Purslane Salad With Mushrooms, Walnuts and Olives

By Martha Rose Shulman

Published October 4, 2009

  • Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
5 minutes
Rating
5(44)
Comments
Read comments

One of the things I like best about these greens is that they’re good cooked or uncooked. The leaves of dandelions and amaranth are quite tough, so if they are to be used in a salad, they should be cut in very thin ribbons, or chiffonade. Cooking diminishes their bitterness and gives endives a velvety texture that I love. This crunchy salad is about as high in omega-3 fats as a salad can be.

Featured in: Just Don’t Call Them Weeds

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

    Subscribe

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

    or to print this recipe.

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:Serves six

FOR THE PURSLANE SALAD WITH MUSHROOMS, WALNUTS AND OLIVES

  • 1 generous bunch purslane, thick stems cut away (about 4 cups), washed and dried

  • 6 medium-size cremini or white mushrooms, wiped clean, trimmed and sliced

  • ⅓ cup thinly sliced celery (from the heart of the celery)

  • 1 tablespoon minced celery leaves

  • ¼ cup broken walnuts

  • 12 kalamata olives, pitted and halved (optional)

  • ¼ cup crumbled feta (1 ounce)

  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, white wine vinegar, or sherry vinegar

  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

  • 1 garlic clove, green shoot removed, minced or pureed

  • Salt to taste

  • ⅓ cup olive oil

  • freshly ground pepper

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

4 grams carbs; 4 milligrams cholesterol; 172 calories; 10 grams monosaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 17 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 202 milligrams sodium; 3 grams protein; 1 gram sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. FOR THE PURSLANE SALAD WITH MUSHROOMS, WALNUTS AND OLIVES

    1. Step 1

      Combine the purslane, mushrooms, celery, celery leaves, walnuts, olives and feta in a large salad bowl.

    2. Step 2

      Whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, salt, olive oil and pepper. Toss with the salad and serve.

Tip

  • Advance preparation: This salad can be assembled and refrigerated for several hours. Toss just before serving. Leftovers won’t get too soggy, due to the succulent nature of the purslane.Martha Rose Shulman can be reached at martha-rose-shulman.com.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

5 out of 5
44 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

Banu C.

left out the vinegar and doubled on the lemon juice. did a quick stir fry of the mushrooms in a little bit of olive oil to bring out their flavor. also added the walnuts to the pan to warm them up a bit assembled as follows, purslane bed, mushroom and walnut mixture with crumbled feta and broken kalamatas on top.

Lexi Prochnicki

The best way to find purslane is to forage it.... it is quite prevalent at least where we live in the DC area.

Eileen

Three years ago I learned that the weeds I was aggressively removing from my garden were purslane. My first salad was the version with black cherries (also NYT). I was hooked and now I nurture rows of purslane to enjoy all summer. This new recipe with walnuts is amazing. The balance of flavors and crunch a delight. I was working with dill for a beet phillo feta tart and slipped a little into the salad. Thank you for this salad.

peterthejustokay

Added cut - boiled harusame instead of celery. Served with trader Joe rice-stuffed dolmas.

michellef

Does anyone know where to buy purslane in the NY area? I was in Mexico where I ate it quite a bit - very delicious! I checked Whole Foods but no luck.

Lexi Prochnicki

The best way to find purslane is to forage it.... it is quite prevalent at least where we live in the DC area.

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

or to save this recipe.