Pomegranates in Australia? Sometimes. A Turkish Recipe

I had a hard time finding pomegranates that were as tasty as those I ate in Tamil Nadu and Kerala in India earlier this year. There, they are so flavoursome, sweet, served by the bowlful for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Here, early in the season, I found only wild pomegranates in the shop. Small, tart, hard, inedible. Later, much much later, I found some that approach the deliciousness of the fruit of India.

I had a hard time peeling those little suckers. Pulling out each beautiful ruby gem. Removing the bitter white pith that surrounds them. It is a job best done in the sink, wearing an apron and with a chopping board that doesn’t mind being stained ruby red.

I am so glad to have found edible pomegranates here. There is a wealth of recipes that I have been collecting. I may have to wait until next year to find more, but these fruit will be on my table again.

I love this salad. It is precious – time taken to shell the fruit, to roast the walnuts, to shell the pistachios, to chop the nuts. It is precious in its vibrant red and green. It is precious in its wonderful ingredients. And it is so jolly gorgeous.

Green Olive, Walnut, Pistachio and Pomegranate Salad

Source : Turquoise
Cuisine: Turkish
Prep time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 10 mins
Serves: 4 – 6 people, depending how you use it

ingredients
0.25 cups walnuts
0.5  cup pitted green olives, washed to remove salt, and coarsely chopped
0.25 cup unsalted shelled pistachios, chopped coarsely
0.5  cup pomegranate seeds
2 small shallots, peeled and finely diced
1 red chilli (or to taste), seeded and finely chopped
2 – 3 Tblspns shredded parsley leaves
1 Tblspn extra virgin olive oil
1 Tblspn walnut oil
splash of pomegranate molasses
juice of 0.5 lemon
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

method
Preheat the oven to 180C. Scatter the walnuts onto a baking tray and roast for 5 – 10 mins until they are a deep golden brown. Tip the nuts into a tea towel and rub well to remove as much skin as possible. Chop them coarsely and then toss them in a sieve to remove remaining skins.

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and toss gently. Leave to stand for 5 minutes or so before serving to allow the flavours to meld. Gorgeous.

People are Saying:

• Helen from World Foodie Guide has a post on luscious pomegranates and how to use them. She says:

And here’s a super recipe from A Life (Time) of Cooking, one of my favourite food blogs, while Elise at Simply Recipes has collected some wonderfully inventive recipes on how to use pomegranates. I’ll have to raid the supermarket shelves for more pomegranates!

The Pomegranate Series

• Crabapple and Pomegranate Jelly with Rosebuds
• Pomegranate and Banana Salad
• Semi Dried Tomatoes with Pomegranate

Selection from the Salad Series

• Chickpea Keep It Simple Salad
• Chickpeas with Ginger Root Salad
• Creamy Pearl Hummus Salad
• Cucumber Salad with Sesame
• Peppers Shining Salad
• Raw-ish Beetroot and Carrot Salad
• Roasted Rosemary Pears
• Simple approaches to salads
  
• Simple Cucumber Salad
• Tomato Salad
• Watermelon with Haloumi

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