Salad of Homemade Marinated Tuna, Small Tomatoes, and Red Onion

Name: Salad of Homemade Marinated Tuna, Small Tomatoes, and Red Onion
Yield: serves 6 as a first course, 10 or more as part of an antipasto spread
Ingredients: 8 ounces or so homemade Tonno sott’Olio (about 1/3 of a full batch: page 10) or imported Italian tuna packed in olive oil; 4-ounce bunch of scallions (about a dozen); 1 pint cherry and/or pear tomatoes, preferably mixed colors and shapes; 1 small red onion (3 or 4 ounces); 2 tablespoons tonno-marinating oil or fresh extra-virgin olive oil; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar; 3 tablespoons tiny capers in brine, drained, or less to taste; 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano; 4 tablespoons tonno-marinating oil or fresh extra-virgin olive oil, or to taste; 4 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar, or more to taste; 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste; Freshly ground black pepper to taste

December 14, 2011

This is a special salad worthy of your homemade tonno sott’olio. You blanch the tomatoes and scallions, and briefly sauté the red onion to mellow pungency and soften textures. The salad needs a good hour of marinating to let the sweet and savory flavors mingle. Incidentally, leftovers make great juicy sandwiches. I recommend white balsamic vinegar here, to wilt the red onion and dress the salad. White balsamic is not a traditional product, but it comes from Modena, like any decent balsamic, and it has a clean taste and a light color that don’t muddy dishes the way dark balsamic can. If you can’t find it, use regular wine vinegar. You may also use top-quality canned tuna in this salad, but drain and discard the packing oil and substitute fresh extra-virgin olive oil in the dressing and sauté.

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