Strawberry season has arrived. In Italy, it's not unusual to find these red conical fruits incorporated into savory Italian dishes – like this burrata salad recipe. In fact, in addition to penne alla vodka, risotto alla fragola (strawberry risotto) was one of the stars of the 1980s Italian table.
For this particular recipe, strawberries serve as both a garnish and as part of a sauce, blended with olive oil and apple cider vinegar, that enhances the burrata salad. When it comes to the burrata, quality is key. Its creamy texture and milky, buttery flavor boost the dish's delightfulness with no need for further embellishments.
If you can't find the small burratina, use the equivalent amount of standard burrata. Cut and divvy it up, and distribute it onto the plates as such. Sure, that takes away part of the fun of cutting into the burratina and watching it seep out, but honestly, one glance of the enticing blob of burrata on the plate, and no one will even know what they're missing.
Burrata Salad With Strawberry Sauce
Photo: Riccardo Lettieri, Styling: Beatrice Prada
Recipe: Alessandro Procopio
Skill Level: Easy
Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients for 4
12 oz./350 g. fresh mixed salad (curly greens, gentilina lettuce, rocket, valerian, baby spinach, mint leaves)
3½ oz./100 g. strawberries (for the sauce)
12 whole strawberries (for garnishing)
4 burratine (small burratas)
extra-virgin olive oil
apple cider vinegar
salt
pepper
Wash and dry the salad greens. Clean all the strawberries. Cut the 12 whole strawberries into wedges and set them aside – you'll use them for garnishing.
Blend into a sauce the remaining strawberries with 2 Tbsp./30 g. of oil, 2 tsp./10 g. of apple cider vinegar, and salt.
Dress the salad with the strawberry sauce, then add a burratina to each dish. Season the burrata with only a drizzle of olive oil and freshly ground black pepper. Finish by garnishing each dish with the set-aside strawberry wedges.