I don’t know what it’s like where you live but this past week has been hot as hell. I’m not going to sugar coat it folks, it has been downright miserable, at least by Colorado standards. Luckily there’s always one positive this all of this hot weather. And that’s the fact that it’s now the perfect time to make all of the classic late-summer dishes to help keep myself cool and refreshed. That means a lot of sorbets, sunomono, and of course lemonade. But If I’m being honest, all of those dishes can take a back seat to my favorite refreshing summer dish, the simple Shirazi salad.
If you’ve never heard of it, a Shirazi salad is a popular dish from Persian cuisine that originated in the Iranian city of Shiraz. Hence the name. And it consists of a mixture of finely diced tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onions, which are all dressed in a mixture of lemon juice, olive oil, and mint.
It is light, crisp, and of course refreshing. In fact, it is so perfect during this time of the year that I will typically make one huge bach in order too much on it all week. Though in reality it never really makes it past a couple of days. It’s just that good!
Tips, Tricks, & Suggestions
- Fresh vs dried mint: Most traditional recipes call for the use of dried mint. However, I tend to prefer the taste of fresh mint as it just makes the entire dish seem more fragrant. Either one is perfectly fine, but if you do decide to use dried mint then I suggest you lower the amount from two tablespoons to one.
- Now you can’t just use any old type of cucumber in this dish, you will need a seedless cucumber. Often in stores, this will be sold under the name Persian or English cucumber. The reason why we need this type of cucumber is the fact that its skin is thinner and thus better to eat. If you can’t find this type of cucumber at your local store then you can use a regular cucumber just make sure to peel off the skin.
- Shirazi salad always tastes better after you’ve let the ingredients sit and meld for a couple of hours. That is why I suggest that you always make this up earlier in the day if you plan on making it for a party. Also if you have leftovers the salad will still be good for at least a week in your fridge.
- When dicing up the cucumber, tomato, and red onion I suggest that you do it a fine as you can. Not only do small-sized cubes provide a better texture to the salad, but it also allows more surface area for the lemon dressing to soak in.
Shirazi Salad Recipe
Total time: 6 minutes
Servings: 6 to 8
Ingredients
1 Large Persian/English cucumber, finely diced
2 to 3g Medium-sized tomatoes, finely diced
1 Large red onion, finely diced
½ Cup of lemon juice
1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons of fresh mint, minced
Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients (except the salt & pepper) into a bowl and mix them up. Then transfer it to your fridge to let all the flavors meld for an hour or two.
- Take the Shirazi salad out of the fridge, taste it, and add salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve and enjoy!
Shirazi Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 Large Persian/English cucumber finely diced
- 2 to 3 g Medium-sized tomatoes finely diced
- 1 Large red onion finely diced
- ½ Cup of lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons of fresh mint minced
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients (except the salt & pepper) into a bowl and mix them up. Then transfer it to your fridge to let all the flavors meld for an hour or two.
- Take the Shirazi salad out of the fridge, taste it, and add salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve and enjoy!
Inspiration from other blogs
From My Persian Kitchen
From Persian Mama
