Moroccan salad is the country's everyday starter — tomato, cucumber and onion finely chopped and dressed simply — set out before nearly every meal. Fresh and sharp, it is the cool counterpoint to the spiced tagine.
Cool, crunchy, and juicy, with sweet tomato and crisp cucumber lifted by sharp onion and a bright hit of lemon. Fresh herbs make every bite fragrant and clean, the perfect foil to heavier stewed dishes.
Seeding the tomatoes and dressing just before serving keeps the cut vegetables crisp rather than soggy. Acid from lemon and the bite of raw onion cut through and refresh the palate between rich courses.
Variations
with roasted green pepper, with green olives, with preserved lemon, with radish, taktouka-leaning cooked versions
On the Palate
Where Moroccan Salad sits in the Moroccan flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
8 steps · 15 min
- 12 min
Seed the ripe tomatoes to keep the salad from turning watery.
Watch outScoop out the watery seeds and jelly — leave them in and the salad weeps and goes limp within minutes.
- 26 min
Finely and evenly dice the tomatoes, cucumber, and onion into small pieces.
Watch outDice everything to the same small size so no single bite is all onion or all cucumber.
- 32 min
Chop fresh parsley and cilantro, and optionally a little mint.
- 41 min
Combine the diced vegetables and herbs in a wide bowl.
- 51 min
Whisk together olive oil, fresh lemon juice, and salt for the dressing.
- 61 min
Pour the dressing over the vegetables and toss gently to coat.
Watch outDress only right before serving and toss lightly — sit it in the dressing too long and the crunch is gone.
- 71 min
Taste and adjust salt and lemon for brightness.
- 81 min
Serve immediately while crisp, or chill briefly before serving.
