Mary Berry's Pan-fried Halloumi and Vegetable Salad with Herb Dressing is a quick and easy summer recipe that requires no oven time. The salad, from her cookbook Mary's Foolproof Dinners, has been praised as "delicious" by home cooks.
Recipe Overview
The salad combines roasted Mediterranean vegetables—courgettes, red peppers, and tomatoes—with chunks of pan-fried halloumi cheese, all tossed in a mustard and herb dressing. One happy cook commented: "It was delicious, perfect instructions, clear and simple. Loved it."
Ingredients
- Two tbsp olive oil
- Two courgettes, sliced into long, thin strips
- Two red peppers, deseeded and cut into thick slices
- Four large tomatoes
- One large cos lettuce, sliced widthways
- 115g pitted soft black olives
- Two tbsp each of freshly chopped mint, dill, chives and parsley
- 250g halloumi cheese, sliced horizontally
Herb Dressing Ingredients
- Two tsp Dijon mustard
- Two tbsp white wine vinegar
- Eight tbsp sunflower oil
- Two tbsp runny honey
- Lemon, squeezed
Method
Measure a tablespoon of the olive oil into a large bowl. Add courgettes, season with salt and black pepper, and toss to coat. Heat a large griddle or frying pan over a high heat. Add the courgettes and fry in a single layer until browned on both sides. Remove and set aside.
Add the pepper to the pan and fry for around five minutes until browned but with a crunch. Remove and set aside with the courgettes. Bring a pan of water to the boil. Make a cross in the base of the tomatoes and place in the boiling water. Leave for 30 seconds before draining and setting aside to cool. Remove the skins and cut into slices.
On a serving plate, spread the lettuce leaves and arrange the cooked vegetables, tomatoes and olives on top. Season well and scatter with half of the herbs. Combine all the herb dressing ingredients in a jug and mix well. Add the remaining herbs to the dressing and season well.
Heat the griddle or frying pan again over a high heat until very hot. Add the halloumi and fry for around two minutes on each side until golden and soft in the middle. Place the halloumi on top of the vegetables and drizzle over the herb dressing to serve.
