Bored of fruit salad? Try this savory, aromatic twist with nectarines, and it will become one of your favorite summer dishes

Plate of sliced nectarines with ginger and chilli dressing and coriander.

Serve this ginger nectarine salad al fresco – it goes really well alongside anything you throw on the barbecue. I personally like it with grilled halloumi. You can also use peaches if preferred. This is a wonderfully easy way to bring summer to your table, so it was perfect to share as part of my exclusive How I Host... with Noor Murad interview for Homes & Gardens.

I use quite a lot of coriander in this dish. But for the coriander haters out there, you can use parsley, or a bit of dill, or some mint would be lovely. It really freshens up this salad recipe in a lovely way. I don’t think that herbs should just be used as a garnish – we use herbs quite heavily in the Middle East.

Ingredients

• 1¼oz fresh ginger, peeled and julienned (we recommend this Microplane from Amazon)
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp black mustard seeds
• 1 tsp Aleppo chilli flakes
• 3 semi-ripe peaches or nectarines, halved, stoned and cut into ¼in slices (1lb 1oz)
• ½oz cilantro, leaves and soft stems picked
• 1½ tbsp lime juice
• 1½ tsp maple syrup
• fine sea salt

The Homes & Gardens method

(Image credit: Lugma by Noor Murad (Quadrille); Photography: Matt Russell)

1. Add the ginger and oil to a small skillet (try the HexClad Fry Pan, a Homes & Gardens favorite) and place over a medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes or until the ginger starts to turn lightly golden and crisp.
2. Add the mustard seeds and chilli and cook for just 45 seconds more, until the ginger is nicely golden and the seeds begin to pop.
3. Immediately strain the solids through a strainer set over a bowl. Set both the oil and solids aside to cool, separately.
4. Just before serving, add the peaches, cilantro, lime juice, maple syrup, half the cooled ginger oil and ¼ teaspoon salt to a large bowl and toss everything together.
5. Transfer to a serving plate and pour over the remaining ginger oil. Top with the fried aromatics and serve right away.

If you like halloumi – one of my favorite things to pair with this ginger nectarines dish – try it with our griddled zucchini and halloumi salad, and my pan-fried tomatoes with za'atar, pine nuts and halloumi.