SUPER SALADS
When it’s too hot to cook, here is what every salad needs.
5 salads that’ll add zing to your summer
There’s no need for boring salads, especially this time of year. When it’s fall or winter, when salads are mere side dishes to the braises and roa stsandother heavy main dishes we tend to serve, they might be simple: a handful of greens with a drizzle of olive oil, just to lighten the plate.
But right now, when it’s too hot to labor over a stove for a main dish plus sides, many of us turn to dinner-worthy salads that will keep us fed without overheating our kitchens. We all have our favorite ways to make salads, but if you feel in a rut with the ingredients, techniques, dressings or flavor profiles, check out these global-inspired salads from a handful of new books that have been released this year.
All of them demonstrate some of the key components to making any salad. First, start with fresh greens or lettuce. Don’t wait until the lettuce or spring mix you bought starts to wilt or else you won’t want to eat it; plan to use greens within two days of purchase.
Second, every good salad needs a good dressing, and if you like store-bought dressings, then, by all means, use them. Living in Spain, where most peo ple only dress salads in olive oil and salt, spoiledmytasteb uds; most commercial dressings are too salty and sweet for my taste. Homemade dressings don’t take that much time to make, especially if you shake the ingredients together in a jar with a lid — but I’m not here to convince you to throw away all the store-bought stuff in your fridge.
Third, don’t forget the crunch. As Samin Nosrat explored in her cookbook “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat,” which Netflix recently announced they are turning i ntoaTVshow
this fall, a good salad has salt, fat and acid, and a really good one also has something to add a crunchy texture. She also recommends making sure that your salad has one element of umami, the so-called fifth flavor, found in goat cheese, anchovies, soy sauce, mushrooms and cured meats.
If you’re looking for new ways to add texture with another layer of acid, consider adding quick pickles to your salad. Several of these recipes call for already prepared pickled onions (or carrots or radishes), so here’s a quick overview of how to make them from Farmhouse Delivery, the Austin-based food delivery company that specializes in local produce.
Chop up all the vegetables you want to pickle — from okra and green beans to cucumbers and jicama — and place them in a large Mason jar. Boil equal parts water, white wine vinegar and apple cider vinegar in a medium pot. (For a 16-ounce jar, you’ll need about 1/2 cup of each.) You can add chopped scallion, garlic, salt or spices at this stage, or you can simply heat the vinegars and water. Pour the hot pickling liquid over the vegetables in the jar. Let them cool for a bit, and then close with a lid. Store in the fridge for up to two weeks.