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Cooking Notes
Marjorie L
Microwave is the *best* way to dry mint -- or any herbs. Microwaving preserves the flavor and especially the color of herbs. There's no comparison to air dried herbs.
Place the fresh (clean) herbs on a towel (or paper towel) on a plate. Put another towel on top. Microwave on high for about one minute. The towel will absorb lots of water. Use another dry towel to finish drying -- this time in short bursts of 20 seconds or so. Don't overdo it! They are dry before they even look dry!
cc
I prepared this early to leave in the fridge for dinner tonight. I let it sit on the counter for a bit, to let the flavors blend, before tasting. Big mistake. It's now gone. I ate every bit and love, loved it! Fresh tasting and wonderful complex flavors. A new favorite.
kk
Good idea to let sit on the counter for a bit to blend flavors, but refrigerating tomatoes is a flavor-killer. NEVER refrigerate tomatoes!
Pikawicca
I used Aleppo pepper in place of the chili powder.
KWarner
I fondly remember visiting my Lebanese grandmother when she was processing the abundant supply of mint from her garden. NEVER did I find it tasteless, by the way.
Her method was pretty simple: strip the leaves from the stems and place them on the newspaper covered dining table. A few windows left open created a breeze. They mint was dried within a few days. I can still see her crumbling it over feta cheese just before drizzling same with rich, dark green olive oil from Beirut.
Amazing!
Doug
Add pieces of toasted pita, and it's fatoush! Can't wait for summer tomatoes...
Zach
Question: I'd rather use fresh mint from my garden. What amount fresh should I use instead of dried, and would this detrimentally affect the flavor? Thanks!
Mari
This is a standard staple in the South Caucasus, not just Armenia. In summer when it's too hot to bother with cooking, it's cucumber-tomato salad with some bread and cheese and we call it dinner. In western Georgia we also add crushed walnuts or hazelnuts (omitting mint) to coat the salad.
BG
Should I "sweat" the cucumbers, or let them release moisture onto towels to prevent a watery salad? I've done this with most other cucumber salads, so I thought someone would write about it in the notes...
Theresa SF Bay Area
Refrigerating tomatoes is not the horror it is commonly made out to be. http://www.seriouseats.com/2016/10/why-you-can-and-sometimes-should-refr...
Kay
A super simple, straight forward salad that is such a nice change from the lettuce salads I always seem to resort to. In my opinion it goes with anything and hits the spot all on its own. Thank you Mark Bittman.
Theresa SF Bay Area
Usually, fresh herbs are used in double the amount of dried. And I used fresh mint, also, and it was delicious.
Ariel B
This is typical street food, which embellishes shawarma in pitas in Saudi Arabia. Usually it comes with a white sauce of yogurt and olive oil. Sometimes it contains black olives and/or chopped green bell peppers. The herb is cilantro, though. It's a juicy, mouth-watering salad on its own as well.
Deb
1/2 tsp of chili flakes would overwhelm 4 tomatoes. A milder chili powder would be a better choice.
Kris M
Love this recipe. We've also made it substituting watermelon for the tomatoes. Delightful!
Larry Walter
Very good. Didn’t have enough cucumber for a recipe, so added some celery with the strings removed.
Bob
This was great and easy
Sarah
Delicious, classic Shirazi salad you’ll find in the Mid East region. This is not fattoush minus the bread, not sure why some have commented that. If you can’t find Persians, English or any thin-skinned cukes can be subbed. We grew up using supermarket cucumbers but leaving some of the skin on.
David
Made with sardine rillette and green beans herbs perfect summer meal
David
Made with green bean herb salad and sardine rillette perfect summer meal
Marcia C
I love the addition of red chili powder, it added complexity without being overpowering. My husband doesn't like mint so I left that out, but increased the basil (I used Thai Basil) and cilantro. It's summer why not!
Gavin Cassidy
I added pickled onions. Very good touch. It gave it some vinegar taste which I enjoy. I did around a 1:1 ratio.
Madeleine Foutes
Excellent. Be sure to find the freshest tomatoes possible—it makes all the difference here. And as for the powder vs. flakes debacle, I’d strongly recommend powder. It mixes seamlessly with the rest of the ‘dressing’ and integrates better into the delicious liquid at the bottom than chili flakes ever could. But seriously, make this recipe!!
Craisin
I still haven’t heard a real clarification of chili powder vs flakes…kinda wish Mr Bittman would rewrite that part. I have crushed red pepper flakes, and I have chili powder-hopefully either work!
LBT
This is very good; I had all ingredients on hand except dried mint - I substituted fresh. I put some over chick peas & devoured it for lunch. Will make again!
grandma carol
I use fresh spices and always double the suggested amount really nice kick to the tomatoes & cucumbers.
William
No "Persian cucumbers" in my local market....actually I have no idea what they are lol. Can Japanese or regular cucumbers be substituted?
Pamela
It's best to let the mixture settle for about 2 hours refrigerated before serving.
Mariana Martin
Delish! I didn’t have tomatoes around but all the other ingredients were fresh from my garden.I ate the hole thing! Yum!
MBH
It's the chopping that takes time. Last Friday,I chopped all the vegetables in the morning, placed them in separate plastic bags in the refrigerator. At 9 p.m. on that hot humid evening, I macerated the onion (already chopped) and garlic with oil and vinegar, while I set the table, set out cold poached salmon. I added the bags of chopped vegetable, mixed it, added feta, parsley, fresh mint, and presented all in a glass bowl. Everything was on the table in 15 minutes. I got so many compliments.
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