Tomato Cracker Salad
We’re bringing you another Southern staple today with this super yummy, 4 ingredient tomato cracker salad. Garden fresh tomatoes, crushed saltine crackers, & tangy green onions are mixed with a creamy mayonnaise dressing for the ultimate lunch, snack, or appetizer.
If you aren’t from the South, or you’ve never heard of this particular delicacy- be sure you don’t knock it until you’ve tried it!
Did you grow up in the South? If so, do you remember spending Summer’s inundated with bright, ripe tomatoes? How many meals were they incorporated into?
We were always in tomato Heaven come Summer. Thank the good Lord that we actually liked the vine-ripened fruit/vegetable. Who knows how we’d have suffered if we didn’t.
I’m not even kidding when I say that 5-6 out of 7 days a week, we ate tomato sandwiches for lunch. Not that you’d ever have heard a complaint out of any of us. Those suckers were that good!
Naturally, Grandma always made them best. Super simple, but definitely addictive.
The perfect tomato sandwich was two slices of toasted wheat bread, liberally spread with mayonnaise, piled high with thick slices of freshly picked heirloom tomatoes, generously seasoned with salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
It’s still my favorite way to enjoy a tomato, although Son # 3 kinda has a preference for eating them like apples. What can I say, he gets his (tomato) crazy from his Mama.
Even with me eating my tried & true tomato sammich for lunch every day this Summer, I’m still struggling to use up the bountiful bevy of Beefsteak and Big Boy tomatoes my plants have been busy growing.
Under no circumstances should a tomato be left to rot, or to some kind of ruin, or head straight to the compost pile either. That’s just Southern sacrilege. So we’ve gotten pretty good at finding creative ways to use them up!
On the rare occasion I step out of my traditional tomato sandwich box, and opt for a Spinach & Tomato Tuna Salad Sandwich instead. Or If I’m not feelin’ any bread, or we’re out of bread as is often the case with all theses hungry boys, we love stuffing them- either in a hot Tuna Melt version or a chilled Chicken Bacon Ranch stuffed tomato.
They also make a great snack when added to this Tomato Cucumber Feta Salad, which is also a great way to incorporate the multitude of cucumbers we also end up growing each Summer.
It’s really hard to go wrong any which way you turn with a dish that includes a tomato (or two) straight from the garden.
Take this Tomato Cracker Salad, for example. At first, sure it may sound a bit odd- but this is one you’re gonna want to stick around for. It’s like Grandma’s classic Summer sandwich, met snack salad perfection.
Don’t be scared, I know it sounds a bit odd. A quick Google search though will prove it’s an old recipe, and definitely a Southern one.
Garden fresh tomatoes are seeded, chopped, and tossed with coarsely crushed saltine crackers and tangy green onions in a little bit of creamy mayo. Seasoned with salt & a generous helpin’ of freshly cracked black pepper- it’s tomato-based heaven in bowl. Each bite is bliss.
If you’re not a fan of saltine crackers, I’d suggest using buttery club crackers instead. The Hubs insists on making his batches with the chicken in a biscuit variety (which no one else will eat, and I don’t recommend), but he’s weird.
I know it’s probably a given combining crackers with mayo and moisture laden tomatoes, but this will get soggy if left to sit. We get everything prepped and ready, but wait to actually mix up until just before ready to serve.
While we suggest seeding it, mostly for this reason, and also because we’re funny about seeds in just about anything (texture thing)- you certainly don’t have to. However, if you’re looking to seed them- here’s a quick tip!
Rather than dicing them and then trying to separate the seeds and their pulpy mess, simply slice the top off the tomatoes and over a bowl, stick your fingers in, wiggle em around to loosen all the seeds away from the walls, turn over the tomato and watch em pour out.
One thing’s for sure, this Tomato Cracker Salad’s great for parties, or just for a simple lunch for yourselves. I eat it by the spoonful, but if we’re serving it for a meal we prefer to spoon it into romaine or green leaf lettuce leaves and enjoy it as a wrap style sandwich.
Other Tomato Recipes You Might Also Enjoy:
- Cheesy Tomato Biscuit Casserole
- Tomato Pie
- Bacon Lettuce Tomato Waffle-wiches
- Southern Tomato Gravy
- Marinated Tomato Salad
If you’ve tried this TOMATO CRACKER SALAD or any other recipe on the site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!
Tomato Cracker Salad
Ingredients
- 4 medium sized tomatoes, preferably fresh off the vine
- 1 sleeve saltine crackers, coarsely broken
- 1 small bunch green onions, thinly sliced
- 1/2-3/4 cup real mayonnaise
- salt & freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- To a medium sized mixing bowl, add the tomatoes & mayo. Gently stir, just until evenly incorporated and the tomatoes are well coated. Salt & pepper, to taste, but using much more pepper than salt.
