Tomatoes with crispy torta de barros
- Prepare
- 30 mins to 1 hour
- Cook
- less than 10 mins
- Serve
- Serves 4
Owen Morgan fuses the best of British produce with authentic Spanish ingredients in this delicious summer tapas dish.
By Owen Morgan
From Saturday Kitchen
Ingredients
- 400g/14oz heritage tomatoes, at room temperature
- 100g/3½oz cornicabra olives (or other purple olives)
- 150ml/¼ pint extra virgin olive oil
- 50ml/2fl oz cava vinegar (or muscatel, cider, or chardonnay vinegar)
- 250g/9oz Torta de Barros cheese
- 100g/3½oz plain flour
- 3 free-range eggs, beaten
- 120g/4¼oz packet panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano leaves
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh flatleaf parsley
- light olive oil, for shallow frying
- sea salt
Method
Remove the white core from the top of each tomato. Using your sharpest knife, slice some of the tomatoes into thin rounds, and some into wedges. Transfer to a bowl and sprinkle with sea salt.
Pit the olives and chop them as finely as you can, or crush them using a pestle and mortar. Transfer to a bowl, then add the extra virgin olive oil, vinegar and a pinch of sea salt and whisk together with a fork. Add to the tomatoes, stir, and leave to sit.
Use the Torta de Barros cheese straight from the fridge, as at room temperature it can become too runny to work with. Slice the cheese as carefully as you can into squares or rectangles, as you prefer.
Set out 3 shallow bowls, one with the flour, one with the beaten eggs, and one with the breadcrumbs. Dip each cheese slice first in the flour, then the egg, and finally the breadcrumbs, making sure they are coated on all sides.
Pour a 2.5cm/1in depth of light olive oil into a deep-sided frying pan and heat for 1 minute, until simmering. Alternatively, preheat the oil in a deep fat fryer to 180C. (CAUTION: hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.)
In the meantime, take the tomatoes and stir in the oregano and parsley, checking for seasoning and adding more salt if necessary.
Add the breadcrumbed cheese to the hot oil and fry for 1 minute on each side, until crisp and golden, or deep fry for 1 minute. Be careful, as the cheese will melt quite quickly. Lift out with a heatproof slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper before plating with the tomato salad.
