Marinated sumac onions are a quick and easy recipe of thinly sliced onions marinated in lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and sumac, a citrusy red spice.
Use this red onion salad to add a gorgeous bright red color and freshness to spreads, salads, sandwiches, wraps, bowls, and other dishes.
Sumac onions are an excellent alternative to pickled onions. They can be made in less than 30 minutes in a bowl with simple ingredients.
Table of Contents
Dietary Note: this recipe is suitable for a vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free diet.
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What are sumac onions?
Sumac marinated onions are a popular Turkish onion salad or Piyaz salatasi.
Traditionally, they are served at kebab shops as a side dish or topping for meatballs, kebabs, and shawarma to add freshness to a meal.
Sumac is a spice made from dried ground sumac shrub berries.
It is popular in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine, especially Turkish and Lebanese recipes.
It has a deep red color and a citrusy, slightly acidic, and tart flavor with floral and fruity notes.
Sumac can be hard to find in Western supermarkets. We get it online and store it in a mason jar for months.
It’s absolutely worth it, especially if you like cooking Mediterranean and Middle-Eastern recipes.
One common way to use sumac is to add it to marinades, as in this recipe for sumac-marinated onions.
The sumac melds with the lemon juice, infusing the sliced onions with a bright red color and a fruity, citrusy flavor.
You’ll love how the onions lose their sharpness and transform into an aromatic, fruity, and tangy add-on for salads, soups, spreads, wraps, and sandwiches.
We love adding sumac onions to tabbouleh, tahini salad, balela salad, pearl couscous salad, fatteh, and fattoush.
They are excellent with hummus and falafel and in a hummus sandwich.
Add a pinch to your Mediterranean bowl or Moroccan lentil soup, or try them on stuffed eggplant or roasted eggplants.
You’ll love how they add brightness and freshness without overpowering the dish with acidity.
Ingredients and substitutions for sumac onions
Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.
Sumac
Sumac is a spice from the Eastern Mediterranean and Levantine region.
We purchase sumac powder online as it’s difficult to find in Western supermarkets.
You can store sumac in an airtight jar like a mason jar for months.
Red onions
We use red onions because of their milder flavor and bright color. When marinated with sumac, the red of the onions becomes even more colorful and gorgeous.
Substitute white or yellow onions for red onions.
Lemon juice
It’s best to use fresh lemon juice, as it adds acidity and fruity notes to the marinated sumac onions.
Substitute lemon juice with apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, or white wine vinegar.
Sea salt
We recommend sea salt or kosher salt.
Add a pinch of red pepper flakes for heat or Aleppo pepper for a fruity finish.
Parsley
Fresh parsley, the fla-leaf variety, is optional. We recommend it because it adds a pleasant herby flavor to the sumac onion salad.
Extra virgin olive oil
Extra virgin olive oil is optional. We add it to soften the tanginess of the lemon juice.
How to make sumac onions
US cups + grams measurements in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.
Peel the red onions, cut them in half, then into thin slices.
Rub or pinch the raw onions to separate their layers, then rinse them under cold water.
Transfer them to a bowl and add fresh lemon juice, salt, and sumac.
Mix well, then let the onions marinate for 20 to 30 minutes.
Tip: For the best result, mix the onions by hand for about a minute, pinching them or massaging them with your fingers as you combine all the ingredients.
Stir in chopped parsley and olive oil, and serve.
Serving suggestions
Sumac onions are similar to pickled onions.
Use them to add a burst of freshness, flavor, and acidity to dishes like wraps, sandwiches, soups, stews, salads, grain bowls, breads, and more.
They go well with most Mediterranean recipes, Middle Eastern recipes, and beyond. For example:
Sumac onions on salads and bowls
Sumac onions on soups and stews
One-pot Meals
Harira Soup
Soups
Moroccan Lentil Soup
One-pot Meals
Turkish Lentil Soup
Soups
Cauliflower Soup
Sumac onions in sandwiches and wraps
- Hummus sandwich
- Curry chickpea salad sandwich
- Chickpea tuna sandwich
- Avocado spread on toast
- Breakfast burrito wrap
Variations
Turkish onion salad
Add a finely diced red bell pepper to turn sumac-marinated onions into a delicious Turkish onion salad.
You can serve red onion salad as a side dish alongside other Turkish or Mediterranean dishes or as part of a mezze platter.
Quick pickled red onions
Our quick pickled red onion recipe is easy to make with simple ingredients.
Here’s our quick pickled red onion recipe.
Storage & Make ahead
Make ahead: Sumac onions are excellent for meal prep, as they keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Refrigerator: Transfer the onion to an airtight container, such as a mason jar, cover it with the marinating liquid, and refrigerate for 5 days.
Freezer: We don’t recommend freezing this recipe.
More red onion recipes
More sumac recipes
Sumac onions
Ingredients
- 2 medium red onions thinly sliced
- 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon sumac
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup flat-leaf parsley finely chopped
Instructions
- Peel and cut 2 medium red onions in half, then cut them into thin slices.
- Rub or pinch the onions to separate their layers, then rinse them under cold water.Transfer them to a bowl and add 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon sumac, and ½ teaspoon sea salt.Mix well, then let the onions marinate for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Stir in 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and 1 cup flat-leaf parsley (finely chopped).
- Serve as side dish or topping for salads, soups, stews, roasted veggies, spreads, in sandwiches and wraps.
Notes
Nutrition
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