RECIPE

Thai Tomato Salad by Ben Slater

June brings tomatoes that ask very little of you. At this time of year, the work should lie in how you dress them. Enter this clever Thai Tomato Salad by @benslater

Serves: 4
Time: 1hr
Difficulty: Medium

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Eating tomatoes in the park is better than standing over a stove, waiting for them to collapse into sauce. When it’s warm, eating them in salad form, at every given opportunity, becomes a priority.

Method

Ingredients

Step 1To make the dressing, finely grate the shallot, garlic, chilli and palm sugar into a large mixing bowl, then grate in the zest from the limes and squeeze in their juice. Add the fish sauce and stir to combine.
Step 2Coarsely grate a couple of the tomatoes into the bowl. Use a fork to bring everything together, drizzling in a little olive oil to form a loose, bright dressing. Taste and adjust with a little more fish sauce if needed.
Step 3Cut the remaining tomatoes into slices and wedges at irregular angles, then toss them gently with the dressing. Set aside while you prepare the crumb.
Step 4Toast the rice in a small, dry frying pan over a medium heat until golden, then pound it with the desiccated coconut in a pestle and mortar to a semi-fine, fragrant crumb. Allow to cool slightly, then fold most of it through the tomatoes.
Step 5Transfer to a serving platter and finish with the remaining crumb, fried shallots, garlic chips, plenty of Thai basil and coriander. This is perfect to eat alongside thick slices of rare steak.

1 shallot, peeled
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 green chilli
50g ginger, peeled
1 tbsp palm sugar
2 limes
3 tbsp fish sauce
Olive oil
1.2kg mixed heritage tomatoes
3 tbsp jasmine rice
3 tbsp desiccated coconut
3 tbsp fried shallots
2 tbsp garlic chips
20g Thai basil
20g coriander

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Nest™ Grate & Zest 2-Piece Set with Storage Sheath

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“A tomato salad lives or dies on balance, which is why I find myself leaning, almost instinctively, towards the grammar of South East Asian cooking, where sharpness, sweetness and salt are held in deliberate tension.”

— Ben Slater, Recipe Developer and Food Stylist