Simple steps to a lighter tomato and onion salad

We return to this salad every year. We remember its taste from childhood vividly. Its strength lies in its simplicity. The most important elements are delicious, juicy tomatoes, preferably straight from the vine. Then, add a bit of creamy, tangy sour cream. There is one more ingredient, which is the onion. And it was this ingredient that my mother-in-law modified.

Raw onion and sour cream make a quite heavy mix of ingredients. Simply put, it’s hard to digest. However, just prepare the onion a bit differently to soften the character of this salad.

Raw onion is hard to digest and doesn’t suit everyone. However, that isn’t a reason to give up the popular summer tomato salad with its addition. Raw, as well as fried onion, isn’t recommended for people who should follow a light and easily digestible diet. It can exacerbate symptoms of hyperacidity, gastric ulcer disease, and duodenal ulcer. Even if we don’t have such ailments, often after eating fresh onion, there are stomach aches and we don’t feel well.

A simple trick makes the onion lose its potency without losing flavour. Of course, it involves scalding the onion. You just need to peel it, cut it into thin slices, and pour boiling water over it for a few minutes. Then my mother-in-law drains the onion and rinses it with cold water. This way, the prepared vegetable isn’t sharp and has no bitterness but is delicate. The scalded onion makes the salad much milder in taste. The tomatoes dominate, followed by the sour cream, and the still noticeable onion takes a back seat. Our family enjoys this prepared salad.

Ingredients:

• 3 tomatoes
• 1 onion
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 tablespoons (about 30-45 millilitres) of 18% sour cream
• A few sprigs of chives, optional

Method of preparation:

1. Chop the onion into thin slices and scald according to the described method.
2. Dice the tomatoes, or cut them into quarters.
3. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl. Add salt and pepper, then season with sour cream.
4. Mix gently. You can add chopped chives.