Thallasa Greek Salad

Vine-grown produce, olive oil, and feta are the core of a real Greek salad. But step away from the lettuce. There is nothing delicate about a Greek salad. It's one of those simple, earthy dishes composed of what the rocky Greek soil and searing growing-season temperatures sustain. Called a horiatiki salata, or "peasant" salad, in Greek, it's the product of a terroir that's generally inhospitable in summer to such heat-sensitive, broad-leaved things as salad lettuce.

Yield:
6 - 8 servings
Category:
Salads and Dressings
Cuisine:
Greek

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 large, 4 medium, or 8–10 small juicy, vine-ripened tomatoes
  • 1 large seedless cucumber, peeled
  • 1 or 2 red, yellow or green bell peppers, seeds and spines removed
  • 1 large red onion, peeled
  • Greek dried oregano, or other high-quality dried oregano
  • Sea salt
  • Optional: a handful of purslane, each stem cut in half
  • 1 cup (about 20) mixed Greek olives
  • Greek extra-virgin olive oil
  • Red wine vinegar
  • 1 slab per person, good Greek feta
  • Optional: 2–3 tbsp capers or caper buds
  • Optional: 4–6 pickled pepperoncini

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Cut tomatoes in quarters and remove core. Cut into bite-size wedges.
  2. Slice cucumber.
  3. Cut green pepper in half lengthwise, and cut long, relatively thin slices (or leave intact and cut rings). Cut onion in half, tip to tip. Lay halves cut side down and starting at one tip, cut relatively thin slices from both halves.
  4. Place all into a clean bowl. Sprinkle generously with dried oregano and sea salt. Using your (clean) hands, carefully mix everything, and set aside for about 10 minutes to allow flavors to marry.
  5. Meanwhile, cut feta into slabs that are about 1/4 inch thick and about 3 inches wide by 4 inches long. Do not crumble the feta or cut in little cubes. Set cheese aside.
  6. Before serving, add purslane and olives (if desired, wash olives and coat in a fresh vinaigrette with lemon zest and oregano), and toss. Turn salad out into a big shallow bowl or onto a platter.
  7. Drizzle high-quality olive oil and red wine vinegar over all. Place feta slabs on top of salad: side by side or end to end, depending on shape of serving dish. Drizzle feta with a little olive oil, and sprinkle with oregano. Serve immediately with plenty of crusty bread to dip in the juices, known as making a papara. If serving as a meal, pair it with an astringent white wine.
  8. Optional ingredients: You can also scatter caper buds and/or caper leaves over the top of salad and feta. And, if you wish, distribute pepperoncini evenly on the salad.

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