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Marinated Tomato Salad with Fennel and Blue Cheese

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on June 17, 2008

Time

50 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Marinated Tomato Salad with Fennel and Blue Cheese

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and sliced into ½-inch wedges½ fennel bulb, cored and sliced thin (see tip)½ teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar 1 garlic clove, minced¼ cup chopped fresh tarragon leaves ½ teaspoon pepper ¼ cup crumbled blue cheese (see note)

Before You Begin

We prefer mildly flavored, crumbly blue cheeses in this recipe. Stella brand blue cheese is the test kitchen’s favorite supermarket blue cheese.

Instructions

  1. Toss tomatoes, fennel, and salt in large bowl, then transfer to baking sheet lined with paper towels; let drain 15 minutes.
  2. Return drained tomatoes and fennel to large bowl and toss with oil, vinegar, garlic, tarragon, and pepper. Let marinate 15 minutes.
Marinated Tomato Salad with Fennel and Blue Cheese

Marinated Tomato Salad with Fennel and Blue Cheese

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By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

50 minutes

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and sliced into ½-inch wedges
½ fennel bulb, cored and sliced thin (see tip)
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ cup chopped fresh tarragon leaves
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ cup crumbled blue cheese (see note)

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and sliced into ½-inch wedges
½ fennel bulb, cored and sliced thin (see tip)
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ cup chopped fresh tarragon leaves
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ cup crumbled blue cheese (see note)

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and sliced into ½-inch wedges
½ fennel bulb, cored and sliced thin (see tip)
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ cup chopped fresh tarragon leaves
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ cup crumbled blue cheese (see note)

Why This Recipe Works

To prevent the tomatoes in our Marinated Tomato Salad with Fennel and Blue Cheese from turning to mush, we first needed to extract any excess moisture. After slicing the tomatoes into wedges, we salted them, placed them on paper towels, and let them sit. The salt slowly drew the moisture to the surface and the towels helped wick away the liquid.

After the tomatoes had drained, they were ready to absorb a bold dressing. Some recipes recommended marinating the tomatoes overnight, but we found only a few minutes was necessary to allow the tomatoes to soak up the flavorful marinade. To complement the tomatoes, we added small amounts of potent ingredients like fennel. Soft blue cheese provided a creamy counterpoint to the acidic tomatoes.

Before You Begin

We prefer mildly flavored, crumbly blue cheeses in this recipe. Stella brand blue cheese is the test kitchen’s favorite supermarket blue cheese.

Instructions

  1. Toss tomatoes, fennel, and salt in large bowl, then transfer to baking sheet lined with paper towels; let drain 15 minutes.
  2. Return drained tomatoes and fennel to large bowl and toss with oil, vinegar, garlic, tarragon, and pepper. Let marinate 15 minutes.

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