Gone are the days when salads meant only complex, hearty cold snacks, most often with mayonnaise dressing. A modern salad can be light, quick, bright, with an amazing fantasy dressing.
How to Build the Perfect Light Salad
A light salad can be like a musical improvisation - if you follow a few rules, but rely on inspiration, you get an amazing piece.
And the first step is to take basic greens. It can be iceberg lettuce, frisee lettuce, endive, spinach, romaine lettuce, arugula, lettuce, Chinese cabbage, watercress and even young nettle or dandelion greens. The choice is extremely wide and it all depends on your personal preference. You can mix the herbs to taste or choose one kind. Leaves can be chopped, but it is better to pick by hand. Small leaves are best left intact.
The greens must be rinsed and then dried very well. If you do not dry it, then when you add dressing, the leaves can become slimy, watery in the whole salad. You can dry greens on kitchen paper towels, or you can use a special carousel. Dry, bite-sized greens should be placed in a large, wide bowl so that you can safely add the rest of the ingredients, dressing and mix, making the salad fluffy and light, rather than crushing it.
The next step is protein. You can, of course, skip it, but a protein-free salad is like decaffeinated coffee. If you are planning a salad as a main course, and not as a side dish for meat or fish, it is still best not to skip this step. Add chicken, turkey, salmon, shrimp, quail or chicken eggs, cheese to the salad, vegetarians may prefer legumes - beans, chickpeas, muffins, quinoa or tofu.
Think about the texture of the salad. You don't feel like chewing it dejectedly, do you? For a perky crunch, you can add radishes, cucumbers, fennel, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, nuts or some croutons to the salad. It is also important to add color to the salad by diluting the greens with bright vegetables - red onions, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes or pieces of bright fruits and berries - grapefruit, watermelon, strawberries, raspberries, dried cranberries. The aroma will be improved by fresh spicy herbs - basil, cilantro, mint.
The last step is a great dressing. Here you can give preference not only to the classic vinaigar sauce, although it can be taken as a basis. It is important to remember the correct proportion of oil to acid - three parts to one. Oil can be olive, grape seed, sesame, refined sunflower, peanut, avocado oil. Balsamic, apple or wine vinegar, citrus juice - lemon, orange, lime juice are suitable as an acid. You need to add salt and pepper to the dressing, but that's not all. Most people want a little sweetness in their dressing, so consider a little honey, sugar, maple syrup. The classic mistake is to try spoon dressing. It can only get worse if you don't try it at all. That's right - dip a small leaf of lettuce in the dressing and taste it like this. It is the combination of greenery and dressing that will tell you exactly what is missing.
If you want to add garlic to the dressing, it is better not to pass it through a press, but grind it in a mortar with a little salt. So the aroma and taste will be evenly distributed over the dressing, and then over the salad, and not concentrated in the pieces floating in the oil.
An important question is whether to season the salad before serving or serve the dressing separately? It all depends on the preferences of the eaters and your personal ones. If you know that someone likes to choose how much dressing to add to their salad, why not go with them?
A simple Greek salad recipe
Greek salad can rightfully be called one of the most popular light vegetable salads. Fresh herbs, crunchy cucumbers, juicy tomatoes, shiny olives, crumbly cheese and a refreshing lemon dressing - what could be better?
You will need:
- 5 cups shredded salad greens
- 1 small head of red onion;
- 2-3 medium-sized cucumbers with smooth skin;
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
- 50-75 g feta cheese;
- ¼ cups of olive oil;
- ¼ Art. apple cider vinegar;
- 3 tbsp. tablespoons of lemon juice;
- zest of 1 lemon;
- ½ teaspoon of sugar;
- salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Cut the peeled onion into thin half rings. Cut the tomatoes in half, cut the olives into rings, chop the cheese, cut the cucumbers in half lengthwise and chop thinly. Make the dressing - Whisk butter, vinegar, lemon juice, zest, salt and sugar into a smooth sauce. Collect the salad in a wide bowl, pour in the dressing and gently stir with gentle movements. Salad ready.
Homemade Caesar Salad Recipe
Caesar salad was invented for Hollywood stars in the Roaring Twenties. There are as many legends in the history of the origin of this dish as there are variations of its recipe. There is no point in looking for culinary truth if you can make a delicious salad. For the classic version, you will need:
- 1 head of romaine lettuce
- 1 raw chicken breast
- ½ cup white bread croutons;
- 50 g grated parmesan cheese;
- 50 g parmesan cheese;
- 2 raw egg yolks;
- 100 ml olive oil;
- 5 canned anchovy fillets;
- 1 clove of garlic;
- 2 teaspoons of lemon juice;
- 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard;
- 1 teaspoon of liquid honey;
- 3 tbsp. spoons of warm boiled water;
- a few drops of Worcester sauce.
Soak the head of lettuce in ice water and leave for a few minutes. This will make the leaves crisper. Remove the leaves from the water, dry and cut into pieces. Cut the chicken breast into strips. Don't make the pieces too thin. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and lemon juice. Leave to marinate for half an hour. Heat some olive oil in a skillet, fry the chicken and let it cool slightly, cut into cubes, commensurate with the croutons cubes.
