This fattoush salad is inspired by one of our favorite salads in San Francisco. If you live in San Francisco, you are probably familiar with Blue Barn. Blue Barn is beloved by many for their salads and sandwiches. This particular salad, the fattoush, is one of our favorites. The fattoush is a delicious romaine based salad with a champagne-sumac dressing. There are tons of mix-ins from fresh herbs to chickpeas, but the real stars of the show are the crispy pita chips.
This salad makes for a great dinner or lunch because it is hearty with both the chickpeas and pita chips. We also love adding a little grilled chicken for the perfect meal. If you want to prep this in advance, be sure to leave off the pita chips and dressing to ensure the best result.
Fattoush Salad Notes:
- Romaine: the romaine lettuce adds crunch and texture which is what this salad is all about. We recommend this or little gems for the best result.
- The herbs: the herbs add freshness and brightness to the salad. We like a mixture of green onions, cilantro, and mint, but use whatever you have on hand. Parsley or other herbs would also go well here.
- Red onions: to reduce the potentness of the red onions, we soak them in warm water before adding them to the salad. This removes a little bit of the bite they provide.
- Ricotta Salata: ricotta salata is similar to feta but milder and firmer. It is great both grated and crumbled and makes a delicious addition to this salad. Feta is used by blue barn, so if you are looking to stay close to the original, use that instead!
Fattoush Salad
Ingredients
Salad:
- 2 heads of romaine chopped
- ½ cup cucumber chopped
- ½ cup tomatoes halved
- 2 large handfuls pita chips
- ½ cup chickpeas drained
- ¼ cup green onions sliced
- ¼ cup cilantro lightly chopped
- ¼ cup mint chopped
- ½ cup kalamata olives sliced
- ¼ red onion sliced
- ¼ cup ricotta salata cheese grated or feta crumbled
Champagne-sumac vinaigrette:
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sumac
- 1 small shallot chopped
- 2 teaspoons honey
Instructions
- Soak the red onion in warm water for 5 minutes. Drain – this will help reduce the strong onion flavor. Set aside
- Combine all dressing ingredients into the base of the bowl and mix to evenly combine.
- Add all the salad ingredients on top of the dressing (including the red onions) and toss. Serve.
