BEET AND BURRATA SALAD

I really enjoy beets.  They bring back nostalgic memories of my Saturday family lunch roasts that were always accompanied with "beetroot salad."  My mom made beetroot salad by boiling and slicing the beets and pickling them with vinegar and onion, probably the British style.  We bought beets with leaves to make beetroot soup by cooking the leaves in the water in which the beets were boiled.  I loved both! I was inspired to make this beet and burrata salad after making a lamb roast.

Over the years I've been experimenting with beets because it is packed with vitamins. I've had them raw (OK but not recommended), roasted, juiced, baked in a bread, as a salad etc. My new favorite is this beet and burrata salad.  This salad was inspired after going to one of my favorite restaurants, Marche Moderne, where my husband and I ordered a beet salad.  It was beautifully plated but I could count the number of paper-thin shaved beets on one hand!  I decided to make my homemade version that is easy to make, with more beets and my own home-made beet dressing that includes almond butter, tahini (sesame paste) and Greek yoghurt!

For this beet and burrata salad, the beets and dressing can be made the day before serving.  However, it is best served at room temperature.

Tips for making beet and burrata salad.

You can use fresh or pre-cooked beets.  The dressing is made from the liquid in which the beets are cooked.

Beets.

For this beet and burrata salad, color is key!  There are several beet varieties so pick some interesting colors.  I use the red and golden beets for this recipe.  I prefer to buy beets that have the leaves attached, because you can tell the freshness of the beets and you can also use the leaves for soup.  Loose beets are sold because the stems have withered and these beets are passed their prime!

When preparing the beets for steaming, thoroughly wash and peel the beets.  Cut the tops to ensure that there is no dirt on the beets as this will end up in the beet water that is going to be used for the salad dressing!

Burrata.

Burrata is like a fresh mozzarella cheese except softer and with a creamy center.  It's best eaten at room temperature so allow your burrata ball to sit at room temperature for at least an hour before assembling.

Equipment.

I pressure cook these beets in an instant pot, because it takes a fraction of the time and uses a lot less water which results in bright beets and a concentrated, rich flavored water.  If you do not have a pressure cooker,  boil / steam the beets with a minimal amount of water, making sure that your pot does not dry out.

Cooking.

To cook the beets, I separate the beets to prevent them from bleeding onto each other.  I place the red beets (darker color beets) on the bottom and separate them with a steamer try.  The red beets are placed directly in a small amount of water (1 cup in an instant pot).  This allows some of the beet color to leach out into the water to get the natural red coloring for the dressing.  Because I want the beets to be soft and malleable, I pressure cook the beets for at least 15 minutes on the high steam setting.

Slicing the beets.

I use a mandoline with medium thickness to slice the beets. If the beet slice is too thin, it is too limp to handle.  If the beet slice is too thick, it doesn't conform easily to the burrata. Slice the beets against the grain so you can see the beautiful spirals!

If you don't have a mandoline, you can use a knife and slice the beets against the grain so that you see the spirals on each slice.  Just remember to cut a "base" to prevent the beets from slipping, causing serious knife injuries. When arranging, use the "flat" part of your slice on the bottom, close to the salad greens.

Dressing for the beet burrata salad.

Boil the beet liquid until you have a concentrated liquid.  The amount of liquid required will depend on the number of servings you are making.  I use a personal blender to make the dressing, but you can use a bowl and whisk.  Once the dressing is blended, refrigerate the dressing for at least an hour to thicken.

Greek yoghurt.

I use 5% Greek yoghurt as it is much thicker, resulting in a creamier and more viscous dressing.  Thinner yoghurts will result in a thinner dressing.

Almond butter.

Almond butter helps thicken the dressing as well as give it a subtle nutty taste. Using a ready-made almond butter is better than using almond pieces, because it is difficult to get the smooth consistency of a dressing, unless you use a high powered blender with enough almonds to blend into a butter.

Assembling the salad.

Use salad greens to serve as a pedestal for your burrata, tucking more salad greens under the burrata to give it height.  The salad greens also provide a contrasting color for your salad.  Do not be afraid to use both hands to mold the beets into shape.

The red beets stain the golden beets.  Have a paper towel and clean your fingers before picking up the golden beets if you want to ensure that your golden beets are not color contaminated!  The red beets will eventually stain the golden beets when assembled, so plan your assembly just before serving to ensure the brightest beets!

Decorating the salad.

If you would like to make your salad a little more eye appealing, add some color onto the plate.  You can either use an eye-dropper and make dots around the plate.  You can also drop the dressing onto the plate with a teaspoon.  If you mess us, you can run fork tines through your dots and make an interesting pattern.  Let your artistic imagination go wild!

I would love to know if you tried this salad.  Let me know in the comment section below.