons, 6 to 8 minutes. Once cool, slowly whisk in oil.