Fattoush salad
A crisp and crunchy Levantine salad, best enjoyed on a hot and sunny day. The pitta croutons are a great way to use up stale pitta breads.
Ingredients
For the salad
- 100ml/3½fl oz vegetable oil
- 2 pitta breads, cut into squares
- 2 large vine tomatoes, chopped into large chunks
- ½ cucumber, chopped into large chunks
- 1 Little Gem lettuce, leaves separated and torn
- 2 fresh mint sprigs, leaves picked and finely chopped
- large handful fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 10–12 black olives, pitted
- ½ pomegranate, seeds only
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the dressing
- 1 lemon, juice only
- 2–3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
- 1 tsp sumac, plus extra to garnish
Method
Heat the vegetable oil in a deep-fat fryer until it reaches about 170C, or a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds. (CAUTION: hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.)
Deep-fry the pitta bread for 2–3 minutes, or until golden-brown. Drain on kitchen paper and sprinkle with sea salt.
To make the dressing, whisk the ingredients together in a small jug. Season with salt and pepper.
To make the salad, place the tomatoes, cucumber lettuce, herbs and olives in a large bowl. Pour over the dressing and mix well.
Scatter with the fried pitta, pomegranate seeds and a sprinkle of sumac before serving.
