This brightly-coloured, no-cook Persian salad makes a fun and flavoursome accompaniment to a roast chicken.

Crunchy raw cabbage is an everyday feature of salads in Iran and here red cabbage is combined with raw beetroot and dates for a sweet and healthy take on a winter ’slaw. Quicker, lighter and less fuss than your usual roast dinner veggies, a salad means less time in the kitchen and more time for autumnal walks.

SERVES 4 AS A SIDE

2 medium, raw beetroots, peeled and grated
150g red cabbage, finely sliced
65g Iranian or Medjool dates, pitted and roughly chopped
20g bunch parsley, finely chopped

FOR THE DRESSING
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
1⁄2 tsp salt
1⁄2 tsp black pepper

1 Tip the beetroot into a large bowl, followed by the red cabbage, dates and parsley.

2 Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a small bowl. Just before serving, drizzle over the salad and give it all a good toss

Recipe from The Saffron Tales: Recipes from the Persian Kitchen by Yasmin Khan (Bloomsbury) Photography: Shahrzad Darafsheh and Matt Russell