Caprese Salad: real, delicious recipe for an Italian dish the whole family will love
How to make caprese salad and fun serving ideas for this popular Italian appetizer or light meal.
Caprese salad is an easy, no-cooking, popular Italian dish you can have as an appetizer or light main.
It is made with only two ingredients plus seasoning, so you need no cooking skills to have success with it, it tastes amazing and it is very versatile in terms of use as you can easily have it as a meal in itself, as an appetizer or you can add it to a grazing table.
You can even get creative with it and make it festive!
I love caprese salad, its simplicity and freshness.
Today, I share how to make authentic caprese salad and some cute presentation ideas I’ll be myself using to make this simple dish a bit of fun for dinners with guests.
Original caprese salad ingredients
Caprese salad is made with only two ingredients plus seasoning
- Tomatoes: any type, although I beefsteak tomatoes and heirloom tomatoes work particularly well
- Mozzarella, ideally fiordilatte type, but buffalo mozzarella works too. Just be careful though as the buffalo one is less firm so it is harder to handle if you want to get very creative with presentation!
- Salt
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Black Pepper (optional)
- Fresh basil leaves (optional)
Please note: there is NO balsamic in the original caprese and NO pesto. Insalata caprese comes from the island of Capri, in the South of Italy; on the other hand, pesto comes from Liguria and balsamic from Emilia Romagna, two regions in the north. So, while they are all ‘Italian’, they are not traditionally used in the same recipes, as they belong to different traditions.
Tools you need
- A serrated edge knife
- A serving board
How to prepare your Caprese Salad
Preparing a caprese salad is as easy as slicing up the ingredients.
Start by washing and slicing the tomatoes.
For the best result, use a knife with serrated edge so it cuts through the tomato skin without squashing them pulp and slice them horizontally. Place them in a dish and season with salt.
Then, do the same with the mozzarella: as much as possible, try keep the thickness of the slices consistent so when you go to assemble your dish, it looks pretty and tidy.
Top tip: you want your tomatoes and mozzarella to be juicy but not dripping. If there is excess moisture, you can let them air dry for a few minutes or even use kitchen paper to absorb the extra.
Now, assemble and dress!
The easiest way to do so is to get a plate or a wooden board and lay one slice and tomato and one of mozzarella, alternating one with the other. I have a slate cheeseboard and it looks amazing on it, very elegant with zero effort.
You can also assemble them in a round shape, if you have a standard dish, you can create stack or you you can swap standard tomatoes and mozzarella with cherry tomatoes and mini mozzarella balls and have them on a stick (however, this is usually less tasty than the real thing)
You can even get creative and make a Christmas cane!
However you do, it, don’t forget to drizzle with olive oil, pepper (if using) and fresh basil leaves as decorations. Enjoy!
Caprese Salad Christmas idea!
While Caprese Salad makes the most of the bursting flavor of summer tomatoes, it is also possible to make it into a festive dish. With its lovely colors, it is easy to assemble it into the shape of a garland or sugar cane and adds a touch of highness and freshness to a holiday table.
Origin and history of this salad
Caprese means ‘from Capri’ so, in this case, the name gives away the origin of this popular dish!
There are several different stories about how this dish came to be; however, there is no agreement on which of them (if any!) is reliable.
One thing that seems to recur in all of them, however, is the connection between the colors of the salad and the Italian flag: both have red, white and green. Maybe, like Pizza Margherita, made for Margherita Queen of Italy, this salad was born as a patriotic dish?
Or maybe, just maybe, it happened by chance, mozzarella and tomatoes being both native from this area…
Whichever origin we accept, there is no doubt the island of Capri is where this dish comes from, just like the cake by the same name.
Do you know that one? It will be my next recipe, stay tuned!
Authentic Caprese Salad recipe – pin this!
Marta Correale
Marta Correale is an Italian mama of two. Born and raised in Rome, Marta has a passion for travel and especially enjoys showing off Italy to her kids, who are growing up to love it as much as she does! A classics graduate from the University of Rome, Marta channeled her passion for culture and travel into the creation of family travel websites that inspire, support and help curious visitors to make the most of a trip to Italy and learn about Italian culture on the way. Marta also manages the thriving online community of parents 'Italy with kids' who turn to her for expert advice and competent Italy travel planning support. She is the author of the travel guides 'Best of Rome with kids' and 'Best of Florence with kids' available on Amazon and of an array of kids printables (scavenger hunts, info booklets etc) available on her Etsy shop 'Mama Loves To Print'
