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Salad Shirazi (Persian Cucumber Tomato Salad)

Name: Salad Shirazi (Persian Cucumber Tomato Salad)
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 3 Persian or English Cucumbers; 1/2 Red Onion; 2 Tomatoes; 4 tbsp Lemon Juice; 1 tbsp Dried Mint; 1/2 tsp Salt; 1/2 tsp Black Pepper

September 28, 2020 By Shadi HasanzadeNemati 42 Comments

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Salad Shirazi is a Persian cucumber tomato salad that's easy to prepare and packed with flavors. This classic Persian salad can be served with any main dish.

When it comes to appetizers and side dishes, I love going down the Persian route because it's always fresh, light and flavorful. From our mouth-watering Persian appetizer platter and mast o khiar (yogurt and cucumber) to borani (mast esfenaj), everything is made with fresh and simple ingredients that you can find easily.

This 3-ingredient salad is another Persian staple that I can't wait to share with you! You can serve it alongside many dishes including ghromeh sabzi (Persian herb stew) and lubia polo (lamb and green bean mixed rice).

Persian salad shirazi served on a plate with a fork on the side.

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What is salad shirazi?
The origins
The ingredients
Instructions
Serving suggestions
Notes and tips
Step-by-Step Recipe

Who's in for a healthy, light and flavorful salad? Salad Shirazi is going to be your new favorite salad! Of all the side dishes in Persian cuisine, this one is indeed my all time favorite. Typically served as a side dish, its bright flavor tends to compliment the main dish without being overpowering or even filling.

What is salad shirazi?

Each country has its own traditional salad. Greeks have horiatiki -Traditional Greek salad and Turks have Gavurdagi (Turkish walnut salad). And us Iranians have our beloved salad shirazi, a simple combination of tomatoes, cucumbers and onions with an abundance of flavor.

Salad shirazi has two words: salad, which is what we call salad in Farsi (original, I know!) and shirazi which means from Shiraz, a city in the south west of Iran. I've been to Shiraz only once but I can easily say it's one of the most beautiful cites in Iran. With all its flowers and amazing weather, Shiraz is a great place to visit in the springtime.

Salad Shirazi is a light and easy Persian salad that is a delicious alternative to the usual side dishes. It's refreshing, healthy and easy.

The origins

As far as I know, this Persian salad originated from Shiraz and through the years it has made its way to many tables around the world. It's probably the fresh flavor and crisp texture of this salad that has made it one of the staples in Persian cuisine since it compliments the flavors of the main dishes very well. Also, its simplicity and quick preparation time makes it a perfect healthy side dish on busy days.

The ingredients

Salad shirazi is made of 3 main ingredients and a simple dressing. Let's take a look at the components.

Cucumbers

We traditionally use Persian cucumbers to make this recipe since they are seedless and very crisp. However, if that's not available, English cucumbers work as well, but make sure to scoop the seeds out. You want the cucumbers to be fresh and firm. They are usually chopped into small pieces. You don't need to peel the cucumbers.

Tomatoes

Much the same as Turkish tomato salad, we are looking for fresh and firm tomatoes to make this recipe. Make sure they're not too seedy and if they are, remove the soft seedy parts. The tomatoes are also going to be chopped finely.

Onions

Red onions are the best type of onion for this recipe. The amount of onion you use depends on how much you like them in your salad. I usually go for one small red onion or half of a larger one.

These vegetables are combined with a simple dressing traditionally made with unripe grape juice known as verjuice (ab-ghooreh), dried mint, salt and pepper. However, verjuice is of course not always available so for acidity and brightness we can simply use lemon juice.

Pro tip: Don't skip the dried mint! Dried mint brings so much flavor to this simple salad and that's what makes it different from every other salad you've had.

Instructions

Wash and dry the cucumbers, tomatoes and onion.
Cut the cucumbers in half lengthwise. Then cut each half into 3-4 pieces lengthwise. Chop the cucumber finely. Add them to a large bowl.
Cut the tomatoes in half, if they're too seedy, discard the soft seedy part and slice the tomatoes into strips. Chop them finely and add them to the cucumbers.
Chop the red onion finely as well and add it to the cucumbers and tomatoes. Give everything a nice stir to combine.
Add in lemon juice, dried mint, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Taste and add more lemon juice or salt if needed.

Plump tomatoes and fresh cucumbers go well with red onion. This gluten free, vegetarian salad is perfect with any rice dish.

Serving suggestions

Salad Shirazi is usually served with Persian rice dishes and main courses such as Adas Polo (Persian Lentil Rice), or Meygoo polo (shrimp and rice) as a side dish. I also love serving it with Persian herb rice and saffron chicken. It also makes a great side for grilled dishes such as zaatar chicken, joojeh kabab or beef shish kabob.

The acidity and freshness of this salad pairs well with many different dishes and brings more flavor to the table.

Notes and tips

This cucumber and tomato salad salad is best served chilled. Make it a couple of hours ahead of time and refrigerate it so the vegetables absorb the flavors of the dressing. Sometimes, vegetables starts releasing their juice and that's fine.
To make this recipe you need to use seedless cucumbers or ones with very small seeds like Persian or English cucumbers. These cucumbers also have very delicate skin so no peeling is needed. If using regular cucumbers, peel and deseed them.
You can find dried mint at Middle Eastern, Iranian shops or online. If you don't have dried mint, ½ cup chopped fresh mint would work, too.
Tomatoes, cucumbers and onions are usually chopped very finely for this recipe. Chopping the veggies into very small pieces would help them absorb more flavor.

Add some dried mint and lemon juice to this salad for maximum flavor.

Step-by-Step Recipe