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Given the recent heat, we've been eating a lot of salads but it always ends up being a bit dull - salad leaves, carrot, radish, tomatoes, pumpkin seeds, cucumber, maybe a splash of balsamico and rape seed oil.
I think we need to add some dressings (hopefully mildly healthy) or other stuff to go in the salads to make them a bit more enjoyable.
So then, let's have your interesting, tasty and easy to make salad or salad dressing recipes
Add something with taste, like fried chicken strips or chicken katsu strips, maybe some chips as well?
Grapes
Low fat creme fraiche mixed with horseradish is one I've used occasionally. Make a vinaigrette with lime, honey, ginger, oil.
Mixing up the leaves a bit helps for me. Baby spinach, pea shoots, beetroot and not bothering with lettuce. Then add whatever. Capers, pickled onions, beetroot, pickled peppers, tuna, tinned sweetcorn, gherkins, eggs. For dressings I tend to go with shop bought honey mustard which probably isn't that healthy or a home made mustard/balsamic/rape seed oil mix.
Our fave: tomato, avocado, olives, chilli beetroot, peppers, chargrilled aubergine and croutons.
Beetroot will make a nice difference. Maybe some grapes might be a nice alternative. Falafel or couscous to bulk it up a bit. We sometimes add a hard boiled egg
A crispy-edged but runny-centered fried egg on top (seriously, had this in Belgium once, thought "WTF?", bit it was chuffing lovely)
I hate salads generally. So I mix up the leaves e.g. the baby spinach/watercress mixes. I add meat or beans, sometimes cheese, but I really like hot sauce as dressing. Cholua is a favourite.
Haloumi and bacon.
Toasted cashews always work for me. Or chick peas. Strawberries are also very nice on salad - they work nicely with balsamic. Also a bit of finely sliced hard cheese (pecorino or parmesan) is nice. Or hard boiled eggs.
Or all of it!
Ohh, another thing to search for is Asian dressing - there are loads of recipes out there.
Ohh, and another another thing - beansprouts - they give a lovely crunch.
Small amount of grated parmesan.
Toasted pine nuts.
Some great ideas above
Anyone got a good coleslaw recipe?
A crispy-edged but runny-centered fried egg on top (seriously, had this in Belgium once, thought “WTF?”, bit it was chuffing lovely)
Oh yes, salad with bacon lardons, bits of black pudding, fried potato and a lovely runny egg on top (fried or poached up to you). Mmmmmm.
Olives, beetroot, boiled eggs, spicy roasted chickpeas, sweet chilli sauce, crispy fried onions, falafel... and always a big handful of fresh coriander.
I always add something with a bit of a flavour kick. Capers, olives, pickled chilli, gherkin, etc. Feta crumbled on works too.
Classic (but not quite) coleslaw. Half a shredded cabbage (white or red), a sliced white onion, a couple of grated carrots. Dressing of no fat yoghurt, grain mustard, cider vinegar, salt and pepper.
A small fillet of smoked mackerel works well, a few thin slices of red onion or some spring onion leaves, celery, peppers. Some orange or grapefruit segments can add a nice freshness. Grapes, raisins, sultanas can work For coleslaw it's just shredded cabbage, carrot and onion in whatever proportion you feel like with just enough mayonnaise to coat it - add black pepper and a bit of mustard . Don't drown it in mayo like the pish in the shops.
Croutons - fresh or stale white bread cut into cubes and tossed in olive oil and a bit of salt. Throw into a dry frying pan or wok and cook till brown and crispy.
Marie Rose sauce - Tomato sauce, salad cream, Mayo, Worcester sauce, crushed garlic, tabasco, maybe a splash of lemon juice. Have it with cheap cooked peeled North Atlantic prawns, chunks of avocado, or just on its own.
Onions - sliced thinly - lots.
Parmesan - done with a potato peeler.
Anyone got a good coleslaw recipe?
Finely sliced cabbage (any firm type) some spring onion, a grated carrot. And for the dressing equal dollopage of mayo and natural yoghourt to get the ratio of dressing you like, plus grainy mustard to taste. You could add some good vinegar to it if you want a sharper taste. Then if you like bits in your coleslaw, soaked dried fruit etc.
Pomegranate seeds. And bacon, obvs.
For some variety use fresh lemon juice instead of vinegar.
Really adds a bit of zing
Crush some pork scratchings into small pieces and scatter over the top for a salty, meaty, crunchy kick.
Leaves do not a salad make. They're there to fill the plate.
Think of something that would be nice without them, make that, add leaves if you need "green".
Eg, roast butternut and red onion, feta, pumpkin, pine nut and pomegranate seeds, garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
Dress with a drizzle of lemon juice and harrisa, blitzed through a little olive oil or creme frachie.
Add some nice red rice or something for bulk if you want.
Given the recent heat, we’ve been eating a lot of salads
Do you really just mean we've not been cooking? Not a criticism but salad isn't necessarily raw/cold and nor are all cold or raw things salad.
I'm reminded of the salads we enjoyed in Vietnam.
