Secrets of the Best Chefs

Arugula Salad with Heirloom Tomatoes

Serves 4

“People are too scared when they make salad,” Waxman told me.

“You have to relax, think about ingredients.” This salad has just a

few ingredients, and that’s the way Waxman likes it. “People

overload salad,” he continued. “They put in mustard, shallots, all

that crap. But the best salads have the fewest ingredients.”

Because there are so few ingredients in this particular salad, source

the best you can find (tomatoes are best in late summer). Tossing

them all in the air isn’t just a way to show off; it prevents you

from damaging the lettuce and tomatoes with salad tongs.

A dozen heirloom cherry tomatoes (preferably multicolored),

sliced in half along the equator (with the stem as the top of

the globe)

1 large red heirloom tomato, diced

2 to 3 big handfuls of arugula (washed and spun dry)

Extra virgin olive oil

Lemon juice* (a few squeezes from 1 lemon)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Put the tomatoes and the arugula in a very large bowl. Use your

thumb to stop the top of a bottle of olive oil and turn it