- Stir in the crackers & onions, again just until evenly incorporated. Serve right away, either as is or with lettuce leaves for wraps.
Notes
Nutrition
Actually, Carly, this sounds amazing! Being a Northerner I’ve never heard of it, but it doesn’t seem that much of a leap from Cornbread Salad, and I love that! I can’t wait to try this!
Great hints on the other ways to use up tomatoes, too! I haven’t had a stuffed tomato in ages.
Mollie
Crud! I don’t know why I said Carley! I’m mortified! Please correct it for me?
Another one I have never heard of but makes total sense to me. We probably have a shorter summer than you do in the south, but those few precious weeks of tomato season we are serious consumers of them. This looks like a winner and I look forward to giving it a try.
Made this salad tonight. Didn’t have any green onions. Substituted minced red onion. I added chopped lemon cucumbers and chopped bell pepper from my garden. Turned out amazing. My husband went for seconds. Very rare for him. Thank you for the recipe.
If you’re using salted tops, does itneed extra salt. Gonna make it for a potluck tomorrow!
It’s all about personal preference. Do a taste test and see if you think it needs any extra salt! Or just leave the salt out in case your guests want a little extra.
I’ve never heard of tomato cracker salad, but I’m intrigued! Homegrown tomatoes are one of my favorite things about summer, so I’m always excited to find new recipes to make with them. Thanks for bringing these to Fiesta Friday!
Yeah, tomatoes & Summer go hand-in-hand for me. Give it a try, if you love tomatoes- you’re gonna love this salad. I guarantee it.
It looks like you used mini Saltines. I used to be able to buy them, but I can’t find them where I used to get them. I think they would be perfect for this salad, maybe wouldn’t get soggy quite so fast
I actually used full size and just wacked the sleeves a few times to break them up. Funny you mention the mini ones, I just discovered them this past month. I found them at my local Kroger.
I think those little oyster crackers would be good!
I doubled the recipe when I made it for Thanksgiving and we all just loved it! They thought I was crazy at first (as usual) but they were quickly won over. I was sad there wasn’t more leftover the next day and you were right, I still loved it with the crackers no longer crispy.
I’ll be making this more often! Can’t wait for fresh summer tomatoes too. But even the store ones are good in this. Thanks so much for the recipe!
This was very good-my husband was skeptical, but they turned out delicious and he approved! He said PLEASE KEEP THIS RECIPE! Inserved on Endive leaves and it was a perfect snack. Easily halved for two, also.
I love one growntomatoes and I love mayo..I used oyster crackers..it was perfect..ty..katy,tx
So glad you liked it, Esther! Good to know those crackers work too, since I don’t always have saltines on hand 🙂
Delicious! I don’t mind the seeds. Try with oyster crackers as alternative to saltines.
Can I add crumbled bacon? . . . too much salt, you think?
Crumbled bacon would be a yummy addition. I’d taste it without it first, to gauge how much you want in there. I’d also use a low sodium bacon if possible.
Bacon sounds yummy in this recipe. Everyone loves bacon
I made this tonight! I love that it is so simple a few ingredients but still tasty. I can think of lots of variations but love the simple tomato sandwich copycat and it definitely reminds me of a tomato sandwich minus the doughy white bread! I think I would like to try it with oyster crackers or the mini saltines! A go to simple refreshing summer salad. I dished mine on top of iceberg lettuce.
I grew up on this. We call it cracker barrell salad. This was befor the restaurant’s time. Nothing better!!
That’s so neat, Paula! Wonder where that nick name came from? This is a Summer staple in our family.
I think many years ago, crackers came in barrels…
Sounds great. Add a cup of cooked macaroni, cucumber and celery if you like and eat with crackers and you have Macaroni Salad. So good.
Great idea, Lois!
My tomatoes are coming in so I was looking for new ways to eat them! This is a winner! Made it today. I added green bell pepper and red onion. Next time cucumber will go in also. I think you can add what you want to customize. Delish!
I’m want to try this for my husband, thank you that the recipe, very much.
I added a little Dijon mustard. Absolutely delicious!
This is so good. I tried it out of curiosity and oh my. A favorite of mine.
Do the crackers get soggy and turn to mush after a while?
Yes, this is a dish best made to serve and eaten when served.
This is delicious. I’m not a fan of tomatoes usually because of the seeds, but because you seed these, I can eat this stuff by the bowlful. Even my son who doesn’t like tomatoes likes it.
I had forgotten about this recipe, so I made it right away. I didn’t have any green onions, but I had chives. Then I went to put in the crackers, oh my, I didn’t have any! I grabbed a bag of Fritos and I was in heaven. Thanks for the reminder of this wonderful salad.