Chop your way to dinner with this flexible salad

Chopped salads live in a kind of no man’s land. There is an ambiguity about them, so many varieties and approaches. If there are any rules that govern what goes into them or how they are constructed, they are few and frequently challenged.

Most often, I make one when I don’t know what else to make. Browse the refrigerator, find half a zucchini, a handful of cherry tomatoes, a few pepperoncini and kalamata olives in the bottom of their respective jars, leftover ham, an almost-pastits-prime wedge of cheese … Chop, chop, chop, toss with an easy dressing and, voila, you’ve got a delicious meal.

Does it need lettuce? If I’ve got a crisp head, like romaine, in it goes. If not, the bowl may just end up a being a batch of colorful vegetables made shiny by a flavorful vinaigrette.

With a bit more planning, however, chopped salads can scratch a specific flavor itch.

Although the ingredients are variable, there are a few things you can do to make sure your chopped salad is the best that it can be. For example:

■ For more flavorful bites, dice and chop the ingredients into relatively uniform sizes — just a bit smaller than bite size — so each forkful features a variety of ingredients.

■ Add whole ingredients that do not need chopping, such as canned beans, corn kernels, peas or peanuts.

■ If you want a crunch to your salad — and who doesn’t? — keep the juicy fruits and vegetables to a minimum. Go for grape or cherry tomatoes halved with a sharp knife rather than a chopped tomato, for example.

Some people like to lay each ingredient out on a platter and let folks toss their own chopped salad, but, if there is one rule that I follow, it is that I always toss the ingredients together with the dressing. This way, each piece is nicely coated.

I came across this Italian Chopped Salad in “StressFree Family Meal Planning” (Page Street Publishing, 2020) by Kristen McCaffrey. She offers a basic salad of romaine, tomatoes, chickpeas, pepperoncini, black olives and mozzarella and recommends kicking it up a bit with a cured meat, such as salami, or briny capers.

Consider this the foundation for an easy-to-tosstogether Italian-style salad, and then let your imagination take over.

If you desire a meatier salad, add ½ cup of chopped salami or ham. Kick up the umami with a tablespoon of rough-chopped capers or anchovies.

Think it needs more bite? Toss in thinly sliced red onion or slip a teaspoon of minced garlic into the dressing.

With the salami or other cured meat, such as pepperoni, added, this little number might scratch that pizza itch — in a more healthful way.

Storage Notes: Refrigerate the salad and dressing, in separate airtight containers so the lettuce does not wilt, for up to 3 days. Italian Chopped Salad

For the salad:

4 cups coarsely chopped

romaine lettuce

1 cup cherry tomatoes

½ cup canned chickpeas,

drained and rinsed

¼ cup coarsely chopped

pepperoncini

¼ cup coarsely chopped kalamata olives (about 12 olives)

¼ cup shredded part-skim

mozzarella cheese 2 tablespoons finely chopped

fresh flat-leaf parsley Kosher salt and ground black

pepper

For the dressing: 3 tablespoons extra-virgin

olive oil

1 tablespoon pepperoncini

brine

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

¼ teaspoon kosher salt, plus

more to taste

½ cup croutons (optional)

Make the salad: In a large bowl, toss together the lettuce, tomatoes, chickpeas, pepperoncini, olives, mozzarella cheese and parsley. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Make the dressing: In a medium bowl, whisk together the oil, pepperoncini brine, lemon juice, vinegar, Italian seasoning and salt.

Add the dressing to the salad and toss to combine. Taste, and adjust the seasonings as needed, and top with croutons, if using.

Makes 2 servings. Adapted from “Stress-Free Family Meal Planning” (Page Street Publishing, 2020) by Kristen McCaffrey

Italian Chopped Salad