My cherry tomato plants produce more than I know what to do with every summer, and this cherry tomato salad is where most of it ends up. Five ingredients, built for the height of tomato season, when the tomatoes do most of the work.
The Short Version:
With this few ingredients, the onion decides how much prep you're signing up for. Sweet onions are milder and can go straight into the salad. Red or white onions work well, too, but only after a 15-minute ice water soak to mellow the bite.
This has been my go-to summer side dish for over a decade, and it's the one I bring when someone's manning the grill and needs a side that doesn't touch the oven or the stove.
It comes together in about 15 minutes with no cooking required, right at the peak of tomato season. Just build it close to serving time, since the vinegar softens the tomatoes if it sits too long.
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What I Learned Making This
I found this recipe in an old Cooking Light magazine many years ago, tucked into the sidebar of a completely different recipe. I don't remember what it was sitting next to, only that this five-ingredient side note caught my eye enough to make me put the magazine down and go find tomatoes. (That's the kind of recipe recommendation I trust: something so simple it barely qualifies as a recipe, standing next to something far more complicated.) I've been making it ever since.
Five Star Review
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
"One word. Delicious!! Made exactly as written. So so good."
- Cheryl
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Ingredients & Substitutions
This recipe gets its flavor from five ingredients, so each one is doing real work.
- Cherry or grape tomatoes: Sweet, juicy, and firm enough to hold their shape once they're dressed. A mix of colors makes the salad look extra good, but any cherry tomato works. Heirloom tomatoes work, too; just scoop out some of the seeds if they're especially juicy, or the salad turns watery.
- Sweet onion: Vidalia, Walla Walla, or any variety labeled "sweet." Their milder bite is what keeps this salad from turning sharp. No sweet onion on hand? I've tested red and white onion as substitutes; soak the chopped onion in ice water for about 15 minutes first to take the edge off.
- Feta cheese: I reach for a block of feta packed in brine because it's creamier and has more flavor than the pre-crumbled version. Pre-crumbled feta works fine too, just with a bit less richness.
- White wine vinegar: Light and tangy without overpowering the tomatoes. I've tested rice vinegar and apple cider vinegar as substitutes and both work well.
- Olive oil, salt, and pepper: These ingredients round out the dressing. Taste before you add salt; feta already brings plenty of it.
How to Make Cherry Tomato Salad
- Halve the tomatoes and dice the sweet onion. Add the feta.
- Whisk the oil and vinegar and pour over the tomato mixture. Fold gently to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Before You Make This
- Serve it right away, or within the hour. Once the vinegar hits the tomatoes, it starts breaking down their cell walls. What's crisp and bright at first turns soft and watery within a few hours, so this isn't a make-ahead salad.
- Crumble your own feta if you can. Block feta that you break up by hand holds larger, craggier pieces that stand up in the dressing. Pre-crumbled feta is drier and tends to turn a little sandy once it sits in the vinaigrette.
- Scaling down works well. If you're not feeding a crowd, halve the recipe. The recipe card's serving adjuster does the math for you.
Serving Suggestions
This salad doesn't need much of an occasion. It's a natural next to anything off the grill, from burgers to grilled brats to steak and salmon, since the acidity cuts through richer, smokier flavors. One reader served it over brown rice and turned it into more of a meal, which is worth trying if you want it to do double duty.
Make Ahead, Freezing and Storage
This salad doesn't hold up as leftovers. The vinegar keeps softening the tomatoes, so what's crisp and bright at first turns soft and watery within a few hours. Make only what you'll eat in one sitting, and enjoy it the same day.
More Summer Side Dishes
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Recipe
Cherry Tomato Salad with Feta and Sweet Onion
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 cups halved cherry or grape tomatoes
- ⅔ cup diced sweet onion
- 2 ½ teaspoons white wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
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Instructions
- Place tomatoes, onions and feta in a bowl.6 cups halved cherry or grape tomatoes, ⅔ cup diced sweet onion, ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
- Whisk together oil and vinegar and pour over tomato mixture. Fold gently to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately or let sit for up to an hour.2 ½ teaspoons white wine vinegar, Kosher salt, Freshly ground black pepper, 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Notes
- This recipe is barely adapted from an old Cooking Light magazine issue.
- I prefer sweet onions in this recipe, but if you don't have one, feel free to use a regular yellow, white or even red onion that has been soaked in ice water for 15 minutes, drained and blotted dry to reduce its sharpness.
- Block feta cheese that you crumble yourself is my favorite because it has more flavor than the pre-crumbled variety but the crumbled version works great, too.
- Multi-colored cherry tomatoes are gorgeous in this recipe but you can really use any type of tomato you have on hand. If using beefsteak or similar variety, core and remove some of the seeds before adding to the salad so it doesn't get too runny.
- Make this recipe just before serving as the vinegar will start to break down the tomatoes and make them mushy if made too far in advance. Leftovers do not keep well so try to make the amount you will eat.
- Out of white wine vinegar? Use rice or apple cider vinegar instead.
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Nutrition
Nutrition info not guaranteed to be accurate.
Cheryl says
One word. Delicious!! Made exactly as written. Served over brown rice. So so good.
kristy @ the wicked noodle says
I just love this easy salad! And it's gorgeous, too!
Kellie says
This salad looks so yummy. My cherry tomatoes are just starting to turn red so I plan to make this soon. Thank you for sharing
It's truly the best with fresh from the garden tomatoes. Enjoy!
Georgia @ The Comfort of Cooking says
These are the kind of simple, fresh, flavorful dishes I LIVE for in the summer! Lovely recipe, Anna!
I'm with you, Georgia. Bring on the bounty of summer!
Julia says
I love tomatoes in the summer! I have been waiting for this time of year because they just don't taste as good the rest of the year. My farmers market opens this weekend and I can't wait to buy some tomatoes and make this salad. It looks delicious.
Nothing beats those summer tomatoes!