Thousand Island Tomato and Bacon Salad

 

Thousand Island is the junk food of the salad dressing category. Yet we love it because it makes us feel fabulously American. I make Thousand Island in a fairly classic way that always tastes so much fresher and zingier than the dressing you get in a bottle. Here I pair it with tomatoes and bacon for a salad that sometimes satisfies my cravings for a Reuben sandwich with potato chips. And to that end, I also use this as a dressed vegetable component on sandwiches and burgers from time to time when I need a special kick. As for the tomatoes, I prefer to buy Sungolds (when in season), grape tomatoes, or Campari tomatoes for this salad. A giant, ripe beefsteak would be great here, too. If you want to keep this dressing vegetarian, sub in 1 T. low-sodium soy sauce for the Worcestershire.

 

4 thin bacon strips, thinly sliced crosswise

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup ketchup

2 tsp. capers, chopped, plus 1 T. of the brine

2 tsp. gherkins, thinly sliced, plus 1 T. of the brine

8 bread-and-butter pickles, chopped, plus 1 T. of the brine

3 T. red wine vinegar

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

Freshly ground black pepper

3 pints cherry tomatoes, halved

Maldon salt

1 T. sugar

 

Place the bacon pieces in a medium skillet, add ¼ cup of water, and cook over low heat until the water cooks out and the bacon is crisp, 12 to 15 minutes. Drain the bacon on a plate lined with paper towels. (Reserve the bacon fat for another use.)  In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise and ketchup. Stir in the capers and brine, gherkins and brine, pickles and brine, 2 T. of the vinegar, and the Worcestershire. Season with pepper and taste for seasoning. Arrange the tomato halves, cut-side up, on a serving platter. Season them with a light sprinkle of Maldon salt, the sugar, and the remaining T. vinegar. Drizzle with spoonfuls of the dressing and crumble the bacon over the top.