Salads 101
Salads are just about the ultimate in easy cooking, because the process involves not a lot more than throwing ingredients into a bowl. Sure, there’s chopping involved, and maybe some whisking if you are makig your own dressing, but there is no frying, no boiling, no sauteeing or roasting. And while those things can be fun you may not always be in the mood for it, or even have time. Aside from cold cereal, I don’t think making a meal comes any easier.
The real issue with salads is exactly what to throw into the bowl. I rarely, if ever, walk into the kitchen with a plan for my salad ahead of time. But as with soups you really don’t need a plan, just some basic principles. In this post I will explain the principles that I follow, as well as explain a few exceptions.
There are three elements to most salads: 1) Greens; 2) Garnish(es); 3) Dressing. (And here we encounter our very first exception: a classic Greek Salad has no greens; it’s all garnish and dressing!)
Greens
Greens are basically any leafy green vegetable, and no, they don’t always have to be green. Lettuce, of course, it the most common type of greens used in salads, and there are tons of varieties to choose from: Iceberg, Romaine, Butter, etc., each having its own distinct taste and texture. Mixing varieties of greens in a salad is a good way to create a more complex salad without really adding to the work load.
Spinach is another common leafy green that is used in salads. Baby spinach has a different taste and texture from that of mature spinach, so there is some variety there as well.
Cabbage is a mainstay of salads, especially coleslaw. Its very firm, crispy texture means that it works best in a salad when shredded, but you can also tear the leaves into small pieces for a different look and texture. If the pieces are too large, however, it will not be a pleasant salad, as it is tough to bite pieces off.
Arugula is becoming more and more popular as a salad green; its peppery taste makes for a much less bland salad than is typical. Used alone, or in combination with other greens, this is one that you must try!
Endives (also known as Chicory) are slightly bitter greens, and are usually not the main one in a salad, but they do add a different element of taste to a salad, and should be tried at least once in your life.
Cress, in its different varieties (including watercress) is another good green to add to a salad. Rarely is it the main ingredient, as it is a bit peppery, but it adds a ton of flavor. Also good on sandwiches!
I could go on forever, as there are enough different salad greens that you could have one a day for a year and not be done. If you want to look for more, try this site. I will add one more category of greens for your additional salad pleasure: fresh herbs. Again, these are usually a bit strong to be the main ingredient, but they can flavor a salad in so many ways. Basil is one of my favorites, along with cilantro, parsley, mint, and sage (very strong flavor; use sparingly). I am sure I am forgetting some, but you get the idea.
Garnishes
Garnishes are exactly what it sounds like: extra little things that we add to the salad to make it more exciting and enjoyable. Typically, there are three purposes to adding garnishes: taste, texture and color. If you can achieve all three without drowning out the greens, then you have achieved the ultimate in garnishing. You can then send in your application for your Doctorate of Garnishing.
Garnishes come in many varieties, but the main thing is to keep them smaller than the greens. That way the dressing can hold the garnishes to the greens, allowing for forkfuls that contain all the elements of the salad, and maximum flavor per bite.
If you are going for texture in your garnishing, you need to decide whether you are going for the crunchy texture, the chewy, or a combination of both. Either one will make a nice contrast to the leafy texture of the greens, but you want to try to contrast whatever greens you have. If you have a crunchy iceberg lettuce, you want to add something chewy like chunks of marbled cheddar, or some raisins. If you have a nice, soft spinach, some crisp bacon or crunchy walnuts will make a great contrast.
Crunchy garnishes are the easiest to find in the kitchen because there are so many: chopped celery, sliced almonds, radishes, apple chunks, croutons, bell peppers and toasted tortilla chips are just some of the many options available to you. The softer, chewy garnishes are not so obvious, but here are some ideas: diced ham, hard boiled eggs, raw mushrooms, shrimp (steamed is best), soft cheeses like brie or camembert, crumbly cheeses like blue or feta.
The last purpose for garnishing is to add some color to the salad. Even though there are a lot of varieties of salad greens, they do tend to be somewhat the same color, so adding a new color, especially something vibrant, is a great way to make the salad more appealing from a visual perspective. If you want some really bright color contrasts, look to the world of fruits: mandarin oranges, blueberries, cranberries, pomegranate seeds and diced melons all offer bright and interesting colors that are difficult to find elsewhere in anything natural (and you don’t want anything unnatural in a salad!). Another truly colorful option is edible flowers. I confess that I have never done this, but I have seen it done, and the visual effect at least is stunning.
Again, the trick is to find two or three garnishes that achieve all of the above purposes, without drowning out the greens.
Dressing
This is where most people tend to shy away from creativity when making salads. Look in most people’s refrigerators, mine included, and you will find various and sundry pre-made dressings. These are fine, but aside from the cost, and possible artificial ingredients, there is the fact that you lose the opportunity to build your own dressing that best matches the ingredients you used in the body of the salad. So, in order to help you create your own, here is the basic formula: 1 part something sour, 1 part something sweet, 2 parts oil, and a binding agent. Add to this whatever flavoring agents you want, and you have yourself a dressing. Of course, there are some types of dressings that are not covered by this, most notably the creamy type dressings, such as ranch, and the mayo type of dressings, such as caesar. I will cover these in another post, and will confine myself to the most basic salad dressing type: the vinaigrette.
A dressing should really have some contrasting flavors, so for the sour part, you want to find something that is truly sour: vinegar or citrus juice. Even the citrus should be limited to either lime or lemon, as the other citrus juices tend to be sweeter.
For the sweet part, don’t wimp out and use sugar: instead use something like maple syrup, or honey, or molasses. A sweeter fruit juice would be nice as well, butif it is not sweet enough, don’t be afraid to add a bit of one of the sweeter ingredients to tip the scales. Remember that we want to not only contrast the sour ingredient, but to balance it as well.
For the oil, the classic is Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This is the best tasting olive oil, having come from the first pressing, and never having been heated. Grape seed oil is a terrific oil to use in dressing, as it is an amazing flavor carrier, quite light, and very neutral in taste. As well, it has wonderful health benefits. For a different flavor, you can try peanut oil; this works very well with oriental ingredients.
Of course, the main problem with vinaigrettes is the fact that oil and water (or vinegar, or citrus juice) will not mix. So to solve this, we add a binding agent. The two classic binding agents for mixing oil and water are mustard and egg yolks. Since raw egg yolks can contain salmonella, I avoid using them in my salad dressings. However, dijon mustard is a very tasty way to allow my ingredients to mix. A teaspoon or so added to the sweet and sour components is enough to tdo the trick. Using a whisk, or a fork, whip the mustard into the these ingredients, then slowly drizzle the oil in while continuing to whisk. (Note: unless the container you are whisking in is heavy, you will need three hands. So use a large bowl, or grow a third hand.)
Once you are done, the dressing should stay mixed. If you had not used mustard, then the oil and other ingredients would separate, and the flavors would not properly mix. At this point you can add some salt, pepper, and any herbs or spices you want to for a little extra kick.
A final note on assembling a salad: add wet ingredients, such as dressings, and very dry ingredients that can absorb moisture, such as croutons, at the last moment before tossing and serving. This will allow all the contrasting textures to be present right until the moment of truth.
I hope this helps take the boredom out of salads. I know I avoided making salads for a long time until I learned these few basic ideas. Not any more.
Yours in Good Taste,
Erik Christensen