Horiatiki (Greek Summer Salad)
Chef Paula Agganis, Paula’s at Courtland Club, ProvidenceOver the years, I’ve come to see horiatiki less as a strict recipe and more as a framework for celebrating summer produce. While I keep the textbook foundation of tomatoes, cucumber, onion, pepper, olive oil and feta, I love experimenting with farmers market finds like sour plums, flowering herbs and peppery nasturtiums. Sometimes I’ll marinate the feta with chiles, garlic and bay leaves for an extra layer of flavor.
Ingredients
- 4 medium ripe tomatoes cut into wedges
- Kosher salt such as Diamond Crystal
- ½ small red onion thinly sliced
- 1 cucumber peeled and cut on a bias
- 1 medium green bell pepper seeds removed and thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- Urfa or your favorite pepper flakes
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil plus more as needed
- 1 large slice feta cheese
- ¼ cup kalamata olives
- ½ cup mixed tender herbs, such as mint parsley and dill
- Edible flowers or crisped caper leaves for garnish (optional)
Notes
Toss the tomatoes with a generous pinch of salt and place in a colander set over a bowl for about 15 minutes while preparing the remaining ingredients.
Combine the tomatoes, onion, cucumber and green pepper in a large serving bowl. Season with oregano, Urfa pepper flakes and additional salt to taste, then drizzle with olive oil. Gently toss to combine.
Top the salad with the slab of feta and kalamata olives, leaving the feta whole, rather than crumbling it. (This allows everyone at the table to break off pieces as they eat—one of my favorite parts of serving horiatiki family-style.) Drizzle the feta with a little more olive oil. If desired, garnish with a sprinkle of Urfa pepper flakes.
Add fresh herbs, edible flowers, or crisped caper leaves to the salad. I especially love using nasturtium petals, flowering dill and fennel fronds from the garden. If I have caper leaves on hand, I quickly fry them in a little olive oil until crisp and scatter them over the top. Enjoy!
