Cucumber, Watercress and
Moro Bean Salad

Inspired by a recipe from Nopalito: A Mexican Kitchen by Gonzalo Guzmán and Stacy Adimando, this substantial salad originally calls for purslane—a wild succulent cherished in Mexican cuisine, but which you’ll be very lucky to source in the UK. Watercress makes an excellent substitute, as does sorrel if you have any

  • 2 medium cucumbers, sliced into half-moons

  • Salt

  • 70g pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

  • Juice of 2 lemons

  • 50ml cider vinegar

  • 100ml olive oil

  • 50ml sunflower oil

  • 120g cleaned watercress (or sorrel)

  • 300g cooked, drained Moro beans

  • 1 avocado, pitted and diced

  • Crumbled feta, for garnish

Serves 4

  1. Place the cucumbers in a bowl. Sprinkle with salt (1 teaspoon should be plenty), toss, and leave them to drain in a sieve for at least 20 minutes, up to an hour.

  2. Preheat the oven to 180C. Place the pepitas on a small baking sheet and roast until browned in places and aromatic, about 10 minutes. Remove and let cool.

  3. In a food processor, grind half of the pepitas into a coarse powder. Add the lemon juice and vinegar and mix thoroughly. With the processor running, slowly stream in both oils until the dressing thickens and emulsifies. Season with salt.

  4. In a serving bowl, combine the cucumber, watercress/sorrel and beans with a few spoonfuls of the dressing and toss gently to combine. Garnish with avocado, feta, and the remaining pepitas. Drizzle more dressing over the top.