I need salad inspiration!

[coymichelle]

My garden is flourishing and I have a ton of Rocky Top lettuce to pick today. I want to make the family a giant, incredible, bodacious salad.

What are your go-to salad ideas? I need salad topping inspiration!

[Rich_Laue]

The time depends on the vegetable or fruit, the temperature on the counter, and your taste buds. The lower the lower the PH and the stronger the vinegar. Some things like hard boiled eggs take 3-5 days. For most vegetables are at least a week, but could go a lot longer. Just move it to the refrige when it is to your tast, this will slow the lactobacillus(think probiotic) down. 

Many grandmothers in some countries still have a barrel of cabbage fermenting in the cold storage, sometimes they don't even know how long 1-2+ years it's been, they just keep adding to it and stirring.

Garlic takes at least 3 months, some say to move them to the refrigerator for another 9 months, this slows things down and really brings out the flavors. After 3 months at 60° F I find the garlic taste like candy and can eat it right from the container, no bitter taste.

Why limit to just vegetables and fruit, pickled Fish, Corned Beef, even peeled Hard boiled eggs(3 at the most 5 days).

There are many ways of fermenting, they all require being submerged, and most don't need refrigeration. For me it's the 2-5% brine solution, that  is perfect for the lactobacillus that in turn keeps the baddies out. Just keep everything under the brine and your fine.

Time for some Fun if not interesting facts.

• Guyana has a tree that is so irritating that a scratch from the branch can make your arm swell up, yet they ferment the root and it becomes part of a delicious meal.
• In Alaska there is a fish whose blood is as poisonous as the antifreeze in your car, yet they bury it for 6 months and it becomes edible.
• Then you also have the 100-year egg this is buried raw in ashes for 6 months and comes out like a very black soft boiled egg and ate like this, no cooking needed
• In Ireland, with no cows, it was always corned pork, but when the Irish moved to New York City. They found themselves among the Jewish communities and that pork was unavailable, so we now have corned beef on St Patrick's Day.
• Smoke a corned beef and you have pastrami

Currently I have sauerkraut with onions, sauerkraut with garlic and jalapenos, asparagus with rosemary, green beans with garlic, and of course garlic. Going to do some zucchini up, in 3 weeks it will taste like dill pickles.

[Mcore]

This is super interesting, thank you for replying and sharing this information @Rich_Laue. 

[SunsetRunner]

5 beans salad would keep you feeling full for a long time.  

[SantiR]

Avocado is a good fat and is great to mix with salads! 

[Katlover]

I have three basic standards right now:

1. Chef salad: meat (ham, lunch meat, chicken, steak... whatever is leftover from dinner as long as it is not saucy), cheese (mozzerella, cheddar, or parmesan), hardboiled egg, croutons, and garden veggies (tomato, bell pepper, radishes, cucumber, carrots, etc.). Top with Ranch or French dressing, or cottage cheese. - works best with romaine or butter lettuce
   1. NOTE: my hubby likes a variation of this that is a little less healthy: he uses  a chicken strip and makes a chipolte ranch using ranch + BBQ. If I go this route, I throw in black beans.
2. "Olive Garden" salad: grilled chicken, parmesan or feta, pepperocini, croutons, and Olive Garden light dressing - works best with romaine or butter lettuce
   
   
3. Fruit n Nut: meat (ham, lunch meat, or chicken), feta, sliced pear and/or apple, nuts (any kind - I love pecans or pistachios), pickled beets, and champange or rasberry vinegarette - works best with leaf lettuces like spring mix, arugula, or butter lettuce.

[Katlover]

@CallieM and @Urchin - I bought a spralizer on Amazon that had good reviews and it doesn't work - it is impossible to clean and I broke every carrot I attempted to spiralize! What kind do you have? Would you buy the same type again? Manual or a mixer attachment...?

[TheOrganism]

Anything plant based, mixed together in the vitamix.  NO OIL. NO RANCH.

[LadyMai]

Trader Joe's Soy Chorizo. I'll put that stuff on anything. Then add some crushed tortilla chips and a nice verde/tomatillo sauce/salsa with lime juice. Mmmm...now I'm hungry haha.

[amyjo0110]

my absolute favorite is lettuce (usually romaine), dried cranberries, apples, swiss cheese, almonds, and chicken or salmon, with a homemade poppyseed dressing (not creamy). I could eat it every day!

