Hello everyone,

I love Middle Eastern cuisine. Baba ghanoush, falafel, tabouli, you name it— it’s some of my favorite food. I was craving a feel good meal this weekend, so I decided to try my hand at a classic, fattoush salad.

Fattoush (فتوش) is a levantine bread salad which originated in Lebanon, but is also common in Syria and other Middle Eastern counties. Fattoush includes toasted or fried pieces of pita bread mixed with greens and fresh vegetables. It generally also includes cucumber, tomato, and other ingredients depending on season, location, taste, etc.

The dressing is slightly sour and acidic, using a healthy serving of lemon juice and sumac. Since I didn’t have sumac, I used zatar seasoning to give the salad a full flavor. I also used store bought pita chips to save time, but I’m sure this recipe would be even better if you used homemade pita bread for the crunch. This is a deceptively easy salad to make considering the robust flavor combinations. Why not give it a try?

What’s your favorite Middle Eastern recipe?

Cheers,

Jocelyn

* Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. As always, all opinions are my own!

Fattoush Salad



Prep Time: ~20 minutes; Yield: Serves 6-8

4 cups romaine lettuce

1 large cucumber, chopped into bite size pieces

4 roma tomatoes, chopped into small chunks or 1 cup, halved cherry/grape tomatoes

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 green onions, finely diced

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

½ cup lemon juice (or use a lime/ lemon combo)



½ cup parsley, chopped

¼ cup mint, chopped

¼ cup mint, chopped 1 tablespoon zatar seasoning

salt & pepper, to taste

1+ cup toasted pita bread pieces

Optional: red onion, diced green or red pepper, diced black olives, sliced



Chop the lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, and green onion. Mix well in a large bowl. Combine the extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, zatar seasoning, and salt & pepper to taste. Add the pita chips into the salad mixture. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Enjoy!