Greek Salad with Roasted Tomatoes (A Nutritionist’s Recipe)

Roast the tomatoes first and this Greek salad gets sweeter, softer and much harder to leave alone. Add feta, crisp cucumber and crunchy croutons, and you’ve got my slightly different take on the classic. It serves four and takes roughly 30–35 minutes.

Why I roast the tomatoes first

I made this for friends. It was meant to be the supporting act next to stuffed aubergines, grilled chicken, warm flatbread and homemade tzatziki. Three people asked what I’d done differently.

The answer: I roasted the tomatoes for fifteen minutes before assembling. A small change, but it makes a lovely difference to the flavour.

I started doing this for the nutrition science, but honestly, it’s the flavour change that makes people notice. You get sweeter tomatoes with soft centres, alongside the crunch of cucumber and croutons. There’s a potential lycopene benefit too, which I’ll explain below.

How to get soft tomatoes and crunchy croutons

Quarter the vine tomatoes and roast them at 200°C, or 180°C fan, for 15–17 minutes. Look for softened flesh and skins just starting to blister. They should still hold their shape when you lift them.

What I do differently from a classic Greek salad

• Red pepper: I prefer its sweeter flavour here, though green pepper works too.
• Croutons: a twist on the classic, with crunch in every bite.
• Soaked red onion: ten minutes in cold water takes the edge off its sharpness.
• Oregano in two stages: some in the dressing, then a little scattered over the finished bowl.
• No mint: I find it fights with the oregano for attention.

The dressing is simple: extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, dried oregano, salt and pepper. The whole point is to taste the tomatoes and feta.

Olives are optional. I’ll be honest, I leave them out because I just can’t hack the taste.

Greek Salad with Roasted Tomatoes

Sweet roasted tomatoes, feta, crisp vegetables and golden croutons, finished with a simple oregano dressing.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 17 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Salad

Cuisine Greek

Servings 4 people

Calories 420 kcal

Ingredients

  

• 4 large vine tomatoes quartered
• 1 tbsp olive oil for the tomatoes
• 1 red pepper sliced
• 1 cucumber chopped into half-moons
• ½ small red onion thinly sliced
• 200 g feta cheese block, not crumbled
• 100 g Kalamata olives drained and pitted, if using
• 2 thick slices sourdough or country bread cubed
• 1 tbsp olive oil for the croutons
• 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil for the dressing
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp dried oregano in dressing
• ½ tsp dried oregano to finish
• ½ tsp sea salt divided between the tomatoes, croutons and dressing
• Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

 

• Roast the tomatoes. Heat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan). Place the quartered tomatoes on a lined tray, drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil and add a little of the measured salt. Roast for 15–17 minutes, until softened and lightly blistered but still holding their shape.<
• Soak the onion. While the tomatoes roast, put the sliced onion in cold water for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry.<
• Make the croutons. Toss the cubed bread with 1 tbsp olive oil and a little of the measured salt. Spread on a separate tray and bake for 8–10 minutes, until golden and crisp.<
• Prep the vegetables. Put the sliced pepper and cucumber into a serving bowl with the drained onion. Add the olives if you’re using them.<
• Whisk the dressing. Mix the extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, 1 tsp oregano, the remaining measured salt and black pepper.<
• Build the salad. Let the tomatoes cool slightly, then add them to the bowl. Pour over the dressing and toss gently.<
• Finish and serve. Cut the feta into cubes and chuck them on top. Scatter over the remaining oregano and add the croutons just before serving.

Notes

Make the oven do the work: the croutons can bake alongside the tomatoes on a separate tray. Keep an eye on them and take them out as soon as they’re golden.

Calories per serving

Example serving	Approximate energy
One quarter, without olives	420 kcal
One quarter, with olives	490 kcal

Estimates use 800 g tomatoes, 300 g cucumber, 150 g pepper, 50 g onion, 200 g feta, 100 g bread and 90 ml oil. Optional olives add 100 g drained, pitted Kalamata olives to the whole recipe. All the oil and dressing are included; brands, vegetable sizes and bread weights will change the result. [1][2][3][4]

Two thick slices can vary quite a bit. If yours weigh 150 g rather than 100 g, add roughly 30 kcal to each serving. Seasoning contributes negligible energy and is omitted from this estimate.

Keyword greek salad, roasted tomatoes, lycopene

Does roasting tomatoes help with lycopene?

Roasting may offer a nutrition bonus alongside the sweeter flavour. Lycopene is the natural pigment that makes tomatoes red. It also acts as an antioxidant, helping protect cells from damage.

In a 2002 lab study, researchers heated tomatoes and found that more of their lycopene became available for absorption. Some vitamin C was lost during heating, so cooking has its trade-offs. Raw isn’t automatically better for every nutrient. [5]

This was a study of the tomatoes themselves, rather than people eating them. It supports a potential benefit from roasting, although it can’t tell us how much extra lycopene you’d absorb from this recipe.

For the other ingredients, see my guide to the health benefits of Greek salad.

Can you make it ahead?

Yes. Roast the tomatoes, prepare the vegetables and mix the dressing several hours ahead. Keep them separately in the fridge once the tomatoes have cooled.

Keep the cooled croutons dry in a separate airtight container. Assemble and dress the salad just before serving, with the croutons going in last.

That’s how I’d do it for friends: get the prep out of the way, then finish the bowl when everyone’s ready.

References

1. Public Health England. Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset (CoFID), 2021. Ingredient energy values: tomatoes 13-517; cucumber 13-523; red pepper 13-524; onion 13-499; feta 12-525; vinegar 17-339. Accessed 28 September 2026.
2. Farchioni. Il Casolare extra virgin olive oil label, via Tesco. 824 kcal per 100 ml. Accessed 28 September 2026.
3. Tesco. Sourdough Rye Bloomer nutrition label. 231 kcal per 100 g. Example bread for calculation, not a product recommendation. Checked 28 September 2026.
4. Odysea. Big Kalamata Olives nutrition label. 273 kcal per 100 g. Example pitted olives for calculation. Accessed 28 September 2026.
5. Dewanto V, Wu X, Adom KK, Liu RH. Thermal processing enhances the nutritional value of tomatoes by increasing total antioxidant activity. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 2002;50(10):3010–3014. Laboratory food study.