Tomato Tartare
This easy tomato tartare captures the beautiful flavors and textures of the classic beef tartare with minimal effort and time. It's grain-free, gluten-free and the perfect vegan appetizer to serve at a fancy dinner you're hosting.
Vegetarian and vegan recipes have a bad rap for being boring and bland, but this tartare recipe will change your mind, and is sure to be a total crowd pleaser too- just like my favorite spicy tomato jam.
Everytime I go grocery shopping, I end up buying way more tomatoes than I can use. But that means I also get to try lots of new recipes and condiments with those extra tomatoes I have at hand.
I love making my tomato passata, fire roasted tomatoes and oven dried tomatoes whenever I'm planning an Italian menu for the upcoming week. This time, I had just a handful of them, and I wanted to use them up to make an appetizer. And here we are!
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What's So Great About the Recipe?
The tartare is light, refreshing and packed with Italian flavors. It's the perfect versatile appetizer to make for any party or get-together you're hosting.
Plus, it barely takes any effort to make. You'll need just about 20 minutes to get this stunning-looking dish on the table.
Recipe Ingredients
Tomatoes: Almost any kind of tomatoes can work. Roma, Plum and Campari tomatoes are great.
Onions: White onion, for that subtle sweetness and savory flavor.
Garlic powder: To season.
Worcestershire sauce: To add a deeper umami flavor to the tartare.
Basil: For that Italian flavor and aroma.
Dates: To add some sweetness to the tartare.
Olive oil: The vehicle! I would recommend using extra virgin olive oil.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- Swap the Worcestershire sauce for some homemade BBQ sauce to lend the tartare a bit of extra flavor.
- You can also use an infused oil like garlic rosemary infused olive oil or habanero oil to bring a deeper flavor to the dish.
How to Make Tomato Tartare
Step 1: Core the tomatoes to remove the watery center. Chop the outside into small chunks and set aside.
Step 2: Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat and saute the chopped onion for a few minutes until light golden brown.
Step 3: Add the chopped tomatoes , garlic powder, chopped dates, Worcestershire sauce and chopped basil. Saute for 2-3 minutes.
Step 4: Allow the mixture to cool down for a few minutes and spoon it into a cookie cutter set on a serving plate as shown. Remove the cutter gently and serve.
💭 Top Tip
If you don't have a cookie cutter that's big enough, portion the tarte in a small bowl, set a plate over it, flip it over and remove the bowl.
How to Store the Leftover Tomato Tartare
I wouldn't recommend storing the tartare beyond a day as the chopped veggies can start to lose water and turn limp. If you do have some leftovers, transfer them to an airtight container and refrigerate them.
Tips & Tricks to Nail the Recipe
- The quality of tomatoes you use will make a huge difference in the flavor and texture of the tartare. Pick tomatoes that are bright red, ripe, juicy and firm.
- I decided to core the tomatoes to remove their watery, soft inside. If you're using tomatoes with low moisture content, you can skip that step.
- Use an infused or flavored salt like garlic parsley salt or some homemade herb salt to season the tartare. I love using my jalapeno salt or Sriracha salt to lend it a kick of heat.
- You can also spoon some date syrup or habanero hot honey over the tartare right before you serve.
How to Serve Tomato Tartare
Serve this tomato tartare as an appetizer or a side dish with any Italian main of your choice. If I'm making this for a house party, I usually pair it with my cherry tomato confit, some bruschetta and some crusty garlic bread.
You can also top it with some Pangrattato to lend it a bit of extra texture and flavor.
Recipe FAQs
I don't think using cherry tomatoes is a great idea. You'll need a lot of fresh, ripe and juicy tomatoes here to get the texture and flavor right.
More Side Recipes
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
If you tried this tomato tartare or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Tomato Tartare
Ingredients
- 2 tomatoes
- 1 date
- 1 white onion
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon basil
Instructions
- Core the tomatoes to remove the watery center. Chop the outside into small chunks and set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat and saute the chopped onion for a few minutes until light golden brown.
- Add the chopped tomatoes , garlic powder, chopped dates, Worcestershire sauce and chopped basil. Saute for 2-3 minutes.
- Allow the mixture to cool down for a few minutes and spoon it into a cookie cutter set on a serving plate as shown. Remove the cutter gently and serve.
Notes
- The quality of tomatoes you use will make a huge difference in the flavor and texture of the tartare. Pick tomatoes that are bright red, ripe, juicy and firm.
- I decided to core the tomatoes to remove their watery, soft inside. If you're using tomatoes with low moisture content, you can skip that step.
- Use an infused or flavored salt like garlic parsley salt or some homemade herb salt to season the tartare. I love using my jalapeno salt or Sriracha salt to lend it a kick of heat.
- You can also spoon some date syrup or habanero hot honey over the tartare right before you serve.
- If you don't have a cookie cutter that's big enough, portion the tarte in a small bowl, set a plate over it, flip it over and remove the bowl.
