Give ’em the chop
Maximize the flavour of summer salads
Chopped salads are delicious summer meals. Easy to prepare, and a lot of the prep work can be done in advance. Perfect for potlucks, picnics and feeding a crowd.
How ingredients are cut is important. Not always from the esthetic point of view, but from the flavour standpoint. Think about a vegetable soup in which the vegetables have been cut into large, 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces. Now think about eating this soup. Only one piece of vegetable would fit comfortably on your spoon at a time. You would be eating and experiencing the flavour and texture of one piece of vegetable at a time.
Imagine now, a different bowl of soup where the vegetables are cut smaller and you can fit three or four pieces on your spoon. They slip easily into your mouth and you experience the flavour and texture of different vegetables at the same time. Bowl one might look more appealing than bowl two. Bowl two is easier to consume. If you’re a bowl two person, I like you.
With people who are cooks by day (and night), cutting ingredients for a desired experience is second nature. Be it a delightful visual or flavour experience, the way things are cut can make or break a dish. Chopped salads are great because the ingredients are cut into small pieces for maximum flavour impact. They also look pretty good if arranged on top of lettuce or other edible bedding before being dressed. Good looks, good flavour, and attainable.
How does one achieve the lofty goal of precision cutting? A sharp knife, and practice. Practice on an array of delicious chopped salads this season. Your knife skills will be perfected and your tummy content.
Israeli Style Chopped Salad
Za’atar is a Middle Eastern spice mixture. The predominant flavour is thyme and it can also contain marjoram, oregano and hyssop, plus ground sumac (a dried tart berry) and sesame seeds. I love it on chicken. Well stocked supermarkets and Middle Eastern food stores carry it.
5 tbsp (75 mL) extra virgin olive oil 2 juice tsp (30 mL) freshly squeezed lemon
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp (2.5 mL) sea salt
1 tsp (5 mL) mild or hot paprika
big pinch of cinnamon 1 (19 oz/540 mL) can chickpeas rinsed and drained
1 cup (250 mL) cooked, trimmed, green beans, cut into 1/2-inch (1.25 cm) lengths 1 cup (250 mL) green cabbage, cut into ½-inch (1.25 cm) pieces 1 cup (250 mL) ripe tomato cut into ½-inch (1.25 cm) cubes 1 cup (250 mL) English cucumber cut into 1/2-inch (1.25 cm) cubes 1 cup (250 mL) coarsely chopped Italian parsley
3 green onions, thinly sliced 1 ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and cut into ½-inch (1.25 cm) cubes
½ cup (125 mL) crumbled feta cheese
1 tbsp (15 mL) za’atar
Combine the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, paprika, cinnamon and the sea salt. Season liberally with salt and pepper and toss with the chickpeas. Cover and refrigerate for an hour or up to 24 hours.
When ready to serve, toss the chickpeas with the remaining ingredients, taste, adjust the seasoning, and serve.
Makes 6-8 servings