Salads form a very important part of our diet & it is essential to incorporate them in our meals at least twice a day. They help to keep the body hydrated, help in digestion, cut down on fats & help you stay younger and fit.
Again I would like to re-emphasize on preparing your own vinaigrette.
Avoid adding mayonnaise in your salads often as they are rich in fat. 1 teaspoon of mayonnaise contains approx.5g of fat!
It might seem like you need different kinds of vinegars for different salads, but since you use so little out of each bottle they normally last you long. Red vine vinegar, balsamic & cider vinegar are the popular ones. So stock a bottle each & prepare enough quantity to last you the whole day. A vinaigrette mixer like the one shown below could come in handy. This model even comes with a few vinaigrette versions mentioned over the mixer!
Cucumber cream salad
This is probably the simplest summer salad I know of! Its refreshing & so easy to make. Here we go:
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh cream or sour cream
- 1 large cucumber thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme (mix of herbs isnt too bad either)
- 1 tablespoon of finely chopped spring onions (i'd say anything green... coriander, mint..)
- salt & pepper to taste
Method
Cut cucumbers on either ends & clean the ends. Cut cucumbers into really thin slices using a potato slicer. The thinner slices you have the lighter the salad will be. Add the fresh cream, thyme & minced onion. Refridgerate. Add the salt about 5mins before you plan to serve.
Orange & avocado salad
Ingredients
- 1 avocado cut into segments/wedges
- 1 orange peeled & de-seeded segments
- 2 cups of lettuce
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped coriander/cilantro
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (can use sunflower oil too)
- 1 clove of garlic minced (optional)
- salt & pepper
Mix all core ingredients, drizzle with the vinaigrette & serve.
Balsamic Cauliflower
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cups of boiled & cooled cauliflower florets
Mix olive oil, balsamic vinegar & salt. Drizzle over the florets & serve.
Turkish eggplant salad (Tuncilik)
I normally hate eggplants but this is my version of the turkish salad that will make anyone fall in love with eggplants
Ingredients
- 2 eggplants (aubergines/brinjal)
- 1 big red bell pepper (capsicum)
- 1 tomato finely chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 3-4 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 teaspoons finely chopped coriander
- salt to taste
Method
Roast the eggplants & bell peppers in 200C oven until the skin of the eggplant is charred. Turn sides of the eggplants every 2mins so that they get evenly charred. Allow them to cool. Peel the charred skins off from the eggplant & the bell pepper. If you find seeds in the eggplant, remove them. Mash them together in a bowl with a fork. Add minced garlic, olive oil chopped tomato, salt & mix well. Garnish with chopped coriander & serve with pita bread.
Beetroot & goat cheese salad
Ingredients
- 2 large beetroots
- 4 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon pickles finely chopped (gherkins or baby onions or chives)
- 1 tablespoons milk
- 80gms of goats cheese
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- salad leaves of your choice
Method
Peel the beets & place them in boiling salted water until its cooked through. Take them out slice them into thin circles. Make a vinaigrette out of the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper. Drizzle over the beets & keep aside.
In a bowl, add the goat's cheese, milk, parsley & pickles. In a serving plate place the goat's cheese mix in the middle & flatten it to form an inch thick square. Layer the beetroot slices over the cheese bed, add another layer of cheese & another layer of beetroot. Drop the salad leaves into any remaining vinaigrette & arrange them around the plate.
You can even stack them individually --> one slice of beetroot, over cheese in perfect harmony to give you salad a true gourmet touch!
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