There are many versions of this salad, but the universal constant seems to be old bread and tomatoes and onions. I figure this salad grew out of the “cucina povera” canon, where waste, want not was the theme. Before Columbus, tomatoes were not part of this dish, but they certainly are now. This is a great way to use up older bread, but if you can’t wait, just rip up the bread early in the day and let it sit out a few hours, or throw it in the oven on low. I have also grilled or fried the bread for variation. Again, this is where a fixed-blade slicer can speed things up.
INGREDIENTS:
4-5 medium-small tomatoes, around 1 pound 6-8 ounces day-old “rustic” bread (something with some whole wheat is good, or look for Francese or pain de campagne)-this would be about 8 inches of a francese loaf, or around 3-4 cups of torn up bread 1 small red onion, halved through the root and sliced into very thin crescent slices 10-20 basil leaves 2 cups of young arugula leaves or romaine lettuce, washed and torn up into bite-sized pieces (You could slice the romaine into ¼ inch strips if you wish a more “refined” look.) 1 clove garlic, peeled ½ cup olive oil 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme or thyme, marjoram combination. Salt and black pepper to taste
METHOD:
Halve the tomatoes through the equator and shake out as many seeds and liquid as you can. Then cut into ½-¾ inch bits, and reserve.
Tear or cut up the bread into pieces of a similar size or a little larger-say ¾-1 inch. The bread should be stale-not rock hard, but definitely chewy. If it is too soft it will turn to mush when it gets dressed.
Make the dressing- use a large non-reactive bowl(bowl should be large enough to accommodate all the salad ingredients). Rub the bowl vigorously with the garlic clove so the bowl picks up the oils from the clove. Add the vinegar, herbs, and season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Whisk in the oil in a steady stream to emulsify the oil and create the vinaigrette. Remove and reserve half the dressing from the bowl just in case you have more dressing than you need. This way you will not have a soggy mess.
Put the tomatoes in the bowl with the dressing, then the onion slices. Give a gentle toss to spread around the dressing and combine the two ingredients. Add the arugula or romaine, then add the bread bits, and gently mix well to coat the salad with the dressing. If the salad seems a little dry, add more from the reserved dressing. Tear the basil or cut into a fine chiffonade (stack the leaves and roll into a tight cylinder, then slice finely across the cylinder) and sprinkle over the salad. Toss to mix basil into the salad. Taste, and season with a bit of salt and pepper as needed. Serve.
Chef’s Notes and Tips:
This is a salad that I like best kept simple. I have had some that were tarted up with a lot of ingredients, which then just seemed like a veggie salad with funky croutons. I might add some shaved fennel to the mix (the basil talks to the fennel and they lay off each other) or a few oil cured olives. I have even done this with some salami slices I cut into slivers and it worked well.
Serves: 4
Source: Chef Andrew Cohen (After a traditional recipe)
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