This Middle Eastern tahini salad is a refreshing salad with creamy tahini dressing. Serve it as a side salad or part of a mezze spread, or scoop it into pita pockets for an easy lunch.
Servings6 side servings
Ingredients
- 2 cups cubed tomatoes, about 4 medium-sized Roma tomatoes
- 2 cups cubed cucumber, about 1 English cucumber
- ½ red onion, finely diced
- 1 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- salt and black pepper
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, to serve (optional)
- ½ teaspoon Aleppo pepper, or more to serve (optional)
Lemon tahini dressing
- ¼ cup tahini
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons cold water
- 1 small garlic clove, minced
- pinch of ground cumin
Instructions
- In a large salad bowl, combine the cubed tomato, cucumber, and red onion with ½ teaspoon of salt and a generous grind of pepper.
- Whisk together all the lemon tahini dressing ingredients in a small bowl. The mixture will seize up and then loosen as you continue to whisk. Add salt to taste – I add roughly a ¼ teaspoon. The dressing should be nice and thick.
- Pour the tahini sauce over the salad and mix well to combine. Let the salad sit for 10 minutes for the flavours to meld.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more lemon juice or salt as needed. Transfer to a salad bowl, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with Aleppo pepper flakes.
Notes
- To cube the cucumber, I quarter it lengthwise, scrape out the seeds and cut it into cubes.
- Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- See the full blog post for more information on ingredients and substitutes, step-by-step instructions (with images), and serving suggestions.