This easy caprese salad with balsamic vinegar looks absolutely gorgeous and tastes like summer. It's ready in just 20 minutes!
Depending on the serving size, it can be a tasty appetizer, a side dish, or even a filling main course. If necessary, you can make it a few hours ahead of time.
![Caprese salad with tomatoes, mozzarella and basil, served on a green plate.](https://healthyrecipesblogs.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/caprese-salad-1-2021.jpg)
Caprese salad is quick, fresh, and filling. It's one of those super-simple dishes that are surprisingly delicious, especially if you use the freshest in-season ingredients.
This salad has such a wonderful flavor combination! I've come to strongly associate this fresh-tasting dish with summer. I make it at least once a week, and my entire family loves it.
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Ingredients
You'll only need a few ingredients to make this salad. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of what you'll need:
- Fresh tomatoes: They need to be truly red, ripe, yet firm. Certainly not pale and mealy.
- Fresh mozzarella: The fresher you can find, the better it will taste.
- Basil leaves: Pick beautiful green ones, free of blemishes and brown spots.
- Kosher salt and black pepper: I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Olive oil: Extra-virgin olive oil is so flavorful - I highly recommend using it in this salad.
- Balsamic vinegar: In many other recipes, red wine vinegar would be OK, but here, you really do need to use thick, rich, almost sweet balsamic vinegar.
- Mustard: I use Dijon mustard. It's thicker, creamier, and less vinegary than yellow mustard. It helps the dressing emulsify.
Variations
- Instead of red tomatoes, you can use heirloom tomatoes and pick different colors of them.
- You can make caprese skewers by threading cherry tomatoes, mozzarella balls, and basil leaves on wooden skewers and then drizzling them with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
- Turn it into a filling main-course salad by adding avocado slices and sliced hard-boiled eggs.
- Replace the mozzarella with halloumi cheese.
- Make a cherry tomato caprese using cherry tomatoes (1 pint), mozzarella balls (1 cup), and small basil leaves, as shown in the photo below.
Instructions
Scroll down to the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this salad:
Whisk the dressing ingredients and set aside. Using a sharp knife, thinly slice the tomatoes and mozzarella.
Arrange the tomato and mozzarella slices on a platter, alternating and overlapping each other. Arrange the basil leaves on top.
Sprinkle the salad with salt and pepper. Drizzle it with the dressing, and serve.
Expert Tips
As is always the case when it comes to simple recipes, the individual ingredients must be of high quality to make this simple salad as good as it can be. So when you make this salad, I recommend that you follow these suggestions:
- Make sure you use good olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar.
- Choose Kosher salt or sea salt rather than table salt.
- Pick fresh whole-milk mozzarella, as fresh as you can get.
- Most importantly, use good tomatoes. Big, red, ripe but firm, not mealy, and definitely not refrigerated. If your tomatoes did spend some time in the fridge, take them out and bring them to room temperature.
Recipe FAQs
It's called "Insalata Caprese" in Italian, which translates to "salad of Capri," since it originated from the Island of Capri. So, the name of this salad tells us where in Italy it was invented!
I don't recommend it. Low-fat mozzarella is not very tasty. And it's such an important part of this dish. It's best to use whole-milk mozzarella.
This is nontraditional, but I like to add a small amount of Dijon mustard to the dressing. This helps it emulsify.
You can skip the Dijon and simply drizzle the salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It won't be as pretty, but it will be just as tasty.
Serving Suggestions
When I serve this salad as an appetizer for sharing, I like to add prosciutto, as shown in the photo below:
I also like to serve it as a side dish with dinner. When I do, I pair it with any of the following entrees:
Storing Leftovers
I don't recommend keeping leftovers for longer than a day or so. So, it's OK to prepare this salad ahead of time, but I would only make it a couple of hours before I plan on serving it. It can turn soggy overnight in the fridge.
If you do make this salad in advance, it's best to add the basil and dressing at the very last minute, right before serving the salad.
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Recipe Card
Caprese Salad Recipe
Ingredients
Dressing:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salad:
- 2 medium tomatoes
- 8 ounces fresh whole-milk mozzarella
- 9 medium basil leaves
- ½ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt or ¼ teaspoon of any other salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk the dressing ingredients (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and Dijon mustard) with a small hand whisk until they emulsify into a smooth salad dressing. Set aside.
- Slice the tomatoes thinly. Aim to get a total of 10 slices.
- Using a sharp knife, slice the mozzarella thinly into 9 rounds.
- Arrange the tomato and mozzarella slices on a platter, alternating and overlapping each other. Arrange the basil leaves on top.
- Sprinkle the salad with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the salad dressing. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- It's OK to make this salad ahead of time, but I would only make it a couple of hours before I plan on serving it. It can turn soggy overnight in the fridge. If you do make it in advance, it's best to add the basil and dressing at the last minute, right before serving the salad.
- Turn it into a filling main-course salad by adding avocado slices and sliced hard-boiled eggs.
- Use good tomatoes. Big, red, ripe but firm, not mealy, and definitely not refrigerated. If your tomatoes did spend some time in the fridge, take them out and bring them to room temperature.
Nutrition per Serving
Disclaimers
Cup measurements refer to the standard American cup, which is 240 milliliters. Most of my recipes are low-carb (or keto) and gluten-free, but some are not. Please verify that a recipe fits your needs before using it. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate, and the carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Nutrition info may contain errors, so please verify it independently. Recipes may contain errors, so please use your common sense when following them. Please read these Terms of Use carefully before using any of my recipes.
Joan
Delicious! I was too lazy to mix the dressing, so I drizzled the salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I had it for lunch today - it was the perfect summer lunch!
Vered DeLeeuw
I'm so glad you enjoyed this salad, Joan! I like having it for lunch, too. Thank you for taking the time to write a review.