Name: Middle Eastern Salad
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 1 small head of romaine lettuce; 2 medium Persian cucumbers; 2 medium tomatoes; ¼ cup mint leaves ((optional)); ½ small yellow or red onion; ¼ cup olive oil; 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice; 1 tsp dried mint; ½ tsp sea salt; ¼ tsp black pepper

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This Middle Eastern Salad recipe couldn't be simpler to prepare, yet it has the best flavor and goes as a side with so many dishes. Enjoy this Arabic salad as a light lunch, or with some beef kofta Kebabs!

a middle eastern salad made with cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, and onions in a glass bowl.

No fancy or hard-to-pronounce name for this Middle Eastern salad, it's simply called "zalata," which is Assyrian for "salad." 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!

This Arabic salad is very common in the Middle East. It can have some slight variations, for example, fresh parsley or mint can be added. So if that sounds good to you, feel free to include some fresh herbs as well! Serve this delicious salad with this Lebanese Mujadara recipe or riza smooka (Assyrian Instant Pot jasmine rice).

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😍 Why You'll Love This Recipe
🛒 What You Need For This Recipe
🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions
🥗 How to Make A Middle Eastern Salad
🍽️ Serving Suggestions
👩🏻‍🍳 Pro Tips
Other Salad Recipes
Did you make this recipe?
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

😍 Why You'll Love This Recipe

There's a very good chance that the vegetables you need to make a Middle Eastern salad are already in your refrigerator.
The simple salad dressing enhances the flavor and brings out the natural taste of the fresh vegetables used.
This Middle Eastern cucumber salad is straightforward to prepare - just chop up the veggies, add them to a bowl, and drizzle in the dressing!

🛒 What You Need For This Recipe

🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions

Lettuce: I recommend using romaine lettuce for the best crunch.
Cucumber: Persian or English cucumbers work best.
Onion: Red or yellow onion
Tomato: Two firm medium tomatoes
Fresh lemon juice: I prefer using fresh lemons to make the dressing, but bottled lemon juice can be substituted.
Extra virgin olive oil: If you don't have olive oil, avocado oil can be used.
Herbs: This recipe calls for 1 teaspoon dried mint, but you can use 1 tablespoon of fresh mint for the dressing if you prefer. Other fresh herbs and spices like parsley, garlic, green onions, and red pepper flakes can be added as well.
Optional toppings: You can sprinkle a bit of feta cheese over your salad if you like. You can also use crumbled pita chips as croutons or make some of these quinoa crisps for added crunch! Kalamata olives are another great addition!

*See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients

🥗 How to Make A Middle Eastern Salad

Step 1: Chop lettuce, cucumber, tomato, fresh mint, and onion and place in a large salad bowl.

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Step 2: Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, crushed mint, and salt and pepper.

Step 3: Drizzle dressing over the salad and toss until thoroughly combined.

Middle eastern cucumber salad after dressing is added

🍽️ Serving Suggestions

Salads are usually served as "mezze" (appetizers) in the Middle East. You can include this Middle Eastern salad on a mezze board along with other Middle Eastern & Mediterranean appetizers like Lebanese hummus, this falafel wrap recipe, Lebanese tabbouleh, dolmadakia, pita chips, Lebanese fattoush salad, and more!
Another classic way to enjoy this Middle Eastern cucumber salad is over a bed of vermicelli rice, macarona, or makloubi.
Enjoy it alongside various types of meat like sumac chicken, shish kabobs, on a shawarma plate, and Middle Eastern pizza (Lahm bi Ajeen).

👩🏻‍🍳 Pro Tips

Because this is such a simple salad, using fresh ingredients is key!
Store leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
If making this Arabic salad recipe ahead of time, keep the dressing separate until you're ready to serve.

middle eastern cucumber salad in bowl with salad tongs surrounded by vegetables

Other Salad Recipes

If you love this Arabic salad, check out these other great salad recipes!

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