It's ingredients are very common, and the final result is actually very similar to the well-known Greek Horiatiki (Peasant) Salad and the Turkish Choban (Shepherd's) Salad, with slight differences which will be discussed later.
And these are the ingredients you'll need to make approx. 2 servings of Shopska:
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- Peel and slice the cucumber. Cut tomatoes and onion into irregular-shaped bite-sized pieces. Slice the pepper.
- Combine this ingredients in a bowl. Add oil and some salt to taste. Combine.
- Finely grate the cheese evenly on the top of the vegetables. Do not stir after this point.
- Note that you should prepare this salad right before serving, as cut tomatoes and onions tend to change their taste and aroma to quite unpleasant when stale.
- Also note that the vegetables should be chilled before chopping, so that the salad itself can be chilled without having to be kept in the fridge before serving.
- You can use any other cucumber, but English one is the best for salads as it's almost seedless.
- And finally, note №3, concerning cheese and oil: as stated in the ingredients list, the authentic recipe calls for sheep cheese and sunflower oil as those are the most commonly used in the originating region, but any other brined cheese and oil will do it just fine. If it's hardly possible for the cheese to be finely grated (if it's too soft, for example), grate it roughly as I did it this time or just crush it.
Enjoy and bon appétit!