çoban salatasi aka Turkish shepherd’s salad
To be honest, I don’t understand salad recipes, mainly because most salad recipe’s titles explain everything you need to know to make them (ex: Arugula, Pear, and Parmesan Salad). Which is why I was hesitant to post this recipe, but I decided to overcome my salad-recipe-phobia for three reasons. (1) I posted it on my stories and got 10+ asks for the recipe, (2) the name of the salad doesn’t adequately describe what’s actually inside of it, and (3) it’s so dang good. So here I am, here we are, here it is – my coban salatasi, Turkish for “shepherd’s salad,” recipe.
INGREDIENTS
4 medium-sized tomatoes, whichever variety strikes your fancy
4 Persian cucumbers
1 small shallot or 1/2 small red onion
1/4 bunch parsley
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
2 tbsp. pomegranate molasses
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tsp. sumac
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground corriander
optional: fresh mint + dill, chopped finely
Note: the beauty of a shepherd’s salad is how easy it is to throw together – so while I have exact measurements listed here for the ingredients, please adjust to your liking! Taste, test, and try until you have the perfect salad combination for you.
DIRECTIONS:
Small dice the tomatoes and cucumbers (some people prefer the cucumber skin to be peeled, but I usually half-peel the cucumber so it looks striped as a happy medium). Finely chop the shallot or red onion, parsley and mint and/or dill, if using.
Add the chopped vegetables and herbs to a large mixing bowl, along with the remaining ingredients. Mix ingredients thoroughly and serve.
store: in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.
diet: vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy-free
eat it with: toasty, crusty bread (or pita chips) to soak up all the extra juices.
