Nitrate & Nitrite Free Turkish Shepherd's Salad
This bright, crunchy salad is a staple of Turkish tables for good reason — ripe tomatoes, cool cucumber, crisp bell pepper, and sharp red onion come together in a bowl that tastes like pure summer. A generous drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and fresh lemon juice ties everything together, while a pinch of sumac adds that distinctive tangy, slightly floral note that makes this salad genuinely hard to stop eating. Optional fresh mint folded in at the end takes the whole thing to another level of freshness. For anyone navigating nitrate and nitrite concerns, this recipe is a natural fit because every single ingredient is a whole, unprocessed food — no cured meats, no packaged dressings, no preservatives hiding in the fine print. You're working entirely with fresh vegetables, citrus, and pantry staples, so there's nothing to second-guess. It's the kind of dish where clean eating doesn't feel like a compromise at all. Serve it immediately after tossing so the vegetables hold their satisfying crunch, and don't be surprised if it disappears before anything else on the table does.
About FigFig is a food discovery app that helps you find foods and recipes that fit your dietary needs. Whether you have food allergies, intolerances, or follow a specific diet, Fig makes it easy to eat with confidence.
Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
- 4 medium ripe tomatoes, seeded and cut into ¼-inch dice
- 2 persian cucumbers (or 1 english cucumber), cut into ¼-inch dice
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded and cut into ¼-inch dice
- ½ small red onion, finely diced
- ½ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ½ tsp sumac
- ½ tsp salt, or to taste
- ¼ tsp black pepper, or to taste
- 2 tbsp fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Combine the diced tomatoes, cucumber, green bell pepper, red onion, and parsley in a large mixing bowl.
- 2
Drizzle the olive oil and lemon juice over the vegetables, then sprinkle with the sumac, salt, and black pepper.
Want the full recipe?
Create a Fig account for step-by-step instructions, access to our full recipe library, and more!