Salad-e Shirazi (Persian Cucumber, Tomato and Onion Salad)
Published May 14, 2019
Con for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Prop Stylist: Paige Hicks.
- Total Time
- 20 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
3 to 4 Persian cucumbers (about ¾ pound)
½ red onion, diced into ¼-inch pieces
2 tablespoons any combination of finely chopped fresh parsley, cilantro, basil or dill
1 teaspoon dried mint
2 to 3 medium tomatoes (about 1 pound)
¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 2 limes), plus more as needed
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 to 8 servings)
5 grams carbs; 68 calories; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 5 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 282 milligrams sodium; 1 gram protein; 3 grams 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.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Remove alternating stripes of peel on cucumbers and trim ends. Dice cucumbers into ¼-inch pieces and place in a large bowl with onion and fresh herbs. Using your fingers to break up any large pieces, gently grind the dried mint into the bowl. Remove tomato cores, dice remaining tomatoes into ¼-inch pieces and add to bowl.
- Step 2
In a small bowl, make a vinaigrette by whisking together ¼ cup lime juice, oil, ¾ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Just before serving, dress vegetables with vinaigrette and stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and lime juice as needed. This salad should be bright, crunchy and tart, a nice counterpoint for rich, buttery rice and unctuous stews. Serve at room temperature or lightly chilled. Cover and refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 days.
Private Notes
Comments
A convenient source of dried mint can be found in "herbal" mint tea bags.
As a cook from Shiraz, I can say confidently it's Not the original recipe, instead of lime you should use verjuice (from unripe grapes) and also green onion is preferred to red one. It dramatically can change the outcome and you probably would find it more tastey and delicate. Also please forget the olive oil.
I was just looking at this recipe in "Cooking in Iran" by Najmieh Batmanglij. She suggests either verjuice or lime juice. She also has olive oil in the recipe, but says it's optional. Verjuice is not easily sourced in the U.S. and many cooks wouldn't be able to make this if we couldn't substitute.
I eat a lot of the similar Palestinian salad which also contains a mince of jalapeño, lots of lemon juice and lemon rind. I’ve added fresh mint, pretty fennel fronds, some zaatar seasoning. And for a quick protein meal, add rinsed chickpeas. I know these things arent part of the recipe, forgive me…just trying to help;-)
Amazing. I'm literally still in the middle of eating it and I had to comment. This is delicious. I made a few adjustments: used cherry tomatoes, "regular" cucumbers from my mom's garden, and added two cans of chickpeas to make it a meal. The chickpeas turned out to be a great addition. They add nuttiness, and have a bit of chew to them, so they match the crunchy texture of the salad. I'm sure it will be less crunchy tomorrow, but it tastes so good I may not mind!
Very quick and tasty, but will cut back on the red onion next time - they overwhelmed.