Italian Tomato based salad dressing

[irodguy]

Does anybody have a good recipe for tomato based Italian salad dressing? What I am talking about is the dressing that is served in many of the "home style" Italian restaurants. I have come up with something similar but not quite correct.

[vesnuccia]

I dont really know what you're reffering at

but i use a sardinian dressing for carasau bread, also called musical paper becose its fragility

i just put in a mixer cherry tomatoes, olive oil, origano and sardinian sheep cheese

i love pecorino cheese and I put 1 part of tomato and 1 part of cheese, but you can change that

ps. sorry my terrible english

Edited August 20, 2004 by vesnuccia (log)

[albiston]

irodguy, could you give more info about the dressing? I've never seen a tomato based one in Italy. Actually never saw a finished dressing either. Usually salad, tomatoes, etc. are only dressed with olive oil, salt, pepper and (almost always) vinegar before getting served.

I must say I'm quite curious. Any recipe details?

[irodguy]

What I am talking about is really "American Italian"

In Italy I normally have had salad with a sprinkle of EVOO & Balsamic or something similar.

This is a dressing normally served in home style Italian restaurants stateside. I believe a mix of Tomato Sauce or Paste, EVOO, Red Wine Vinegar and spices. Many restaurants serve very similar dressings on their salads. I have gotten close but missing something.

[albiston]

What I am talking about is really "American Italian"   

Sorry, no intention to be arrogant on what "Italian" food is.

The dressing you talk about is clearly not strictly Italian from Italy but still represents one of the many evolutions Italian food has had abroad. I find the topic, and recipes like the one you mention, fascinating. Italo-American cooking, cocina Italo-Porteña from Argentina and many others (last ones I discovered the Italian-Japanese and Italian-Chinese cooking mentioned in the hawaii forum) all have a common root but manage at the same time to have a unique character. My curiosity was meant in this way.

[irodguy]

I fully understand, it's the same thing I say when friends talk about the great "Italian" pizza place that opened. The guys are Italian etc.... Of course when I go it turns out they learned pizza making in New York and it's far from "Real Italian Pizza" It's why I make my own.

[Malawry]

I don't know the exact dressing you are referring to. However, I learned a cool technique for tomato dressing once:

When you're dicing a bunch of tomato flesh, save the skins and cores. (Most restaurants I've been in just cut away the insides and use the walls of the tomatoes for salads etc...this leaves lots of leftover tomato insides and seeds for this sort of thing.) Salt generously and let sit for an hour or so. Strain off the liquid into a bowl. Whisk in EVOO, s, p, garlic, and possibly small amounts of red wine vinegar or sugar to taste. Makes a very tomato-y vinaigrette.

[stovetop]

balsalmic vinegar

olive oil

mustard dijon

garlic basil

oregano

s&p

red wine

2 parts oil

one part vinager

half the amount of red wine then the vinegar

sugar ( pinch)

soup spoon of mustard

bigger pinch of basil

small pinch of oregano

just make sure it is half the amount

if you want a imusification

start with the garlic and musatrd

add some vin then whip

slowly add some oil

work it back and forth

always finish with the oil

if you want it not emusified then mix oil together and blend

steve

[Lactic Solar Dust]

Take three very ripe beefsteak tomatoes and first blanch them in very salted water, shock them in icewater, peel them, seed them, and dice them. In a sauce pan sweat one diced shallot with two tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil, add a crushed garlic clove, deglaze with a 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar and a turn of redwine, add the diced tomatoes, and add a sprig of thyme. Season with S&P, turn the heat on high, and reduce the tomatoes until their is no moisture whatsoever, stirring often. Let this mixture cool completely. Remove the thyme and add a tablespoon of the mixture in a bowl. Add three tablespoons of olive oil and one diced chili. The dressing goes good with goatcheese.

Edited August 21, 2004 by Lactic Solar Dust (log)

[stovetop]

Nice dressing Lactic Solar Dust.

steve