There are many recipes for salads and cold dishes. Almost every housewife in the arsenal has several “own” ways of cooking this or that dish. And Tosca salad (with emphasis on any syllable, to taste) is a lifesaver for many women, and men too, especially single.
A bit of history
Initially, the Tosca salad was exclusively emphasized on the first syllable. Like the opera of the same name by Giacomo Puccini. And many are sincerely sure that the recipe came from Italy. In fact, it is not known for certain who first came up with such a salad, as well as its name.
Chicken option
One of the housewives' favorite ingredients is poultry, in particular chicken. And not in vain! Firstly, it’s easy to cook. Secondly, the dish is quite hearty and healthy. Therefore, Tosca salad with chicken is one of the most popular options. It doesn’t need too many ingredients. Namely:
- smoked chicken breast with spices;
- gherkins (5-7 pieces);
- finely chopped greens (parsley, dill, basil);
- Chinese cabbage or salad;
- cherry tomatoes (8-10 pieces);
- pickled onions (2 medium onions);
- hard cheese (preferably "Marble");
- fresh champignons (5-6 pieces);
- olives (half a can);
- mayonnaise.
Salad "Tosca", the recipe for which is now described, will be flaky. By the way, it can be served both portionwise and in one salad bowl for everyone. This does not affect the taste.
Training
If pickled onions are not at hand, then ordinary onion will do. You can prepare it yourself. Vinegar (preferably apple) and salt are required. Onions are cut in half rings, spread in a deepened container. Then sprinkle with plenty of salt, then pour apple cider vinegar so that it is completely drowned. It is better to take olives pitted. They need to be cut into rings as thin as possible. Cheese is recommended to grate, so it will be more piquant. Gherkins are also cut into rings, which are then divided into halves. You can simply break your breast with your hands. Salad or Chinese cabbage is chopped. Mushrooms are fried in a hot pan until cooked, then cooled. Cherry tomatoes are cut in half. It is better if they are not too overripe and soft, otherwise they will give a plentiful juice.
Layering
Salad "Tosca", the recipe of which is described now, is going very quickly. At the bottom of the salad bowl, chicken breast is laid out, copiously greased with mayonnaise. Gherkins with greenery are lined with an even layer on it. Then put Chinese cabbage or salad. All grease liberally with mayonnaise (you can with your hands, or you can with a spoon). The next layer is olives and onions. You can mix. The penultimate layer is champignons. They can be slightly salted to your liking. The final stage of preparation will be laying out the halves of tomatoes, which are abundantly sprinkled with grated cheese. Salad "Tosca" will look more interesting if it is decorated with a sprig of dill or parsley.
Unusual recipe
Each hostess certainly wants to surprise guests with her culinary talents. And you can do this by preparing the Tosca salad (recipe with photo in the article) not in the traditional style. That is, not with chicken, but, for example, with seafood. It turns out very tasty, and most importantly, pretty quickly.
Ingredients
There are not so many of them:
- boiled shrimp, peeled (grams 300-400);
- lime and lemon (half each);
- salad;
- pickled Chinese cabbage (a jar of 200-300 grams);
- onions (2-3 medium onions);
- boiled or pickled mussels (300 grams);
- sliced canned champignons (1 can);
- hard cheese (150-300 grams);
- capers (1 can);
- fresh greens.
Product Preparation
Salad "Tosca" (recipe with photo above) requires a minimum amount of time to cook. You just need to finely chop the mushrooms, capers, herbs, onions, lettuce and seafood. Lemon and lime must be washed thoroughly, as they will go with the zest in the recipe. Citrus fruits are cut into thin slices. Cheese, naturally, grated (fine). Shrimp can be slightly sprinkled with lemon juice to make it taste better. The same applies to mussels.
Assembly
To make Tosca salad, the recipe of which is described, can be either puff or mixed. The last option, by the way, many housewives like more, because they have to invest less. Mayonnaise can be added to puff varinat. In the mixed salad, "Tosca" is well soaked in lime and lemon juice, without additional sauces. It is collected simply: all the ingredients are mixed in one large container (you need to drain the marinade from pickled Chinese cabbage). Citrus slices are added when the dish is ready. Additionally, you can squeeze a little juice separately.
Layers
Salad "Tosca" (with the photo above) is presented in a mixed version. It can also be made flaky. Everything is quite simple. Seafood (shrimp and mussels) is laid out down, smeared with a thin layer of mayonnaise. Then add the salad, which is finely chopped. Capers and Chinese cabbage without marinade are spread on it. They are sprinkled with a small amount of grated cheese. Lime and lemon slices are placed on top. To spice up salad, onion, sliced in half rings, pour citrus fruits. Fresh greens with champignons are placed on top. They are slightly greased with mayonnaise, then sprinkled with the remaining grated cheese.
Do I need to experiment?
Of course, you can change the components of the salad as you want. This helps not only create the dish that your home will like, but also create your perfect recipe. By the way, many often add crushed garlic to the chicken version, which gives a special taste and aroma to the salad. Therefore, the place for experiments remains. In the variant with seafood, you can add not only mussels, but also rings of squid, shellfish, or crab sticks in general. But hard cheese cannot be replaced with anything. But you can choose which particular variety will appeal to you more. If it is too salty, then it is worth reducing the amount of marinade or spices. It is noteworthy that the dish can be served as a stand-alone, and not under any specific hot or side dish. If you choose the latter, then it is better to pay attention to boiled rice or potatoes.