This is my go-to marinated tomato salad that I look forward to every year and eat all summer long. With a heavy lean toward Mediterranean and Spanish cuisine, I love this salad that relies on fresh from the garden tomatoes and herbs like tarragon and parsley. And then mixes them with pantry staples like briny olives, pasta, tuna, eggs, capers, anchovies and sherry vinegar.
Marinating the tomatoes first draws out some of their moisture creating this wonderful tomato infused dressing for the pasta salad. And it lends itself so well to using what you have on hand -- add in artichoke hearts, hearts of palm, chickpeas, cucumbers or sun-dried tomatoes. No need for a shopping list. No runs to the grocery store. Serve it with a piece of thick toasted crusty bread to soak up all that juicy tomato goodness.
As I write this, it is a brilliant sunny April day and have gardening top of mind, so took a trip to my favorite garden center to buy my tomato plants. I couldn't wait until August to make this, so swung by the grocer that has the "good" off-season tomatoes to further enable my spring fever, and then back home to the kitchen. Oh so good. This marinated tomato salad is something that I can eat all week long. And will! It just keeps getting better and better!
About Those Olives
They have been a part of my life for as long as I remember. (Which seems like yesterday.) One of my earliest and fondest family foodie memories is "the relish tray" at Grandma Jenny's. She just loved "anything California" after living there with Mom and Uncle Ed while Grandpa Snub (The Colonel) was stationed there during WW2 -- including those ripe olives from California!
"Who is going to put together the relish tray?" rang out from the kitchen.
The relish tray played an essential part of every extended family meal. A ritual. I'm certain every bride at a certain point in time had a "relish tray" on their registry -- similar to "the charcuterie board" of recent years. They maybe even registered for two. My Mom did. There was even a small relish tray for weeknight meals!
The relish tray with its compartments typically consisted of a mix of cut up vegetables like celery, carrots, radishes and red bell peppers. Maybe cucumbers if in season. And always complemented by sweet pickles, dill spears and briny olives.
And this little girl got to arrange the olives on the relish tray. She was allowed to leave five in the can. So that she could place each of them on the tip of each little finger and pop them one by one into her mouth!
(Look forward to a post about relish trays coming soon to The Savory Tart.)
Ingredients
- extra-virgin olive oil
- sherry vinegar
- capers
- garlic cloves
- oil-cured anchovies (optional)
- kosher salt
- small to medium tomatoes or a mix of cherry
- lumache, conghiglie (shells) or orecchiette pasta
- solid white oil-packed tuna
- California Ripe Green olives
- pepperoncini peppers
- hard-cooked eggs
- fresh parlsey
- fresh tarragon
See recipe card for quantities.
Jump to RecipeInstructions
Cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve.
Add olive oil, sherry capers, garlic, anchovies and salt to a large bowl.
Whisk to combine.
Add tomatoes to bowl.
Toss with the tomatoes, cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 6 hours.
(Make sure to note how the tomatoes release liquid creating a tomato-infused dressing.)
Add pasta, tuna, olives and pepperoncini to the bowl.
Follow parsley, tarragon and hard boiled eggs. Gentle toss to combine.
Season the marinated tomato salad with more salt if needed. Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with more parsley if desired.
Substitutions & Variations
- Pasta - while I used lumache pasta, conchiglie, orecchiette or even giggle, elbow or rotini will work
- Vinegar - sherry vinegar really hits home the Spanish notes, but if in a bind, use red wine vinegar or champagne vinegar
- Sun-dried Tomatoes -- consider adding in ⅓ cup diced sun-dried tomatoes for added umami
- Olives -- I used Castelvetrano olives here, but ripe green olives, kalamata or Manzanilla work equally as well.
- Add some "Heart" -- slice hearts of palm and add in. Or add in chopped artichoke hearts.
- Cucumber -- add a cup or two of diced English cucumbers
- Shrimp -- toss in a ½ pound of cooked cleaned medium shrimp instead of the tuna
- White Beans -- instead of the pasta, substitute a 15 oz. can of drained white beans for a little extra protein. Or, swap the tuna for white beans for a Vegetarian Option
- Chickpeas -- add a 15 oz. can of drained white beans
- Make it Spicy -- double the diced pepperoncini. Or whisk a pinch of hot pepper flakes into the marinade
- Gluten Free - use gluten free pasta
Equipment
- pasta pot
- colander
- large bowl
Storage
This just gets better and better as it sits to marinate in the refrigerator. (Sometimes I extend this salad's life by adding things to it as it marinates!)
This marinated tomato salad keeps in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
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Mediterranean-Inspired Marinated Tomato, Olive and Tuna Pasta
Equipment
- pasta pot
- colander
- large bowl
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil plus more to taste
- 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar plus more to taste
- 1-½ tablespoons capers
- 2 medium garlic cloves minced
- 3 anchovies minced
- 1-½ teaspoons kosher salt plus more to taste
- 2 pounds small to medium tomatoes cored and chopped into 1-inch pieces
- 8 ounces uncooked lumache conchiglie (shells) or orecchiette pasta, prepared according to package directions
- 7.7 ounces solid white tuna in olive oil lightly drained and flaked
- ¾ cup halved California Ripe Green Olives
- ⅓ cup chopped pepperoncini peppers
- 3 large hard-cooked eggs peeled and diced coarsely
- 2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves roughly torn, plus more for garnish
- 1 tablespoon fresh tarragon leaves roughly torn, plus more for garnish
Instructions
- Whisk the olive oil, sherry capers, garlic, anchovies and salt in a large bowl. Toss with the tomatoes, cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 6 hours.
- Add pasta, tuna, California Ripe Green Olives, pepperoncini, hard-cooked eggs parsley and tarragon to the bowl and gently toss together. Season with more salt if needed. Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with more parsley if desired.
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