This Mediterranean olive salad is tangy, super healthy and delicious. A salad with olives is a great way to add a punch of flavor. You can make this a green olive salad, a black olive one, or a mix like I do here! One of our favorite easy Lebanese side salads.
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What make this Mediterranean olive salad so good?
It’s healthy, with lots of veggies, fiber, and antioxidants.
A salad with green olives and black olives is really packed with flavor. The olives are briney, and flavorful and make for a great side salad to accompany so many things.
It’s really easy, especially when using sliced olives so you don’t need to worry about pitting them.
The dressing is really special. It’s tangy, a little spicy, a little sweet and a little sour. Different than any other salad you’ll have!
Ingredients you need:
Black olives and green olives: I like using a mix of sliced olives for convenience. Each offers its own flavor profile. If you want to make a green olive salad you can leave out the black olives (or vice versa!)
Shredded carrot and cucumber: Shredding instead of dicing gives this a nice signature chopped texture instead of chunky bites.
Green onion: You need a little sharpness for this salad, and green onions are my preferred way to go.
Parsley
Tomato
Dressing ingredients: some salad dressing hallmarks like: lemon, olive oil, garlic
Some extra spices: red chili flakes, cumin powder, salt, pepper. You can leave out the chili flakes if you don’t want any heat.
Pomegranate molasses: This is a signature tangy molasses frequently used in Middle Eastern cuisine. You can find it in any Middle Eastern supermarket or online. You could always substitute balsamic vinegar or even better, balsamic reduction.
Ketchup: This will sound weird, but I promise it rounds out the dressing so well! Another way to add some depth of flavor to the dressing, and a hint of sweetness. Just a tablespoon!
How to make this Lebanese olive salad:
- Make sure all you ingredients are prepped and ready. The olives should be drained, the carrot and cucumber shredded, the green bell pepper and tomato diced, the parsley chopped and the green onions thinly sliced.
- Combine all these salad ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine.
- In a separate small bowl or in a jar, mix together all the dressing ingredients.
- Drizzle the dressing on the salad (right before serving), and toss to combine. Enjoy!
What to serve this zingy green olive salad with:
This goes well with so many things. We sometimes have it as part of a mezze spread, alongside hummus, labneh and all that good stuff.
You can also serve this with any rice dish and it’ll be delicious, or alongside some Arabic grills. This will be liven up any simple protein dish, anything from grilled fish or chicken, to lamb chops etc.
I also enjoy this on it’s own for a light lunch!
Making this ahead and storing leftovers:
You can have all the ingredients chopped and prepared for 1-2 days in advance of serving the salad. Just mix the salad ingredients together the day of serving. You can store the dressing in a jar separately for at least 5-7 days in the fridge.
Although it’ll get a little soggy, leftover salad will last a day or two in the fridge.
Expert tips and tricks:
- Dice the veggies fine so that you get a nice chopped salad texture, and nothing too clunky or big that’ll detract from the apple slices.
- Drain the olives well before adding so you don’t add excess moisture to the salad.
Recipe FAQs:
Yes, any salad with olives ultimately fits the remainder of the ingredients. You can make this a green olive salad, or on the flip side add only black olives.
If you prefer not to use jarred olives, you can use whole olives making sure you pit them, and roughly chop them.
The amount of red chili flakes in this shouldn’t cause the salad to be too spicy, but you can of course eliminate them entirely.
You certainly can! I think crumbled feta cheese or little bits of grilled halloumi would be lovely.
Related salad recipes:
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Mediterranean Olive Salad
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 1/2 cup sliced black olives, drained 120g
- 1/2 cup sliced green olives, drained 120g
- 1 carrot, shredded
- 1 cucumber, shredded
- 1 tomato, diced
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 green pepper, diced
- handful parsley, chopped
For the dressing:
- 2-3 tablespoon olive oil
- juice of one lemon
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 2 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon chili flakes, optional
Instructions
For the salad:
- Add all the salad ingredients to a large bowl, and toss well to combine and mix thoroughly.
For the salad dressing:
- Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl, or add to a jar and shake to combine. Taste for seasoning and adjust if desired.
- Add the dressing to the salad right before serving, and toss to combine well. Enjoy!
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