Many Middle Eastern dishes pair well with a simple salad that elevates the dish to the next level and makes it a complete meal. Weather it’s a rice dish, like Ma’louba or Oozie, Freekeh, lentils or grilled chicken, this is my go-to simple salad that provides the perfect amount of tang, crunch and freshness to any meal.

I would say this is the middle eastern version of an Italian Bruschetta or a chunky Mexican Salsa (it goes great with Pita Chips as well!). The key to this salad is using the freshest ingredients and dicing up your tomato and cucumber into tiny cubes. Toss in some parsley, lemon juice, and sea salt, then drizzle with a good quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil and you’re set. I allow mine to sit for about ten minutes to get the flavors going, and the great thing about this is it gets better with age (up to a day of course).

So for those dishes I refer to serving with a “Simple Salad” on the side, this is the one.

Diced Simple Salad
2-3 servings

2 Medium Tomatoes, finely diced
2 Persian Cucumbers, finely diced
2 tbsp Italian Parsley, finely chopped
1 Lemon, juiced
1 tbsp Olive Oil
Sea salt

Make sure you dice the tomatoes and cucumbers into tiny cubes, the same size you would for a pico de gallo or bruschetta.

Toss together all the ingredients and season with sea salt to taste. Allow to marinate for at least ten minutes and enjoy!

For best results serve within one day.

P.S. I love drinking the lemony juice that’s left over at the end. It’s full of nutrients so don’t let it go to waste!