Broccoli and Pepper Salad with Creamy Feta Dressing

I know I have not been very regular writing, but with a baby and work I really was struggling. Being a long weekend I decided to get back to my experiments.

Let me talk about a very versatile cheese Feta, widely used in a variety of dishes. My love affair with Feta started when my flat mate made me try the traditional Greek salad or “horiatiki”. It is the only cheese used in the traditional Greek Salad; though many would tell you can replace it with Paneer but clearly does not work!  The word “Feta” means “a piece” or “and a slice”. It is a Greek curd cheese made from sheep’s or goat milk ripened in brine. Typically this cheese is crumbly in texture though you also get the creamy variants in the markets. The creamy version which I use in this recipe makes great dips and spreads as well. Both these versions (creamy and crumbly) are easily available in gourmet stores. This salad is inspired from the traditional Greek Salad. Hope you enjoy this summer salad as much as we do ! It goes really well with grilled chicken.

 

Ingredients

1½ cups broccoli boiled
1 Red Bell Pepper cut into cubes
1 Yellow Bell Pepper cut into cubes
1 Tomato deseeded and cut into cubes

Dressing

1 tbsp thick yoghurt
6-7 tbsp Creamy Feta Cheese (add more if you like feta)
¼  tsp black pepper powder
1 tsp Red Chilli Flakes
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp Sumac powder or lemon juice
2 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped and browned in olive oil
Salt to taste

 

Method

Put the ingredients of the dressing in the salad bowl and whisk together.

 

 

Salad Dressing Ingredients stacked in the bowl

 

Whisked Salad Dressing

 Add broccoli, peppers and tomato and mix well. Keep the tossed salad in the refrigerator for an hour for the salad to chill and dressing to be absorbed.

Salad is ready to eat !!

You could even add other boiled vegetable such as carrots and beans or even sliced black olives. Just ensure if you’re adding more vegetables you increase the dressing accordingly.

In case you don’t get the creamy feta you could mash the block feta. Suggest to taste the dressing before adding salt as Feta is a very salty cheese.  

 

Information on Feta Cheese, sourced from Vefa’s Kitchen, Bible on Greek Cooking