Tomato Salad With Purslane and Onions

When I vacation in Greece, I love to walk a lot and I notice there’s a lot of this “weed” growing roadside. This herb is called purslane (glistrida in Greek). It is edibile.

Purslane is very nutritious and is rich in Vitamin C and alpha linolenic acid (one of the Omega-3 fatty acids).which the body converts into the essential fatty acids known as EPA: almost 3 percent of purslane by weight consists of alpha-, beta-, and gamma-carotene and lutein.

Not only is it easy to grow purslane in your home garden, it is hard to keep it from overrunning other plants. When the plants are young, they make a tangy but succulent addition to salads with just a little washing and chopping.

Tomato Salad With Purslane and Onions

(serves 4)

4 ripe tomatoes, cut into small wedges

1 cup of purslane leaves (and upper stems)

1/2 cup thinly sliced red onions

1 tsp. sea salt

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

4 tsp. red wine vinegar

1. Place the tomato wedges in a salad bowl, sprinkle half the salt over the tomatoes and allow 10 minutes for the salt to penetrate. Add the onions, purslane, olive oil and vinegar and toss.
2. Taste, adjust seasoning (add more salt to taste).

© 2020, Peter Minaki. All rights reserved.