Salads - further suggestions Recipe: Vegetarian

The simplest dressing is lemon juice and olive oil. Toss the salad in a tablespoon of each. Many vegetables can be served in salad either cooked or raw. Uncooked vegetables should be crunchy. If they seem slightly tough, try dropping them in boiling water briefly to blanche them.

Strongly flavoured vegetables can be marinated in a sauce for up to two hours, but do not improve after twelve hours.

Most green leaf salads are best when the leaves are young and fresh, developing bitter flavours as they get older.

Most dressings are best applied just before serving, at room temperature.

Traditional salad combinations: Lettuce with a simple dressing.
Lambs lettuce and beetroot.
Tomato and basil.
Avocado and tomato or mint.
Grated carrot dressed with yogurt and sprinkled with cumin.
Sliced raw mushroom dressed with olive oil.
Celery and walnut and apple.
Chinese cabbage.
Chicory greens dressed with lemon juice.
Cucumber sliced in yogurt and sprinkled with fresh mint.v Courgettes.
Beetroot greens and lettuce.
Sprouted seeds.
Onion and radish.

Cooked vegetables, served cold in salad:
Green beans and tomato.
Peas and asparagus.
Spring turnip and raw onions.
Cauliflower and carrot.

Copyright Peter Thomson 2012-May-20