Mediterranean cold meat salad, with olives, eggplants preserved in oil and sun-dried tomatoes, a delicious and original meat main course, but also a perfect starter for an informal lunch or dinner. Did you know that starting from a simple boiled beef or veal you can prepare an original and tasty cold meat salad? I prepared a version with all the typical flavors of my land; the dish, rich and flavorful yet super simple, was a big success!! And with a cold boiled meat salad you really waste nothing, because after cooking the meat you’ll have a delicious meat broth left over, perfect for small pastas in broth or meatballs in broth. Let’s get into the kitchen: to make this boiled meat salad you’ll only need a bit of patience for slow, low heat cooking, a few tasty ingredients to make it special, and that’s it! Before we start, if you want to stay updated on new recipes you can follow my Facebook page and my Instagram profile.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients to make the cold meat salad
- 2 lb 10 oz beef (for boiling, beef or veal)
- 1 carrot
- 1 onion
- 1 stalk celery
- to taste salt
- 3 oz olives (Taggiasca olives in oil)
- 3.5 oz sun-dried tomatoes in oil (drained)
- 3 oz eggplants in oil (drained)
- 2 1/2 tbsp capers in oil (drained)
- 1 pinch dried oregano
- 1 pinch black pepper
Tools
- Pot
- Bowl
Preparation
To make the meat salad, you should start with the boiled meat: peel the carrots and cut them into large pieces, remove the leaves from the celery stalk and cut it into two or three pieces, peel the onion and chop it roughly. Put the carrot, onion, celery, any aromatics and spices such as parsley, bay leaf and sage into the pot, cover with water and place on the stove. Cut the meat into small pieces so it cooks faster. Add it to the pot with the other ingredients (there’s no need for the water to be already boiling), and for now add only a pinch of salt. Bring the pot to a boil over medium heat, then lower the heat and simmer very gently for about 2 hours or slightly less; near the end of cooking remember to adjust the salt properly. After this time the meat should be very tender and ready to be used:
Lift it out with a slotted spoon, reserving the broth for other recipes, let it cool slightly and then dress it with drained sun-dried tomatoes cut into pieces, eggplants preserved in oil, olives, oregano, pepper and chopped capers. Mix well and our salad is ready to be served: it’s excellent warm, at room temperature or even cold if prepared a few hours in advance and stored in the fridge.
Storage notes and tips
The meat will be a bit firmer when cold, so if you plan to serve the salad as a cold summer dish, I recommend shredding the meat before dressing it.
Store the cold meat salad in the fridge, well sealed in an airtight container and consume within 24 hours. If you want to stay updated on my recipes, follow me also on:
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