[A_Lurker]

My go to salad lately has been a homemade couscous salad.  I cook up around a cup of couscous and mix it with diced red onion, green pepper and celery.  I'll add in some greek salad dressing and stir it up well.  This mix keeps in the fridge easily for up to a week.  I pack up a portion of it for lunch with the following add ins:  cucumber, grape tomatoes, feta cheese.  I chop these up and crumble the cheese in when I'm ready to have lunch.  I usually take some cooked chicken on the side.  I've chopped it in sometimes, but I'm not truly a fan of cold chicken, so I usually heat it up.

[SantiR]

Hi guys! I went to a farm yesterday and they had this salad bar and I tried the best salad dressing of all time. It was a mixture of cilantro, mint, and yogurt. Simply awesome and very fresh, you should all try it! I made some research and found a recipe, which is similar to what I experienced. Here it goes!

Ingredients:

Cilantro – 15-20 springs
Fresh Mint Leaves (no stalks) – handful
Yogurt/Curd – 1 Cup, well beaten
Salt – to taste
Green Chili – to taste
Roasted Cumin Powder – 1/2 tsp
Chaat Masala – 1/4 tsp

Method:

1. Grind the Cilantro (Coriander leaves), Mint Leaves and Green Chili into a paste with a couple of spoons of Yogurt.
2. Add the Cilantro, Mint & Green Chili paste to the well-beaten Yogurt.
3. Add in the Roasted Cumin Powder, Chaat Masala and Salt.
4. Mix well, chill and serve with Biryani or any other dish or salad. 

Hope this will inspire a few of you!  See you around! 

[NickiaJay]

The thing that helps me is great dressing recipes. NOT processed or from a bottle..

Heres one

1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon peanut butter

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

2 tablespoons low sodium soysauce

red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon honey

Blend in a blender and enjoy.. approx 150-170 calories and tastes so Yummy !!! 🙂

[CallieM]

Oh my goodness @SantiR that cilantro salad dressing sounds SO good. Cilantro is one of my favorite things ever. Yum!

@NickiaJay your recipe really caught my eye! I've made dressings with simply dijon, olive oil, vinegar, and sea salt, but your dressing really adds another dimension. Plus, those are all ingredients that I happen to already have at home. Thank you so much for sharing! This dressing seems almost Asian-inspired. What else do you put in your salad when you use this dressing?

[NickiaJay]

Absolutely ! Anytime. And yes it is Asian inspired .. It's spicy yet has that peanut kick to it. I love peanut butter if you can't already tell lol

Salad ingredients include
Cucumber
Spinach leaves
Shredded carrots
Olives (optional)
Boiled egg white

I alternate between meats like
Grilled chicken breast
Turkey bacon
Grilled Salmon
And shrimp

It's really good and alternating the meats almost makes a new salad everyday! If you try it you will love it ! Enjoy 🙂 @CallieM

[Rich_Laue]

For me oil, vinager juice from fermented garlic, some soy sauce honey, amd herbs from the garden.
Measurements, a little of this a lot of that, i havent measured.

[SandraHig]

Try this on top of your greens!  Really tasty:  http://www.mynewroots.org/site/2010/06/the-best-lentil-salad-ever-2/

[SandraHig]

Rich Laue:  Do you have a favorite web site for me to use as a tutorial?  I am very interested and you seem like an expert!

[SantiR]

@CallieM It is the best salad dressing of all time, I promise.  I love cilantro as well and any cilantro based dressing is the best thing ever!  I'm in love with avocados too, so I found this recipe... cilantro + avocado = !

Ingredients:
For the Cilantro Dressing:
half an avocado
¼ cup Greek yogurt
½ cup water
1 cup cilantro leaves and stems
1 small clove of garlic
½ teaspoon salt
a squeeze of lime juice

Instructions:
Pulse all ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth. 

 

[WJewel]

Boy, I would love to have my own salad garden as well.  I wish I had room in my kitchen to have one all year round.

[WJewel]

Great tips!  I tend to get heavy handed with the dressing without even trying.  Now that I am following IntensiveWeigh, it's pretty much vinegar, lemon or lime juice...no oils.  It has been quite interesting finding no-oil salad dressings out there, but I have several pins on my board.  I am getting my fat from nuts, olives or avocado and that makes for a less soggy salad as well.