Fattoush Salad
Fattoush, a simple salad popular in Middle Eastern cuisine, is easy to put together and uses the freshest ingredients. It’s light, bright and herbaceous, with a nice bit of crunch thanks to the pita chips. The zesty citrus dressing also gives it that extra pop.
Image Credit: The Mediterranean Dish
For a light lunch, pair this seasonal favourite with a glass or two of Billy Button ‘The Honest’ Fiano, ‘The Groovy’ Grüner Veltliner or Billy Button ‘The Classic’ Chardonnay.
Ingredients
For salad:
- 2 loaves pita
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp sumac, plus extra, to taste
- 1 heart cos lettuce, chopped
- 1 Lebanese cucumber, cut in half, seeds scraped, then chopped or sliced into half moons
- 5 Roma tomatoes, chopped
- 5 spring onions (both white and green parts), chopped
- 5 radishes, stems removed, thinly sliced
- 2 cups chopped fresh parsley leaves, stems removed
- 1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves (optional)
For dressing:
- Juice of 1 lemon
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 or 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses (optional)
- 1 tsp sumac
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
Method
- Prepare salad. Break pita into bite-sized pieces. Heat olive oil in a large frypan. Add pita. Pan-fry briefly until bread browns, tossing frequently. Using tongs, transfer fried pita chips to a paper-towel-lined plate. Season with salt, freshly ground black pepper and sumac.
- In a large salad bowl, combine cos, cucumber, tomatoes, spring onions, radish, parsley and mint (if using).
- Make vinaigrette. In a small bowl, whisk together lemon juice, olive oil, pomegranate molasses (if using), sumac, cinnamon, allspice, salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Pour dressing over salad and gently toss. Top with pita chips and sprinkle with more sumac, to taste. Gently toss again. Transfer to 4 small serving bowls or plates.
