Middle Eastern Salad (Zalata)

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This Class Middle Eastern Salad couldn’t be simpler to prepare, yet the addicting flavor can’t be denied. And since we’re focusing on healthier recipes this month, what’s better than nutrition-filled vegetable salad?

The word for “salad” in Assyrian is “zalata.” So no fancy or hard to pronounce name for this salad, it’s simply called “salad,” or “Zalata.” Does that word sound familiar to you?

This is where I remind you that many words have an Assyrian origin. If I sound like the dad in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, I’m totally ok with that!

How To Make Zalata?

Good news, this Middle Eastern salad is very easy to prepare. As a matter of fact, there’s a very good chance that the vegetables you need are already in your refrigerator.

I’m talking tomato, cucumber, onion, and lettuce; you have those right? I also add mint, which is the only ingredient that you might not have on hand. Luckily, I have mint growing in my garden. I dug up the mint from mom’s garden prior to selling her house and replanted it in my garden.

So just how easy is this recipe? You’ll need to chop the vegetables and add them to a bowl. A simple salad dressing prepared with lemon juice, olive oil, dried or fresh mint, salt, and black pepper is then mixed in. This simple dressing enhances the flavor of the salad and brings out the natural taste of the fresh vegetables used.

What to Serve with Middle Eastern Salad

As mentioned previously, salads are usually served as Mezze (appetizers) in the Middle East. But another way salads are served is with rice or macaroni.

In fact, in my family, we always added the salad over the rice. The lemon juice and olive oil dressing really enhanced the flavor of the rice. I’m not quite sure if that was our family’s tradition, or if in fact, others do the same thing. Either way, you should definitely give it a try over Vermicelli Rice or Makloubi.

You may also enjoy the following recipes: Chickpea Salad, Fattoush, Oil and Vinegar Coleslaw, and Tabouli.

Don’t forget to check out my  Classic Middle Eastern Food Combinations.

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