Caprese salad
Italian salad made of sliced fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and sweet basil
Caprese salad (Italian: insalata caprese, pronounced [insaˈlaːta kaˈpreːze; -eːse]) is an Italian salad composed of sliced fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and basil, seasoned with salt and olive oil or balsamic vinegar. The salad's name references the island of Capri, where it is believed to have originated. The dish became known internationally in the 1950s, sometimes said to have occurred after it was served to King Farouk of Egypt while visiting the island.
In Italy, the dish is often eaten as an appetiser (antipasto), without vinegar, and sometimes with pepper and olives. The components are used as the basis for various dishes, including uncooked in sandwiches, and lightly cooked in sauces for gnocchi or ravioli. Internationally, serving differs: in the US, it is eaten as a side dish, and in Argentina, its components often fill empanadas. The salad is sometimes confused with insalata tricolore, which also contains components making up the national colours of Italy (green, white, and red), but uses any ingredient for the green element.
History
Caprese salad is named after the island of Capri, situated in the Bay of Naples, Campania. This is where it is believed to have originated, and as of the 1990s, locals commonly believed the salad to be at least one hundred years old. Several accounts describe the dish's creation, the oldest a legend crediting the Roman emperor Tiberius as he vacationed on the island.
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This entry incorporates text from “Caprese salad” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.