Olive and herb salad is gorgeous and smooth – a healthy appetizer that I can never get enough of. This is a summer recipe that everyone has to try. AND it’s so easy to make – this is everything you need to know to make your own!
The Simple Ingredients:
Olives, olives, olives! I adore green olives so always opt for those but feel free to replace with black olives if that’s what you prefer. For this recipe you’ll need to remove the pits in the olives.
I know it’s tempting to reach for the pitted olive jar in the store but please try and opt for natural olives and pit them yourself. The taste and texture of the olives when their pits are kept intact are simply unmatched. They’re also naturally saltier this way, so you won’t need to add salt to this salad recipe!
I also add in pomegranate sauce. I know I rave about this sauce in nearly every salad recipe but if there were ever a time to add pomegranate sauce to a recipe, it’s this one. The tangy sauce brings the salad to a whole other level. If you do not have any to hand, you can always replace with lemon juice, but I honestly don’t think it has quite the same effect.
This is a great opportunity to use your fresh herbs! Really go wild and add any inclusions you like. I always stick with dill and mint as staples, but oregano, basil and parsley also compliment the olives beautifully.
I don’t always have fresh herbs to hand, so I made this recipe with a mix of fresh and dry herbs to show that you don’t need fresh herbs to create this dish – just use whatever you have!
How to make the salad?
Dice all of your vegetables and fresh herbs. I use onion, pepper, tomato, mint and dill. Dice them all as finely as you can – I promise this will make the salad even tastier!
Next, pit your olives. Slice the olive down it’s length and separate the olive from the pit seed. This process is well worth it as the taste from natural olives are much richer than ready-pitted olives. I highly recommend putting your effort into this short process.
Now combine all of the ingredients and toss thoroughly. Make sure that that the pomegranate sauce is spread evenly throughout the dish. It’s a thick sauce so it will need more tossing than the oil.
I never add salt but feel free to add some to taste if you feel it is needed.
Lush Olive and Herb Salad
Ingredients
- 208 g pitted green olives 300g with pits
- 9 g chives
- 7 g mint leaves
- 1 tomato or 94 g diced
- 1 red onion or 108 g diced
- 1 red pepper or 150 g diced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp pomegranate sauce
Instructions
- Dice the pepper, tomato, onion and fresh herbs. Pit olives if not pitted already.
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl and toss, ensuring pomegranate sauce is spread evenly.