Snap Pea Salad With Mint and Tahini-Harissa Dressing Recipe

By
J. Kenji López-Alt
Kenji Lopez Alt
J. Kenji López-Alt
Culinary Consultant
Kenji is the former culinary director for Serious Eats and a current culinary consultant for the site. He is also a New York Times food columnist and the author of The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science.
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Updated March 27, 2019
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J. Kenji López-Alt

Why It Works

  • Blanching gives the snap peas a crisp texture, bright green color, and sweet flavor.
  • Blending the garlic directly with lemon juice helps tame its harsh bite.

Sweet snap peas and mint is a classic combination that lends itself well to variation. Here we riff on it by adding yogurt and a couple other flavorful ingredients like tahini and harissa. It's light yet rich, cooling yet spicy.

Recipe Details

Snap Pea Salad With Mint and Tahini-Harissa Dressing Recipe

Prep 20 mins
Active 20 mins
Total 20 mins
Serves 4 to 6 servings
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Ingredients

  • Kosher salt

  • 1 pound (450 g) snap peas, ends and strings pulled off

  • 1 medium clove garlic

  • 2 tablespoons (15 ml) juice and 1 teaspoon (2 g) grated zest from 1 lemon, divided

  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) sesame tahini

  • 1 to 2 tablespoons (15 to 30 ml) harissa paste, to taste

  • 1/4 cup (60 ml) Greek-style yogurt

  • 3 tablespoons (45 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

  • Freshly ground black pepper

  • 1 small shallot, finely minced (about 1/2 ounce; 15 g)

  • 12 mint leaves, finely minced

  • Piment d'espelette, crushed Aleppo chiles, gochugaru (Korean chile flakes), or other crushed red pepper flakes, for serving

Directions

  1. Bring a large saucepan of heavily salted water to a boil and prepare an ice bath. Add snap peas and boil until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon or mesh strainer, transfer snap peas to ice bath to chill.

  2. Combine garlic and 1 tablespoon lemon juice in a mini chopper or blender. Blend until garlic is finely minced. Add tahini, yogurt, harissa, and 1 tablespoon olive oil and blend to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

  3. Whisk together remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice, lemon zest, shallot, mint, and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large bowl. Drain snap peas and dry carefully in a salad spinner or on a paper towel-lined tray. Add to bowl with dressing and toss thoroughly to coat. Transfer to a serving platter and drizzle with harissa-tahini sauce. Sprinkle with chili flakes. Serve immediately.

Special equipment

Blender, hand blender, or mini chopper

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
187 Calories
11g Fat
23g Carbs
6g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 6
Amount per serving
Calories 187
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 11g 14%
Saturated Fat 1g 7%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 191mg 8%
Total Carbohydrate 23g 8%
Dietary Fiber 7g 23%
Total Sugars 9g
Protein 6g
Vitamin C 108mg 541%
Calcium 88mg 7%
Iron 3mg 15%
Potassium 475mg 10%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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