A salad may have tomatoes and crackers, but that doesn’t make it a tomato cracker salad.
A generous helping of fresh flavors and a creamy, crunchy finish is what makes a Southern tomato cracker salad, and wow, what a treat it is!
Keeping up with our theme of sharing Southern-inspired recipes, this week we are trying our hand at a much more shareable version of a simple tomato sandwich. Recently, we covered how to make Alabama Fire Crackers, Mint Juleps, and Pimento Cheese on our Instagram and on our blog. All delicious classics in their own way, we are thoroughly enjoying exploring the interesting flavors and traditions of Southern cuisine. As the summer heat begins to settle in and the lightning bugs start to twinkle here in Alabama, we are looking for some splendid snacks and drinks to get us through the season. While tomato sandwiches are a comforting and tangy classic, there isn’t an easy way to share them with friends and family during summer get-togethers, unless you elect to make a number of finger sandwiches which takes a lot of effort and time. How can we enjoy the buttery, velvety, piquant taste of tomatoes, mayonnaise, and other herbs and spices in a way that’s easily shareable and effortless to make? Southern cracker salad!
How to Make a Southern Cracker Salad
This recipe is super simple to make and only requires 5 ingredients to make! Well, aside from salt and pepper, of course.
First things first, survey your shelves and take note of anything you may need before heading off to the store because odds are you probably already have almost everything this recipe calls for! You’ll need some mayonnaise, we used Duke’s Real Mayonnaise for this recipe, a sleeve of Saltine crackers, one shallot, a few sizable tomatoes, and some freshly chopped chives.
Aside from gathering all of the ingredients you need, you’ll begin your cracker salad by preparing the produce. For the shallot, mince finely before placing it into a medium-sized mixing bowl.
As with most recipes, when making tomato cracker salad, the fresher the ingredients, the better. If you don’t mind getting your hands dirty and happen to have a green thumb, heading out to your personal garden for some homegrown tomatoes is a great option that gives the salad a ton of unique flavor. But, for the rest of us, store-bought tomatoes are a little more convenient to get ahold of. While they are perfectly acceptable to use for this recipe, there are other ways to get that incredible texture and flavor of farm-fresh tomatoes! The Farmers Market is a great way to support local farmers and get your hands on some high-quality ingredients, especially tomatoes. There are so many varieties that each have unique characteristics and many of these will rarely or never line the shelves of a supermarket. Why not make an afternoon trip to the Farmers Market to pick up something new?
Wherever you decide to get your tomatoes, once you’ve got them give them a good rinse to remove any debris. Dice the tomatoes and toss them into the bowl with the minced shallot. You’ll also want to chop the chives if they are not already before moving on to the next step!
Add the mayonnaise, salt, and pepper to the bowl and use a spoon to combine the ingredients as well as you can.
Now it’s time for the fun part! Wash your hands thoroughly after preparing the produce and get ready to add the crackers. Over the bowl, take a handful of the saltine crackers and use your hands to crush and crumble them while letting them fall into the bowl. It’s okay if the crackers aren’t a uniform size, that will help give the salad more body! Continue crushing the crackers until you’ve used up the entire sleeve, and then stir the crushed crackers into the creamy dip.
Mix the salad until the crackers appear to be fully coated in the creamy tomato mixture and top with the remaining chives for a lively finish and enjoy!
Table & Thyme’s Simple Southern Cracker Salad
A delightful and fresh snack to share with friends, this tomato cracker salad recipe made with meaty tomatoes and zesty chives is a creamy, crunchy bowl of bliss!
Ingredients
- 1 sleeve of Saltines
- ⅔ cup mayo
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- ½ shallot, minced
- 2 Tablespoons of fresh chives, plus more for garnish
- Salt & pepper to taste
Directions
- Add minced shallot, diced tomatoes, chives, mayo, salt, and pepper to a medium bowl. Stir until well combined.
- Using your hands, crush saltines into different sized chunks and sprinkle into the bowl. Once the entire sleeve is crushed up, stir the mixture until the crackers are coated. To serve, scoop into a bowl and top with more chives. Serve immediately to keep the crunchy texture of the crackers.
We hope you enjoyed our Simple Southern Cracker Salad Recipe and we would love to hear your thoughts on it. Did you have a chance to make it yourself? Is there a secret ingredient for a tasty tomato salad from a family recipe you want to share? Let us know by connecting with us on our social media using the links below! If you enjoyed following along with us while making this recipe, be sure to follow us on our Instagram for more recipes and other food related content! In the meantime, be sure to check in with our weekly blogs where we showcase past events, our favorite recipes, and more!
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