Me and Fattoush go way back
Me and fattoush salad go way back. How do I go way back with a salad, you ask? Well, it was love at first bite. I grew up in Michigan, a melting pot of cultures. Michigan is known to have the best Lebanese food outside of Lebanon itself (I may be biased, but you have to try it for yourself and I’m sure you’ll agree), and it was a cuisine we grew up eating because most Lebanese restaurants served Halal meat. I first tried fattoush at the age of four, and since then I’ve been hooked. In fact, it was my first hotmail address (fattoush89:P)!
Fattoush Salad is full of vibrant and fresh vegetables
I love the fresh components of fattoush. Crisp romaine, peppery radish, crunchy tomatoes and cooling cucumbers. All these fresh vegetables get tossed in a tangy dressing that gets a gorgeous pink hue from the sumac. My favorite part though, is the crispy pita chips. Pita chips are so much better than croutons. I learned a trick from Cosette of Cosette’s Kitchen for the pita chips. If you don’t want to fry or bake them, you just microwave large pieces of pita bread! The microwave dehydrates them and they get crispy in about a minute. Learn more about the traditions attached to fattoush, like how you’re supposed to eat it with your hands, from Cosette’s blog post which you can find here.
Fattoush is the start of a great meal
Without fail, we would sit down at our favorite Lebanese restaurant in Dearborn Michigan and vow to not stuff ourselves with the salad and hummus they bring to the table while you look over the menu. And like clockwork, we were full before the food arrived every time. We still ate everything, but a food coma would ensue. I usually never make fattoush on it’s own. If I’m making fattoush, I’m making a whole meal to go with it. I love pairing it with my Sumac Chicken, Creamy Hummus and homemade pita bread that is so easy to make, you’ll be surprised. I call it my Mediteranean feast, and that’s exactly what this is.
Fattoush Salad
Ingredients
For the salad
- 4 cups romaine lettuce chopped
- 1 cup radishes sliced
- 1/2 red onion sliced
- 2 persian cucumbers sliced
- 1 tomato chopped
- 1 cup parsley chopped
- 3 tbsp mint leaves chopped
- 1.5 cups pita chips see instructions
For the dressing
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup lemon juice fresh
- 1 clove garlic crushed
- 1 tbsp sumac
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- To make pita chips, break a pita bread into 2 inch pieces. Spray with oil lightly and broil in your oven until crispy and golden brown. (For a quick pita chip, break the pita into large pieces and microwave uncovered at 30 second increments until crispy. It usually takes 60 seconds)
- In small jar add the dressing ingredients. Shake to mix. You can store leftovers in the fridge.
- In a large bowl add your vegetables. Pour over the desired amount of dressing, add in the pita chips and toss to mix. Serve immedietely. Do not mix in the dressing or pita chips until yu are ready to serve or the salad will get soggy.
Notes
Have you tried this vibrant fattoush salad?
I love hearing your feedback. If you tried this salad or used any variations I would love to hear about them in the comments below!
