There are many variations of this staple salad in the Mediterranean, where one can find it as Israeli salad, Arab salad, Lebanese salad, or Greek salad. Every locale has its own signature twist, but 4 elements are consistent: (1) tomato, (2) cucumber, (3) freshly squeezed lemon juice, and (4) olive oil. During my travels around Israel/Palestine, I learned to love this simple version, seasoned only by za'ahtar and a bit of salt, but you can add onion, bell pepper, pine nuts and/or cheese., such as feta or halumi.

The best salad has vegetables cut in smallest of cubes, as I learnt from a Cookpad author and homecook during a cooking session in Lebanon, who kept challenging me to make the pieces even smaller. It's apparently a sign of a skillfull cook :)

If you can't find za'ahtar, you can replace with a mix of dried thyme, oregano and mint.

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