Fatoush

Origin: It began with broken bread. Yesterday’s flatbread, fried golden or kissed by flame, tossed with what the garden offered that morning — tomatoes, cucumber, mint, onion, a squeeze of lemon, a whisper of sumac.

Nothing wasted, everything revived.

In the Levant, they called it fatteh — to crumble, to break, to begin again. A salad born of resourcefulness, not wealth. A way to make beauty from what remained.

Each bowl is a small act of resurrection: crisp and soft, bright and grounded, sour and green.

A lesson passed quietly through generations — that even what’s gone stale can still feed the living.

Ingredients

“ A traditional Levantine salad that blends fresh vegetables with fried or toasted pita and a tart, bright dressing heavy on sumac. It’s crunchy, juicy, zesty, and built to revive you on a hot day—or after a long revolution.”

2 pita breads, torn into bite-sized pieces

2 tbsp olive oil, for toasting

1 tsp sumac, for dusting

Salad Base

2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped

1 cup cucumber, chopped

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

1 radish, thinly sliced

½ red onion, thinly sliced

½ bell pepper, chopped (optional)

¼ cup fresh mint, chopped

¼ cup parsley, chopped

Dressing

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp sumac

1 garlic clove, grated

Salt + pepper, to taste

Optional: splash of pomegranate molasses for magic

How The Alchemy Happens

Toss pita with olive oil and a pinch of sumac. Toast in oven at 375°F (190°C) until crisp and golden.

In a large bowl, combine all vegetables and herbs.

Shake dressing ingredients together in a jar until emulsified.

Toss salad with dressing, then fold in pita chips just before serving.

Let some get soggy. Let some stay crunchy. That’s the poetry of it.