I’ve come to the conclusion that there are few salads that don’t taste better without a little tahini drizzled over the top.  And it seems that I’m not the only one to think so – the blogosphere is rife with recipes for all sorts of tahini dressed vegetables.  So when I came up with the super summery salad you see before you I knew that tahini just had to be a major component. 

The great thing about this recipe (apart from the way it tastes, of course!) is that all the elements can be prepared up to a day in advance and assembled at the last minute.  I’ve been making this salad non-stop and it seems to work especially well with roast chicken.

Feeds 6.

INGREDIENTS:
2 corn on the cob // 350g green beans // 250g cherry tomatoes; halved // chilli flakes // 2 spring onions; finely sliced // 70g tahini paste // juice of one lemon (should be around 2 tbsp) // 70ml water // 15g parsley; roughly chopped // 1 garlic clove; minced // salt

METHOD:
Cut the kernels off the corn and saute in a little olive oil for around 4-5min until they starting to charr – add a sprinkling of chilli flakes and a pinch of salt at this point and stir to mix through.

Slice your green beans in three widthways and boil for 4 minutes.  Once you’ve drained the beans immediately chuck them into a bowl of iced water to stop them cooking further.  For more tips, check out my ‘How to’ on blanching vegetables.

To make the dressing simply blitz up the tahini paste, lemon juice, water, parsley, garlic and a pinch of salt in a blender until it’s a loose, smooth consistency.

To assemble, mix the beans and tomatoes together and deposit on a platter.  Sprinkle the charred corn and spring onions on top and finish by drizzling the tahini dressing over the top.

Serve with my foolproof lemon and herb roast chicken.