This simple salad of fresh chopped vegetables and herbs, spiked with chilli and lemon, is salad perfection. Serve it as a zesty side dish to any main meal or as part of a mezze spread.
Servings6
Ingredients
- 5 ripe medium-sized Roma tomatoes, cut into ½ inch (1 cm) dice
- 1 English cucumber or 3 Lebanese cucumbers, quartered lengthways, seeds removed and cut into ½ inch (1 cm) dice
- 1 red bell pepper, cored and deveined, cut into ½ inch(1 cm) dice
- 5 spring onions or green onions, white and green parts finely sliced
- 2 green chillies (optional), deseeded and finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- ½ cup shredded mint leaves
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 lemons, finely grated for 2 tablespoons of zest and juiced for 3 tablespoons
- salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Drain the chopped tomatoes and place them in a large bowl.
- Add the rest of the ingredients with a teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper.
- Mix well and taste. Season it with more salt (I add another ½ teaspoon) and black pepper to taste.
Notes
- See the ingredients section for substitute ideas and add-ons.
- This Arab salad is best when fresh. But you can store any leftover salad in an airtight container and refrigerate it for up to 3 days. Luckily, there won't be any soggy salad leaves, but water from the tomatoes and cucumber will accumulate in the container. Pour off the water and serve the leftover salad with fresh lemon juice and new olive oil.
- The Arabic chopped salad recipe is adapted from the basic "Chopped salad: Three ways" recipe in Falastin by Sami Tamimi and Tara Wigley.