Indian tomato salad recipe

I have a spicy twist on the delicious classic appetizer recipe; it is Indian tomato salad. This one is loaded with tomatoes, onion, and lean protein chickpeas. This means a light, easy, filling dinner for your busy weeknight.

Are you triggered by the word spicy in this easy Indian tomato salad? No worries, you are the cook and have complete control over the ingredients. Control it and enjoy the spice's natural taste without worrying about the heat.

The green chili pepper is the sole responsible element in this Indian summer salad recipe; increase or decrease the quantity however you prefer.

I believe that the salad should have layers of flavor and taste, be filling, and have the potential to serve as a vegan dinner. This aspect is reflected in many of my salad collections-Indian quinoa salad and mashed chickpea salad.

However, other salads, like Spicy Asian cabbage salad, Spicy carrot salad, and fresco salad, are also heavenly and capable of including protein.

You can serve this within a few seconds, as no huge preparation work is involved in this spicy Indian tomato salad recipe. The recipe is straightforward, as you can guess from the title. This is one of the easy beginner-level Indian recipes with tomato. If you are thinking of exploring Indian cooking, here is the perfect recipe to start with.

Another simple salad in the Indian subcontinent, I rely on this recipe to make quick Indian meal accompaniments. Added to its taste, it is easier to put it together. And the best salad to go with is butter chicken. You only need to roughly chop the vegetables and toss them with the spices. That is it; a tasty dish appears before your eyes like magic.

How does this Indian tomato salad taste like?

This accompaniment salad tastes excellent with the right combinations of flavors. The tangy tomato is balanced with the creamy chickpeas and tastes great with the hint of chili pepper and lemon's refreshing aroma. Since the ingredients are universal, you can rightly guess how the end dish should taste like.

To put it more straightforwardly, this tastes similar to the Mexican salad, but the ingredients are chopped into bite-size pieces.

Other salad recipes,

• Indian quinoa salad
• Cucumber mango salad
• Corn chaat
• Greek yogurt salad

Making Indian tomato salad

The recipe is straightforward and elegant, and better to eat as fresh as soon as they are made. The tomato loses its firmness and becomes watery when it comes to salt. So, it is always best to consume within an hour.

When combined with lemon juice and chili peppers, it turns into an excellent India salad dressing. Hence, there is no pain in making the dressing separately in this spicy Indian tomato recipe.

Ingredients

Tomato. Any type of tomato is suitable for making healthy Indian tomato salad. Plum, Roma, Cherry, or grape tomato tastes the best in this dish. If you have a backyard garden with freshly ripened tomato-you are blessed. You can finish making a fresh garden salad before setting the dining table.

Onion. As usual, there is no discrimination for the type of onion used here. Pearl, white, yellow, and red onion play perfectly with other ingredients here. But make sure that the onion matches the size of a chickpea, making the cuts in even shape gives a pleasing look and easy bite.

Green chili pepper. The amount we require is just one or two. But the bang that it brings is enormous. I have been asking about substitution for green chili peppers. Any thin-skinned peppers are ideal.

Lemon juice. Tomato tastes sour, so why do we need lemon juice? Well, the flavor of lemon is very refreshing and adds another dimension to the salad. It acts as a binder and brings all the vegetables with its mesmerizing fresh aroma. This can be replaced with lime juice as well.

Chickpea. I always have boiled and frozen chickpeas in our freezer. Why? It helps me to make super quick dishes in no time. Usually, I soak a big batch of chickpeas and allow it to sprout in the next three days. Next, I cook and freeze them later. It may sound like an elaborate process, but the physical work involved is minimal.

But you have another easy option: get them from the stores as canned.

The Directions

Prepare. Prepare all the vegetables by washing, cleaning, and peeling, whichever is necessary.

Chop. Chop them evenly to the chickpea size. Finely chop the green chili peppers.

Toss. In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients and gently combine using a spoon.

Serve. And serve immediately.

What to serve with Indian tomato salad?

The word 'spicy' in the recipe meant to be hot. Generally speaking, Indian recipes are known for being hot and spicy to the Western world. And this dish falls into this category as well. But the heat is enjoyable when paired with creamy and subtle dishes, like serving tacos with spicy salsa.

We love serving with the following primary course dishes,

• Onion kulcha recipe
• Avocado paratha
• Cedar plank grilled salmon

Make ahead and storing ideas

Make-ahead Ideas. You may cook the chickpea ahead of time. Chop and refrigerate the vegetables separately. And mix them whenever needed.

For this Indian-style salad, the veggies should firm and stay in their sharpness. The vegetable's natural crispness is the highlight, and this is possible only when the salad is made fresh.

I am storing ideas. The firm tomato increases the shelf life of this delicious Indian tomato salad. The leftover stays good for a day when refrigerated in an air-sealed container.

Variations Indian summer salad

Paneer/tofu. Are you thinking of any cheese in here? I would suggest Asian variations like paneer tikka in the oven or spicy tofu steak.

Cheese. Add in your favorite cheese to make the dish creamy. Feta, Mexican queso fresco, and blue cheese all fabulously pair well.

Chicken. I have not tried with chicken, but I'm guessing pulled chicken would be the best addition. You try with your favorite and let us know the results.

Cucumber. Cucumber is another pleasant addition. To retain the dish's taste, keep it less or equal to the quantity of the tomato.

Olive oil. Drizzle virgin olive oil for a shiny look and extra flavor.

Ground black pepper. To add the final touches, sprinkle ground black pepper. A little is too much here, as we already have green chili peppers in this spicy Indian tomato salad recipe.

Garnish. Garnish with cilantro or mint leaves for the robust flavors.

Other Spice mixes. But I feel this variation is overpowering and takes away the natural flavors of all vegetables.

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