Salad Recipes

Burrata with Tomatoes & Basil

Burrata with Tomatoes & Basil
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Let’s celebrate burrata cheese! Whenever I spot burrata on restaurant menus, I order it, and this summer we’ve enjoyed some truly fantastic pairings. I can’t get enough of burrata’s contrasting textures—it’s like fresh mozzarella on the surface, yet inside it’s wonderfully tender and rich with cream.

For this recipe, I crafted a quintessential summer burrata salad starring fresh tomatoes. Pair it with crostini or a loaf of crusty bread to serve as an appetizer. This burrata comes together in 15 minutes—yes, really—and it’s absolutely a showstopper.

I aimed to keep things easy while still making the flavors feel special, drawing inspiration from my Easy Tomato Salad and Tomato Basil Bruschetta. I settled on a mix of cherry tomatoes and sun-dried tomatoes for added depth, plus freshly toasted pine nuts for a savory touch. It’s not complete without a drizzle of flavorful olive oil, a splash of tangy balsamic vinegar, and a scattering of fresh basil. I hope it quickly becomes one of your favorite go-to recipes!

What is Burrata?

Burrata is an especially rich, creamy take on fresh mozzarella. Outside, it resembles a typical mozzarella ball. Inside, it’s filled with stracciatella, a luscious combination of cream and mozzarella curds. It’s creamy, milky, and incredibly tasty.

Burrata may be made with buffalo milk or cow’s milk. Buffalo milk is the more traditional option and delivers a brighter, slightly tangy flavor, while cow’s milk is gentler and may feel more familiar. Either choice works beautifully in this recipe.

Find burrata near the fresh mozzarella section at well-stocked grocery stores such as Whole Foods. Use it soon, particularly after you’ve opened the package—it’s stored in water and won’t keep as well as firmer cheeses.

For the best flavor, serve burrata at room temperature, or enjoy it somewhere between lightly chilled and just slightly warmed.

Burrata Serving Suggestions

Burrata goes wonderfully with the Italian tastes highlighted in this recipe: ripe tomatoes, basil (including pesto), balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and pine nuts or pistachios. If tomatoes aren’t your thing, swap them for fruit such as sliced peaches, plums, cherries, or cantaloupe.

Serve this burrata dish as a salad or starter. It fits right in with most warm-weather meals, from relaxed backyard cookouts to upscale dinner gatherings. Complete your plate with any of these summery ideas:

More Burata Recipes

Check out my Caprese Salad with Burrata, featuring heirloom tomatoes. Burrata also works as a substitute for fresh mozzarella balls, as long as your recipe doesn’t require cooking the mozzarella. Take a look at my panzanella where you use torn pieces of burrata instead of mozzarella for an enjoyable twist!

You can enjoy burrata on pizza, but add torn burrata only after the pizza finishes baking, or stir it in during the final minute so it warms through. If it melts fully, you lose the delightful contrast of the creamy center and end up with a gooey, hard-to-predict mozzarella-like result. Consider swapping the mozzarella in my Margherita Pizza or Arugula-Almond Pesto Pizza with torn burrata, or serve it on Grilled Pizza.

Be sure to tell me in the comments how your burrata turned out! I truly enjoy hearing from you.


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Burrata with Tomatoes and Basil

This burrata salad recipe combines tomatoes, basil and pine nuts, finished with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and olive oil. It’s hard to resist and ready in 15 minutes. Enjoy it as a salad or appetizer with crostini or crusty bread. This recipe makes 4 to 6 servings.

  1. If you’re using pine nuts: In a small skillet set over medium-low heat, toast the pine nuts until they smell fragrant and develop a light golden color at the edges, about 3 to 5 minutes, stirring regularly (don’t let them burn!). Move them to a bowl so they can cool.
  2. Place the cherry tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, basil and garlic in a shallow serving bowl. Pour in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 1 teaspoon of the vinegar, then stir until everything is well mixed.
  3. Carefully pull apart each ball of burrata and tuck them gently into the middle of the tomato mixture. Drizzle the burrata with the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil and 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar. Scatter the pine nuts across the dish, then add some of the reserved basil leaves, along with a little black pepper. Finish with a pinch of flaky salt on top of the cheese, if using.
  4. Serve alongside crostini or crusty bread, if you’d like. This burrata is at its best the same day it’s made, though leftovers keep well for several days in the refrigerator, covered.

Notes

Make it your own: Swap in a large sliced peach for half of the tomatoes. Or, if you want a fruit-forward spin, replace the tomatoes completely (about 2 cups) with peaches, nectarines or cherries, and skip the sun-dried tomatoes. For the fruit version, pistachios may be your preference over pine nuts.

Nutrition

The information shown is an estimate prepared by an online nutrition calculator. It shouldn’t be treated as a replacement for a trained nutritionist’s guidance. View our complete nutrition disclaimer here.