This eye-popping Peanut Salad featuring juicy citrus segments and the perfume of almond and saffron looks like an art piece on a plate.
Our easy homemade Peanut Salad recipe is inspired by Middle Eastern flavours, a healthy dish to serve to vegetarians and vegans.
Orange and grapefruit segments are drizzled with almond, saffron, shallot and olive oil dressing then garnished with roasted peanuts and chopped cilantro.
Serve this crowd pleasing dish as a healthy fruit salad at brunch. Citrus lovers will be banging down your door for the recipe thanks to its perfect balance of sweet, sour and salty.
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What Is A Peanut Salad?
Peanuts are one of our favourite ways to add crunchy texture and healthy protein to a dish.
Popular Peanut Salad recipes can be found around the world, from Thailand to India and the Middle East.
Our quick & easy Peanut Salad is an eye-popping and beautifully colourful dish featuring exotic flavours from the Middle East like almond, olive oil and saffron.
We typically serve the salad on a large plate, alternating between layers of sliced orange and grapefruit. A simple salad dressing featuring almond extract, saffron, minced shallots, olive oil and lemon juice produce a flavourful vinaigrette.
The vegan and vegetarian citrus salad is garnished with crunchy roasted peanuts and finely chopped cilantro.
My Family Loves Citrus Peanut Salad
I love cooking fresh and healthy meals for my friends and family.
My parents love eating fresh salads so I was keen to experiment with flavours and textures in creating this unique Peanut Salad recipe.
I knew my parents would enjoy this healthy salad because they enjoy fragrant saffron, juicy citrus and crunchy peanuts.
I prepared the dish on a hot summer morning, serving it as a colourful fruit salad at brunch alongside scrambled eggs, bacon and croissants.
This colourful citrus salad has a perfect balance of sweet, sour and salty. While we like to serve it at breakfast, we also serve it at lunch for family barbecues and at dinner when looking to impress at a potluck.
Health Benefits
Our Peanut Salad recipe is packed full of healthy ingredients!
Onions are a humble vegetable packed with vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals. Regular consumption of onions can help boost digestive health and reduce the risk of developing heart disease.
A rich source of phytochemicals and vitamin C, lemons help boost your immune system and neutralize free radicals that cause disease and skin aging. Lemons also protect against heart disease and help improve blood flow to the brain.
Oranges and Grapefruits are known as an excellent source of Vitamin C, vital for the proper function of a healthy immune system.
Peanuts are rich in protein, fat, and fibre. While peanuts may have a large amount of fat, most of the fats they contain are known as “good fats.”
Olive Oil is ranked as one of the healthiest fats and is a staple in the Mediterranean diet. It contains vitamins E and K and plenty of beneficial fatty acids and antioxidants.
A good source of bone-strengthening vitamin K, cilantro is also rich in antioxidants that help protect the eyes from damage by free radicals.
Peanut Salad Recipe Cooking Tips
This Peanut Salad recipe is quick and easy to make at home.
- We’ve used shallots in this recipe but you could substitute for finely minced sweet vidalia onions or red onions.
- We’ve used fresh lemon juice in the salad dressing but you can substitute for lime juice if you prefer.
- We’ve used navel oranges and pink grapefruit in this recipe but you can get creative with your citrus by also adding sliced clementines, mandarins or blood oranges.
- We like to use roasted peanuts in this salad but you can also use salted peanuts, boiled peanuts, spiced peanuts or candied peanuts.
- If you enjoy spicy food feel free to add finely chopped chili to the vinaigrette.
- We’ve used olive oil in the dressing but you can substitute for canola oil if you prefer.
- We garnish the salad with chopped cilantro but you can substitue with other tender herbs like parsley, basil or dill.
- If you’re looking to serve the salad as a main course feel free to organize the citrus segments over a bed of arugula and add protein like tofu, grilled shrimp or steak.
Serving Suggestions
This delicious Peanut Salad can be served as a side dish or entree.
We like to serve this citrus salad at brunch as an eye-popping flavour-packed fruit salad. We often serve it with breakfast classics like scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, sausages, hash browns, croissants, French Toast, pancakes and waffles.
The simple iteration of our recipe is vegan and vegetarian friendly. Feel free to add tempeh or tofu to add more protein to the dish.
If you eat meat and seafood you might want to serve it alongside a grilled steak or barbecued shrimp. It tastes great as a side salad with Middle Eastern dishes like Grilled Joojeh Kabab Persian Saffron Chicken Kebab, Lebanese Spiced Minced Beef Stuffed Pita Arayes, Chicken Shawarma, Palestinian Chicken Musakhan and Beef Kafta Afghan Kebab.
Storage
If you have leftovers you can store the salad in the fridge in an airtight container for one or two days.
The salad will keep its texture for around 24 hours and the following day the ingredients will have absorbed more of the flavourful dressing.
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How To Make Homemade Citrus Peanut Salad
Citrus Peanut Salad
Equipment
- French knife
- Mixing bowls
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
Ingredients
- 1/4 tsp Almond Extract
- 6 threads Saffron
- 1 Shallot minced
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
- 2 Oranges
- 1 Grapefruit
- 1/4 cup Roasted Peanuts
- 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Cilantro
- Kosher Salt + Black Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Put the almond extract in a small bowl and sprinkle with saffron. Swirl the mixture then set aside.
- Combine the shallot and lemon juice in another small bowl and set aside.
- Peel the oranges and grapefruits, slice crosswise into 1/2 inch thick wheels. Arrange in a single layer on a large plate. Sprinkle the citrus with peanuts.
- Add the oil to the onion mixture and stir to combine. Sprinkle the mixture across the citrus and dot with saffron-almond extract across the top.
- Finish with kosher salt and cracked pepper to taste and chopped cilantro.
Nutrition
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