Vegetable salad with telemea

Name: Vegetable salad with telemea
Ingredients: 4 medium tomatoes (600 g); 3 medium cucumbers (600 g); 4 spring onions; 15 ml apple cider vinegar; 1 teaspoon fine salt; 100 g salted cow’s milk telemea

Salad - Vegetable salad with telemea by Iustina C. - Recipia

Vegetable salad with telemea, a Romanian brined cow’s milk cheese, brings together tomatoes, peeled cucumbers and spring onions, with a little apple cider vinegar and salty cheese. The vegetables stay raw and crisp, and I cut the telemea into one-centimeter cubes; I like to get both cheese and a thin slice of tomato or cucumber on my fork. Preparation: 20 minutes. Cooking: 0 minutes. Total time: 20 minutes. Serves: 4. About 125 kcal and 6 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

4 medium tomatoes (600 g)
3 medium cucumbers (600 g)
4 spring onions
15 ml apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon fine salt
100 g salted cow’s milk telemea

Preparation

1. Rinse all the vegetables. Peel the cucumbers and cut them into rounds about 5 mm thick. 2. Halve the tomatoes, then cut them into thin slices, and chop the spring onions. A little juice collects on the cut surface of the tomatoes. 3. Toss the vegetables with 15 ml apple cider vinegar and 1 teaspoon fine salt, just enough to bring out the vinegar’s flavor. Cut the telemea into cubes, add it and serve.

Notes

Telemea contains dairy; for a dairy-free version, use 100 g firm tofu cut into cubes and adjust the salt after mixing it in. The salad keeps in the fridge for up to one day, but it’s better to prepare the separate parts ahead and mix them just before eating. Toast goes well on the side, especially when the tomatoes and cucumbers release a little juice into the bowl. Choose ripe, meaty tomatoes that are still firm; very soft ones get crushed when you mix them with the telemea. If the cucumbers have large seeds, you can scoop out the centers with a teaspoon, especially if they’re watery. If the spring onions are sharp, slice them and leave them in cold water for 5 minutes, then dry them well. After rinsing, shake the vegetables well or pat them dry with a clean towel, because any water left on them dilutes the vinegar and salt. Very thin cucumber slices soften quickly in the bowl, so cut them a little thicker if you’re making the salad shortly before eating.