Gavurdağı Salatası

The chopped salad of Gaziantep: tomato, pepper, and onion with coarsely crushed walnuts, pomegranate molasses, and fresh seeds

Origin: Gaziantep, south-eastern Anatolia, Turkey

From the journey of Pomegranate.

Gavurdağı salatası is the great chopped salad of Gaziantep, the food capital of the Turkish south-east, and it is the salad that announces, before any kebab arrives, that you are in Antep: tomato, pepper, onion, and parsley chopped fine, dressed with olive oil and the deep sour-sweet tang of pomegranate molasses, and lifted out of the ordinary by two pomegranate gestures, a great handful of coarsely crushed walnuts folded through, and a scarlet scatter of fresh pomegranate seeds over the top. The name means 'Infidel Mountain', after a range in the region, and the dish carries the whole Antep idiom of nut, pepper, and sour fruit that the city shares with neighbouring Aleppo across the Syrian border. What sets it apart from an ordinary Turkish çoban (shepherd's) salad is precisely the walnut and the pomegranate. The crushed walnuts give it body and a soft richness; the nar ekşisi, the pomegranate molasses, gives it the fruity, tannic sourness that is the signature of the region; and the fresh seeds give it colour, crunch, and a sweet-sour burst. It is the standing partner of grilled meat all across the south-east, its acidity cutting the fat of the kebab, and a fixture of the Antep table whether grand or humble.

Ingredients

Salad

4 firm ripe tomatoes, seeds removed, cut into small dice
2 long green Turkish peppers (sivri biber) or 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped
100 g walnut halves, coarsely crushed (not ground)

Dressing

3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses (nar ekşisi)
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp dried mint
0.5 tsp sumac, plus more to finish
salt to taste

To finish

fresh pomegranate seeds, to scatter generously

Method

Put the diced tomato, chopped pepper, red onion, and parsley in a wide bowl.
Whisk the olive oil, pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, dried mint, sumac, and salt into a dressing. Taste: it should be sharply sweet-sour.
Pour the dressing over the vegetables and fold through. Add the crushed walnuts and fold again, lightly.
Pile onto a serving plate, scatter generously with fresh pomegranate seeds and a little more sumac, and serve at once, alongside grilled meat or as part of a meze table.

Notes

Gavurdağı is best assembled just before serving so the tomatoes stay firm and the walnuts crisp. Some Antep cooks add a little finely chopped fresh chilli or a pinch of pul biber (Aleppo pepper) for heat. It is the classic companion to the grilled kebabs of the Turkish south-east, but it also stands alone as a meze with warm flatbread. Toasting the walnuts lightly before crushing deepens their flavour.

The Gastrographer

Name: Gavurdağı Salatası
Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Turkey
Ingredients: 4 firm ripe tomatoes, seeds removed, cut into small dice; 2 long green Turkish peppers (sivri biber) or 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped; 1 small red onion, finely chopped; 1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped; 100 g walnut halves, coarsely crushed (not ground); 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil; 2 tbsp pomegranate molasses (nar ekşisi); 1 tbsp lemon juice; 1 tsp dried mint; 0.5 tsp sumac, plus more to finish; salt to taste; fresh pomegranate seeds, to scatter generously

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control