If you don't have ready-made croutons, make them yourself. Cut the crust off a slice of white bread, dice it and dry it lightly in the oven. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and saute the croutons until golden brown. You can season them with garlic powder.
Prepare a dressing. Place the anchovies, a clove of garlic, raw yolks, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and honey in a blender bowl. Whisk with a blender into a homogeneous emulsion, adding a little warm water.
Collect the salad. Place first a layer of leaves, then the chopped chicken and crunchy croutons, cut into thin slices of Parmesan cheese and finish with homemade dressing.
Step-by-step quinoa salad recipe
Quinoa is one of the foods called "superfoods" for a range of health benefits. In salads, it can easily replace protein; moreover, cereals do not contain gluten, which means they are suitable for people with celiac disease. Take:
- 1 glass of quinoa
- ¼ glasses of balsamic vinegar;
- ½ cup olive oil
- zest with 2 limes;
- 1 mango;
- 1 sweet red pepper;
- ½ a head of sweet onions;
- ¼ cups of chopped almonds
- 2 tbsp. tablespoons of chopped cilantro greens;
- salt.
Rinse the quinoa with warm water. This is a mandatory step, otherwise the saponins will make the cereal bitter. Place the quinoa in a saucepan, add 2 cups of water and simmer for about 15 minutes over low heat.
Cut the mango in half, remove the pit, remove the skin and cut the flesh into cubes. Cut the onion into thin half rings. Cut the top off the bell peppers, remove the seeds and cut the flesh into cubes. Whisk in the vinegar, olive oil and lime zest. Place the mango, quinoa, onion, pepper, cilantro and almonds in a bowl. Salt. Pour in the dressing, stir and serve.
Asian Chicken Salad
Exotic oriental salads can also be whipped up. You will need:
- 2 chicken breasts;
- 2 tbsp. + 1 teaspoon of soy sauce;
- 1 tbsp. + 1 teaspoon of sesame oil;
- ¼ h.tablespoons of ground white pepper;
- 4 cups shredded romaine lettuce
- ¼ a small head of red cabbage;
- 1 thick carrot;
- 2-3 feathers of green onions;
- 1/2 cup almonds
- ¼ glasses of rice vinegar;
- 1 clove of garlic;
- 1 tbsp. a spoonful of sugar;
- 2 cm fresh ginger root.
Pre-marinate the chicken in a mixture of two tablespoons of soy sauce, one teaspoon of sesame oil, and white pepper. The easiest way to do this is to place the chicken and marinade in a tight zip-lock bag. Leave the chicken to marinate for at least 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 170 ° C. Remove the chicken from the marinade and bake until tender, 10-15 minutes. Place on a plate and cover with foil. Go to the gas station.
Scrape off the skin from the ginger root, grate the root on a fine grater. Mash the garlic and sugar. In a small bowl, combine the remaining soy sauce and sesame oil, and add the vinegar, garlic, and ginger. Whisk well.
Chop the red cabbage into strips. Peel the carrots and grate to form a straw. Chop green onions. Cut the chicken into cubes. In a wide bowl, combine romaine lettuce, chicken, cabbage, carrots, green onions and almonds. Pour in the dressing and stir.
Light salad with pear and walnut
The combination of rucola, pear and parmesan cheese can be called classic. They make a great, very simple and light salad that goes well with chicken or salmon.
You will need:
- 2 large ripe pears;
- 1/2 cup shelled walnuts
- 100 g arugula;
- 50 g parmesan;
- 2 tbsp. tablespoons of olive oil;
- 1 lemon;
- salt and freshly ground pepper.
Cut the pear in half and remove the core. Cut the flesh into slices. Put them in a bowl. Roll the lemon on a flat surface, pressing on it to get more juice. Squeeze out the juice and drizzle a little over the pear to keep it from browning.
Fry the walnuts in a dry skillet until golden brown. Set aside to cool. Cut the parmesan cheese into thin slices using a mandaline vegetable cutter. Combine arugula, nuts, pear and parmesan in a wide bowl. Whisk butter, 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper together. Pour the dressing over the salad. Stir and serve.
Thai Shrimp Salad
This bright and aromatic salad becomes exotic due to the dressing - light and spicy. You will need:
- 500 g of large peeled shrimp;
- 1 peeled squid carcass;
- 5-7 plum tomatoes;
- 1 bunch of cilantro greens;
- 1 bunch fresh mint
- 1 red chilli
- 2 tbsp. spoons of soy sauce;
- 4 cloves of garlic;
- 2 small limes;
- 1 tbsp. a spoonful of fish sauce;
- 1 tbsp. a spoonful of brown sugar.
Slice the squid into thin rings. In a grill pan, quickly fry the squid, then the shrimp. 2-3 minutes will be enough. Cool it down. Cut the tomatoes in half. Cut the cucumbers in half, then chop into wedges. Remove the seeds from the pepper and cut the pulp into rings. Squeeze juice out of one lime. Grind the garlic, cilantro, mint, hot peppers, lime juice, fish and soy sauce in a blender bowl. Cut the remaining lime into wedges.
In a salad bowl, combine seafood, add tomatoes and cucumber, add dressing, stir and serve, garnish with lime wedges.
