Indian tomato salad is spicy, juicy, tangy, sweet, and refreshing. Better than Caprese, this recipe is a modern twist to an authentic Indian tomato Kachumber(salad). Great for snacking, or as a side dish.
You are a legend, If you have been following my blog for a while and have taken out the time to read my story. If you are new to my blog, let me tell you a bit about me and the story behind this recipe :).
I grew up in the small town of Gujarat, India (western India). My town is surrounded by farms with the best organic tomato crops. The organic produce of my town gets distributed all over India.
Every summer during picking season my Pappa's(father) farmer friends would drop off the bags full of tomatoes at our place. They are the sweetest tasting tomatoes you would ever try. We munched on those tomatoes like apples. Some days my mother would slice them and season them with Indian spices for an afternoon snack or a side dish to a meal.
Tomato Salad with Cumin and Lime
A generous squeeze of lime juice with a sprinkle of ground cumin and chili powder on sliced tomatoes gives such a wonderful flavor. It's spicy, tangy, and sweet with all the wonderful Indian flavors.
Ingredients For This Recipe
- Tomato: I have used ripe vine tomatoes for this recipe. Cherry or Plum tomatoes would work great as well. This recipe might not taste the same as Roma and Heirloom as they are slightly tangy and mildly sweet.
- Lime: a generous squeeze of lime brightens up the sweet flavors of tomatoes. Lime crops are abundant in summer. Grab a few from your local grocery store!
- Ground Cumin: I like to grind cumin seeds in a mortar and pestle. Freshly ground cumin has wonderful flavors. Bottled ground cumin would work great as well. I highly recommend and prefer freshly ground cumin seeds.
- Ground Black Pepper: again, freshly cracked black pepper has distinct flavor compared to bottled ground pepper. Either works fine. You do you!
- Kashmiri Red Chili Powder: the recipe isn't Indian if it doesn't involve chili pepper. I am using my favorite Kashmiri chili powder for a smokey chili flavor.
- Cilantro: the sweet aroma of freshly chopped cilantro makes this recipe even better. If you aren't a fan of cilantro, you may use parsley or basil.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: optional but I love the flavor of EVOO in this recipe. It gives the tomato salad a slightly nutty flavor.
- Salt: I am using Himalayan pink salt for this recipe. Kosher or flake salt would make a great substitute.
How to Make Summer Tomato Salad
Only 2 simple steps and done:
- Make salad dressing: In a mixing bowl whisk together ground cumin, olive oil, lime juice, Kashmiri chili powder, black pepper, and salt.
- Slice the tomatoes and drizzle with dressing: wash the tomatoes thoroughly under running water and dry them. Slice them into ¼ inch circles or your desired cut and size. drizzle the whisked dressing.
Tips
- Use red ripe tomatoes that are sweeter, like vine, plum, or cherry tomatoes.
- For the best taste serve the tomato salad immediately.
- You may prepare this salad 15 minutes in advance and refrigerate it to chill, If you don't mind a little watery and juicy salad.
- Salad dressing can be made few hours before serving salad to cut the prep time in half.
- Add thinly sliced red onion and cucumber for variations.
What to Serve with It
We like snacking on this tomato salad recipe. This recipe would make a great side dish to any main dish. Here are some of the main dishes you can serve this delicious tomato salad with.
More Summer Salad to Try
- Indian Chickpea Salad
- Fruit Chaat(Indian Fruit Salad)
- Onion and Yogurt Salad
Tomato Salad with Cumin and Lime
Ingredients
- 3 large ripe vine tomatoes , or 10-15oz cherry tomatoes
Salad Dressing
- 1 lime juiced
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin , preferably freshly ground in mortar & pestle
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper , preferably freshly ground
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder , optional
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro , more for garnish
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon Himalayan salt , or to taste
Instructions
Prepare Dressing
- In a mixing bowl whisk together ground cumin, olive oil, lime juice, Kashmiri chili powder, black pepper, and salt.
- Set the dressing aside.
Prepare Tomato Salad
- Wash the tomatoes thoroughly under running water and dry them. Slice them into ¼-inch circles or your desired cut and size.
- Place the sliced tomatoes on a platter. Drizzle the whisked dressing on sliced tomatoes. Let the dressing soak for a minute.
- Serve immediately or cover, then refrigerate for up to 30 minutes before serving.
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