If you can find an unripe mango or papaya, grate this into a salad.
A dressing which includes lime juice, fish sauce and mint. Lots of mint.
Liberality sprinkle with mini pork pies and a whuzzle of salad creme.
Couple of our favourites:
https://www.notesofbacon.com/2015/04/ottolenghis-green-couscous.html
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/squash-barley-salad-balsamic-vinaigrette
Toasted Pecans or Walnuts, or pine nuts of course.
Quality (aged) Balsamic is much richer and sweeter than cheaper harsher options.
Halloumi, charred veg (BBQ charred), sesame oil, fresh herbs. Ottolenghi 'crunchy mix'. Roasted butternut squash.
Chicken with satay dressing/sauce (for me today anyway).
Broken up Manomaso tortilla - pretty much any of the flavours that suit you.
Stale bread fried in butter to home make croutons.
Can you tell I like eating?
27.5" bowl
For some variety use fresh lemon juice instead of vinegar.
Really adds a bit of zing
A dressing which includes lime juice, fish sauce and mint. Lots of mint.
It's suggestions like these that make a difference. Any boring old salad foods can be made to taste good with a decent dressing, preferably home made in 10 seconds. You're almost there with:
maybe a splash of balsamico and rape seed oil.
Replace the oil with some decent olive oil, add lots of fresh black pepper and sea salt. That's all that's needed. That's our standard, can't be bothered to do much work dressing. When I've got 30s more I'll make a lime and honey dressing, which is even nicer, and possibly add a coriander/chili/garlic dip.
I would agree with the homemade croutons and fried halloumi chunks. Also make sure you're using good balsamic, I use Due Vittorie, not cheap but it's very good and a little goes a long way.
Quality (aged) Balsamic is much richer and sweeter than cheaper harsher options.
Well yes but it's for ice-cream or strawberries etc, not salads. It's also bloody expensive and or awkward to source (you can pick up a bottle of 25yr from amazon these days but it's half again what you'd pay at a specialist) in the UK as it tends to only be carried by specialist delicatessens.
Chopped, fresh coriander.
Chopped salad / spring onions / red onion.
Toast your pumpkin seeds for a bit more bite.
Blueberries in salad are great imo
Add a couple of preserved lemons cut up to small shreds and/or a sprinkling of the juice from the jar.
ZINGY!
Sprinkle some of these badboys on it.
Add donner meat, chips and cheese, apply lashings of garlic sauce, then scoop up the salad and bin it.
Jalapeño, lots of them. And chips.
if you need some recipe inspiration for if not salad, then light veg central dishes, in addition to ottolenghi: anna jones; nigel's spring/summer greenfeast; lots of recipes by gill meller / river cottage; rob howell's book, even if a bit more involved for mid week.
Leftover grilled courgettes, boiled egg, ham, and tartar sauce for lunch, that was nice.
Frenchies mustard - generally makes everything better!
I really like Ottolenghi recipes but why does everything seem to need about 47 ingredients?
27.5″ bowl
Makes the salad come alive.
Anyway, where's binners?
Homous, maybe mix in some dried fruit?
Haloumi andbacon.
Anyway, where’s binners?
I assume he read the question and is now in his local stroke ward
Tiny cheese cubes with your iceberg, tomato and cucumber. 80’s deluxe!
yeah, feta is beta
Get someone else to make them. Works for me.
The only trouble with salad is that you need something nice to make it palatable. By the time you’ve added walnuts, raisins, coleslaw, a bit of spicy beetroot, couscous, olives, a bit of cheese and mayo you may as well bin it for all the healthy options it offers and go to the chippy for a proper meal
Satay works well, even cold.
Heinz ‘Creationz’, cooked and then left to cool to cool.
Tom Cardy has a handy song that will fix all your salad woes:
Fattoush (overheard in Waitrose). Very nice though.
apple, choppped anchovy, walnuts, basil
My goto is leaves, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, croutons, falafel and humus. Maybe add in some chopped avocado. Or add some baked aubergine pieces. Hmmm.
As said above, after you've added feta, seeds, nuts etc to give it some added flavour it can quickly get a lot less healthy
Thanks for the ideas.
Lots of cheese. Massive pork pie. Loads of pickle.
This is a fabulous dressing
Other than that, I like honey roast salmon, or other dressed salmon, or steak strips - and of course jalapenos
Chinese leaves, bean sprouts, cashew nuts, chopped mushrooms with a dressing of soy sauce and sesame oil (go easy on the sesame)
Coleslaw- white cabbage, red onion, grated carrot, chopped apple, modest amount of mature cheddar cheese; mayo/Greek yogurt dressing
50/50 Linghams chilli sauce/vinegar with a little olive oil. Makes even the most boring chickpea salad awesome.
Chilli flakes, pickled onions, bit of grated cheddar (Strong Mature)
Mix and match - but I prefer all 3 together.
Make a salad w wild rice or camargue red rice, add onions and chicken or tuna, cuc and peppers, avo, stir in some baby spinach and some chopped coriander, garlic and mayo and you're off to the races