A Tomato for its own Sake

Preparation

1. Step 1

   You have found your tomato, sweetly ripe yet with a bite to it. It may still have the green shoulders of youth, or a few yellow freckles near its stalk. The seeded jelly inside will shine as you slice. As you have already resisted the temptation to eat it whole, you might like to slice it thinly, but no thinner than 1/4 inch (6mm) thick. You lay the slices, overlapping, on a plate and drizzle olive oil over them, so that it falls in rivulets over the fruit. Fruity, peppery, green, or grassy, the choice is yours.

   Step 2

   A little salt, barely noticeable, but no pepper this time. Just your tomato, oil, and a flick of sea salt.