Persian Salad (Salad Shirazi)

Here is a simple and fresh salad that is pleasing to the palate. The cool cucumbers, juicy tomato and sharp red onion are the perfect flavor combination in this Persian Salad (Salad Shirazi). Simple in its making, but big on flavor thanks to the lime and fresh herbs.

Preparing the Ingredients

Fresh lime juice adds the vibrancy to the salad. Use either two small limes or one large lime and use Cutco’s Traditional Cheese Knife to cut them in half so you can juice them. The knife is a great citrus knife.

The cheese knife is also a great tomato knife. Use it to dice the tomato into small pieces.

For the Persian cucumbers, a good vegetable prep knife like the 7″ Santoku works best. Trim off the ends of the cucumbers, cut them in half and then cut into strips. Rotate the strips and cut crosswise to dice.

Use the same knife for dicing the red onion and chopping the cilantro.

When cutting the ingredients for the salad, try to keep them of the same size. In fact, I like to cut them rather small.

Simple Salad

After the cucumbers, tomato, onion and cilantro are prepared, it’s just a matter of tossing all the ingredients together. How easy is that!

If you want to add to the salad you could add some diced avocado and/or a sprinkle of smoked paprika.

Persian Salad (Salad Shirazi) is light and refreshing and leaves your palate ready for more. It pairs well with heavier dishes like stew or kabobs, but honestly, you could eat it alongside any dish.

The salad can be made ahead of time, just don’t dress it. Add the lime and olive oil only when ready to serve.

Also, if you’re not a fan of cilantro, you can use parsley or basil in its place.