This burrata caprese salad is the perfect way to enjoy juicy tomatoes, creamy Burrata cheese and fragrant basil. This salad shows how simple can really better, and it's perfect to make when it's too hot to cook and turn on the oven.
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This is a twist on the classic Caprese salad! I'm going to be honest, I think I prefer this version because I just love burrata! Have you ever had burrata before? Burrata is a cow milk cheese made of mozzarella and cream, giving it a creamy center that I can't get enough of.
This is the perfect summer salad! I love making a salad like this when it's tomato season, using simple ingredients to make the ultimate summer salad. Fresh summer tomatoes are really going to make all the difference here!
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Why you'll love this burrata caprese salad!
- This burrata Caprese salad uses just 6 simple and fresh ingredients, sometimes simple really is better!
- You don't need any fancy equipment, just a knife and chopping board.
- It's the perfect appetizer for four people, or you can have it as a main course for two people along with some crusty bread, grains like farro, or grilled chicken.
- It takes less than 10 minutes to prep the entire Caprese salad!
Ingredients Needed
- Fresh Tomatoes: I love using a mixture of tomatoes! This recipe is best made when it's tomato season, that way you're using ripe tomatoes that are full of flavor. You can use heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, roma tomatoes - whatever type of tomato you like!
- Burrata: burrata is a soft Italian cheese that has a thicker outer shell of fresh mozzarella and is filled with cream and stracciatella.
- Basil: this herb pairs perfectly with the fresh tomatoes and creamy cheese!
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: try to use a good olive oil. I usually keep a large bottle of standard olive oil for cooking, but then a fancier olive oil for dressing salads like this.
- Black Pepper: freshly cracked black pepper is always going to taste better! My favorite peppercorns are tellicherry peppercorns.
- Sea Salt: you'll want flaky salt here, like Maldon or Fleur de Sel.
Variations & Substitutions
- Can't find burrata at your local grocery store? Use regular fresh mozzarella or small mozzarella balls.
- Add fresh peach slices to this salad for a fruity and fresh twist!
- Drizzle over homemade pesto.
- Caprese salad doesn't traditionally use balsamic vinegar, but you will find in a lot of restaurants that they had a balsamic glaze or balsamic vinegar so feel free to add that.
- If you want to make this fresh summer salad for the meat eater in your life, add some slices of prosciutto!
- Serve this with garlic bread or pieces of crusty bread to make it more of a main course.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Thinly slice your tomatoes using a bread knife. If you're using grape tomatoes or cherry tomatoes, you can just cut those in half if you prefer. Place on a serving platter or plate and sprinkle over salt.
Step 2: Add basil leaves and place the ball of burrata on top of the tomatoes. Drizzle with olive oil and grind fresh black pepper and more salt on top. Enjoy!
Expert Tips & Tricks
- Try and use a good quality olive oil for this. Not sure how to spot one? This blog post by Samin Nosrat has been incredibly helpful for me. To find a high quality olive oil, look to see if the bottle has a harvest date (olive oil is good for about a year once pressed!), make sure it's in a dark bottle, and a specific name and location on it.
- Using a bread knife instead of a chef knife is going to make it so much easier to slice tomatoes thinly.
- I don't recommend making this ahead of time, so make sure you start prepping the dish just before you want to serve it.
Frequently Asked Questions
While very similar, with think outer skins, once you pierce burrata with a knife you'll find the inside is very creamy. The inside of burrata is filled with cream and stracciatella (no, not the ice cream!), while mozzarella is firm throughout.
the Caprese salad is named after the island of Capri where it's believed to have originated.
Try these summer recipes next!
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Recipe
Burrata Caprese
Ingredients
- 5 oz burrata this is the drained weight
- 3-4 heirloom tomatoes can also sub for regular large tomatoes
- 1 bunch basil leaves
- flaky sea salt
- freshly cracked black pepper
- olive oil
Instructions
- Thinly slice your tomatoes using a bread knife and place on a serving platter. Arrange basil leaves in between the slices. Sprinkle salt over the tomatoes.3-4 heirloom tomatoes, flaky sea salt, 1 bunch basil leaves
- Place the burrata on top of the tomato slices.5 oz burrata
- Drizzle over olive oil and sprinkle over some more salt and black pepper.olive oil, freshly cracked black pepper
- If you wish, you can tear the burrata up into smaller chunks like I did!
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I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
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