A true Greek salad, or horiatiki, is much simpler than the versions often served outside Greece: no lettuce, no mayonnaise-based dressing, and — this part matters — the feta is never crumbled ahead of time. It goes on top as a whole slab or thick slices.

The whole dish rides on two things: ripe, juicy tomatoes and good cold-pressed olive oil. Those, not any separate dressing, carry the flavor, so it’s worth not skimping on either. The juice that tomatoes release when cut isn’t drained off — it mixes with the oil to form the salad’s natural dressing.

Red onion and oregano add the salad’s signature bite, and Kalamata olives — large, dark purple, with a deep flavor — are the more traditional choice over standard canned black olives, though those work fine too.

Serve right after assembling, with a heel of crusty white bread for mopping up the pool of olive oil and tomato juice at the bottom of the plate — exactly how it’s eaten at Greek tavernas.