Cottage Cheese Salad with Za'atar – Kalyn's Kitchen

Cheese Salad with Thyme is a recipe a reader sent me, and this was one of those recipes that have to be made again at the first bite. If you don’t have a Middle Eastern spice blend called thyme, use any dried spice you like on top of the tomatoes.

Pin the cottage cheese salad to try later!

Sometimes I try a recipe, and from the first bite I know it’s something I’ll make again and again, and when Jake And I made this Quraish salad with thymeWe couldn’t stop yelling about how amazing she was. But as fun as the salad itself is the story of how I prepared this delicious salad with cheese, cucumber, olives and tomatoes!

I learned about this salad when I received an email from a reader named Evie who told me she enjoyed blogging, and offered to send me some spices from Israel. I love middle eastern flavors, so i was excited when a few weeks later i got a package with lots and lots of different spices, plus recipes!

Evy’s packaging contains several new things that I enjoy trying, but since I’m at least a little familiar with thyme, this cottage cheese salad with Thyme spice mix (referral link) It was one of the first things I tried. And I was pretty sure the thyme would taste great on American cottage cheese, and it did!

And even if this version of the cottage cheese salad is a little different from the original that Effie says is a favorite of her kids, we simply can’t stop eating it. Many thanks to Effie, and I’m now working on a package to send to her!

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

(This is a list of ingredients only; please scroll down for the full printable recipe. OR if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the full recipe.)

Cucumbers, preferably small Persian cucumbers or small cucumbers
fresh tomatoes (see notes)
green onion
sliced olives (see notes)
cheese
olive oil (heavy spray)
Thyme spice mix (affiliate link)

What is thyme?

zaatar (pronounced zaa-tuh) is a Middle Eastern herb called hyssop or Syrian oregano in English, but the name mostly means a spice blend that almost always includes crushed thyme. sumacsesame seeds and salt. Original thyme often contains hyssop instead of thyme. Thyme spice mix (referral link) is widely available, even in the United States. The thyme you see in the photo above is the brand I recommend in my favourites Black Cherry Market In Salt Lake, where they sell a variety of Middle Eastern foods.

Can you make cheese salad without thyme?

If you don’t have a middle eastern spice blend called zaatar, I love this salad with a middle eastern spice called sumac (referral link), which is an ingredient in thyme. And if you don’t have any of those, just season the salad with whatever spices you like over the fresh tomatoes.

What is the form of cottage cheese in Israel?

When I searched for information about Cheese in IsraelI found out that it is one of the most popular dairy products sold out there. Thicker and creamier than the American version, the Israeli cottage cheese is a staple in Israeli homes.

What type of cheese did you use?

As for both sour cream and cottage cheese in America, I’m pretty loyal to the Daisy brand, which I think is creamy and delicious, and Daisy Cottage cheese is always a thing in my fridge. (For the record, this company has never given me any cottage cheese and I’m pretty sure they don’t even know I’m alive.)

How to make Quraish salad with thyme:

(This is just a summary of the recipe steps; please scroll down for the full printable recipe. OR if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, you will be taken directly to the full recipe.)

The thyme Effie sent me was very green compared to what I’ve seen here, and the flavor was amazing. Contains thyme sumac (referral link), which I liked in many recipes.
For 4 servings of the salad, I chopped 4 small Persian cucumbers, 1 cup cherry tomatoes, 1/4 cup chopped green onions, and ½ cup chopped olives.
Mix the vegetables in a salad bowl large enough to stir the ingredients together.
I used my favorite Daisy cheese.
We covered the vegetables with a cup of the cheese, a drizzle of olive oil, and a tablespoon of the thyme.
Stir together and enjoy more thyme to sprinkle on the table for people like me who can’t get enough of this delicious spice blend!

More delicious recipes where you can use thyme:

ingredients

4 small Persian cucumbers, quartered lengthwise and then sliced (Persian cucumbers are sometimes called baby cucumbers in American stores)

1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes (see notes)

1/4 cup green onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup sliced olives (see notes)

1 cup of cottage cheese

2 tons of olive oil (heavy drizzle)

1 ton thyme (more or less to taste)

directions

Cut the Persian cucumber into quarters lengthwise, then cut into strips. (If you have to use regular cucumbers, you may need to peel them in all or in part.)
Cut the tomatoes into cubes, chop the green onions into slices, and chop the olives into slices.
Combine vegetables in a salad bowl large enough to stir together.
Put the cheese on top of the fried vegetables.
Drizzle a generous amount of olive oil and drizzle over zaatar To taste, and toss again.
Advance immediately with more zaatar to be added to the table.

notes

I used grape tomatoes cut in half. I used regular black olives, but kalamata olives would be fine.

This recipe is from a generous reader named Effie who lives in Israel. Evie says this salad is a favorite of her children.

Nutrition information:

fruit:

Serving size:

1

Amount per service:
Calories: 169Total fat: 11 gramsSaturated fat: 2 gramsUnsaturated fats: 0 gramsUnsaturated fats: 8 gramsCholesterol: 9 mgsodium: 372 mgcarbohydrates: 11 gramsFiber: 2 gramssugar: 5 gramsprotein: 8 grams

Nutrition info is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I’m using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, as many variables affect these calculations.

Low Carb Diet / Low Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet
This cheese salad is packed with healthy ingredients, and would be great for low-carb eating plans. You can also eat this at any point in the original South Beach diet, but low-fat cottage cheese is recommended by South Beach!

Find more recipes like these:
Uses Salad recipes To find more recipes like this. Use the Diet type indicator To find more recipes suitable for a particular eating plan. You may also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on PinterestAnd in FacebookAnd on instagramAnd on TikTokor on YouTube See all the good recipes I share there.

Historical notes for this recipe:
This recipe was first published in 2012 when a reader named Effie sent me the recipe. I’ve made it a few times since then, and it was recently updated with more info in 2023.