Deconstructed fattoush is the perfect dinner party platter

Language evolves, and so do recipes. This one provides an example of both.

When making it – and even more so, when writing about it – I kept thinking about an old friend, a former copy editor colleague who, like many of us, is perhaps a touch pedantic. I was thinking particularly about how anytime food writers at our publication would describe the restaurant trend of reworking a dish into its separate components, he would go on a rant if they dared to use the word “deconstruct”, or any of its forms. Deconstruction should apply only to the specific form of literary and philosophical analysis that takes the name, he argued, not simply to the idea of breaking anything into its parts.

As much as I like to uphold some traditional ideas about language – don’t get me started on “literally”, for example – I never bought this one. Perhaps it’s because I never studied literary or philosophical analysis in the same way he did, but I never understood the harm of the more informal usage. More importantly, I could never come up with a better term to quickly convey to most readers (especially those without philosophy degrees) that, say, a pastry chef was playing with form by presenting separate dollops of lemon curd, marshmallow cream and shortbread as “lemon meringue pie”.

Anyway, no offence, John, but the recipe I’m excited about this week is a deconstructed fattoush, the Middle Eastern bread salad. Traditionally made with leftover pita, seasonal vegetables and a dressing that includes the tart spice sumac, fattoush is as popular throughout the Levant as panzanella is in Italy.

I always think of fattoush as a casual, throw-together-what-looks-good kind of affair. In her beautiful new cookbook In Praise of Veg, Alice Zaslavsky takes the casual approach even further: rather than layer or toss the fattoush, she suggests arranging its elements – tomatoes, cucumbers, bell pepper, toasted pita chips and a lemony dressing – in separate piles on a big platter and letting your guests combine at will. To add some protein and make this qualify as a main course, I like to add a pile of chickpeas – a legume beloved not only in my house, but in the homeland of fattoush.

Since the idea here is that everybody around the table gets to make the salad that they want, building their perfect-to-them bites, perhaps deconstruct isn’t the right word after all. With this recipe, you get to reconstruct fattoush.

Total time: 35 minutes

Serves: 6 to 8 (makes 12 cups)

This is a deconstructed version of the Middle Eastern tomato/bread salad, turning it into a platter full of elements perfect for a serve-yourself approach at a dinner party. You can get as artful or as casual as you’d like with the presentation, letting guests choose their favorite parts and create their perfect bites.

Make ahead: The pita chips can be made and stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days before making the platter.

Storage notes: Refrigerate for up to 5 days, preferably with the pitas and dressing kept separate from the rest of the salad.

Where to buy: Sumac can be found in Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and international grocers, as well as online.

Ingredients:

For the salad:

120ml extra-virgin olive oil

60ml fresh lemon juice

3 cloves garlic, finely grated or pressed

½ tsp fine salt

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1.13kg fresh tomatoes, preferably a mix of shapes, sizes and colours, cored if needed and cut into rounds and/or wedges

3 to 4 small cucumbers (340g total), sliced

1 red bell pepper, stemmed, cored and sliced

One (425g) tin no-salt-added chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or 360g cooked chickpeas)

½ medium red onion (85g), finely sliced

1 tsp ground sumac (may substitute za’atar spice blend)

1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 tbsp chopped fresh mint

Lemon wedges, for serving

For the crispy pita:

4 small pita pockets or 2 large pita breads (170g), cut into triangles

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Method:

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 230C.

Make the salad: in a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper until combined. Taste, and season with more salt and/or pepper as needed.

On a large serving platter, arrange the tomatoes and cucumbers. Top with the bell pepper, chickpeas and onion. Sprinkle with the sumac and drizzle with 60ml of the dressing.

Make the crispy pita: while the salad sits and the flavours meld, on a large, rimmed baking tray, toss the pita triangles with the olive oil and spread them out. Toast for about 10 minutes, turning as needed, until golden brown and crisp.

Arrange the pita triangles on the platter. Sprinkle with the herbs and serve with the lemon wedges and the remaining dressing.

Nutrition information per serving, based on 8 | Calories: 299; total fat: 19g; saturated fat: 3g; cholesterol: 0mg; sodium: 290mg; carbohydrates: 30g; dietary fibre: 5g; sugar: 6g; protein: 6g.

This analysis is an estimate based on available ingredients and this preparation. It should not substitute for a dietitian’s or nutritionist’s advice.

© The Washington Post