Levantine cuisine · Salads & Mezze

Salatet Rashad

Peppery garden cress with thin onion rings, sumac and good olive oil, a tangy spring salad.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 200 g watercress
• 1 red onion
• 2 tsp sumac
• 1 lemon
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tomatoes
• Salt, pepper

Instructions

1. Wash the cress thoroughly, spin dry and remove the coarse stems, keeping only the tender leaves and fine stalks.
2. Slice the red onion into paper-thin rings, toss with 1 tsp sumac and a pinch of salt, and let stand for 5 min. – the sumac tames the sharpness and turns the rings pink.
3. Quarter the tomatoes, remove the seeds and cut into narrow wedges.
4. Whisk the lemon juice with the olive oil, salt and pepper into a dressing.
5. Loosely toss the cress, onion rings and tomatoes in a wide bowl and add the dressing only right before serving.
6. Sprinkle with the remaining sumac and serve at once, before the delicate leaves wilt.