Greek Feta & Dragon Fruit Salad Recipe

Prepare lychee purée

Place drained lychees in a small blender or food processor. Purée until smooth, about 20–30 seconds. If mixture is too thick, add 1–2 teaspoons of water to loosen.

Transfer lychee purée to a small bowl or jar. Add rice vinegar, lime juice, honey, and Dijon mustard. Whisk until combined.

Slowly stream in the olive oil while whisking (or pour oil into jar and shake vigorously) until the dressing emulsifies and thickens slightly, about 30 seconds.

Season with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp white pepper. Taste and adjust: add up to 1/2 tsp honey for more sweetness or an extra 1 tsp lime juice for more acid. Refrigerate until ready to use (can be made up to 24 hours ahead).

Prepare produce: rinse and spin-dry the mesclun greens; pat dry. Peel and cube the dragon fruit into roughly 1/2-inch pieces. If using fresh mandarins, peel and segment; if canned, drain well. Using a vegetable peeler, shave the cucumber into long ribbons. Halve the pearl onions and gently rinse if using pickled ones to reduce acidity.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the mesclun greens, dragon fruit cubes, mandarin segments, cucumber ribbons, and pearl onion halves. Toss gently to distribute ingredients evenly without bruising the fruit.

Add torn basil leaves and 1/2 of the crumbled feta to the bowl. Gently fold to incorporate.

Dress the salad: drizzle about 3 tablespoons of the lychee vinaigrette over the salad (roughly 3/4 tablespoon per serving). Toss lightly to coat. Add more dressing sparingly if desired — you want a light, bright coating, not a soaked salad.

Plate and finish: divide the salad among four plates or a single large platter. Sprinkle the remaining feta over the top, then scatter the toasted sliced almonds if using. Season each portion with a light pinch of sea salt (total ~1/2 tsp distributed) and a grind of black pepper.

Serve immediately so the dragon fruit and mandarins remain bright and textures stay crisp.