Salad ideas

fbg419

I'm running out of ideas for yummy salads. Anybody got a fav to share?

ejbronte

Here's something nice and warm I threw together the other night:
1 package of steamer frozen peas
1 package of steamer frozen corn kernals
1 small can of low-sodium black beans

Simply microwave the packages while you rinse the very devil out of the canned beans in lukewarm water.

Toss them all into a container, cover the container and shake it all about.

This will last you a couple of days in the refrigerator. It makes a pretty nice base for other additions. Yesterday I portioned out a helping, and added some pomegranate aerils and chicken cutlet slices. Not sure what I'll do with it today, but I just accepted a tuna salad sandwich from my sister, so I don't have to worry!

dklibert

I am making Salad Jars this week with:
Lettuce
Cabbage
Carrots
Purple cabbage
Celery
Green onions
Cilantro
Almonds
Baked Wonton Strips or Oriental Noodles
Asian Sesame Dressing

Google 101 Salads Mark Bittman he has great unusual salad ideas.

zdyb23456

I've been doing "Cobb" salads lately- lettuce, tomato, red onion, turkey lunch meat, bacon bits, hard boiled egg. I use a few shakes of franks red hot as my dressing.

ms_smartypants

my salad lately has been romaine lettuce, mini pepperoni, deli ham, sunflower kernels, grated parm. cheese black pepper and Marie's chunky blue bluecheese

cathyh76

I love a prawn salad. Nice and simple, lettuce, tomato, spring onions or radish, can add a little feta cheese too. But can pretty much add any salad vegetables you want.

ejbronte

In cold weather, I like warm things. Here's a cheater-quickie: a package of cole slaw mix thrown in a pan with just a shade of olive oil. Heat it up, then toss in a splash of apple cider vinegar. Swirl it around till it reaches the consistency you like (I like it with some crunch). Add some seasonings (I like pepper and herbes de province). Eat while it's still warm.

Rushgirl82

Not sure what you're already making but I know I get bored of salads really easily too. I find adding fruit to a spinach salad and some sliced almonds works for me. Raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and grapes are great in salads.

AnnPT77

I thought this MFP edamame/cranberry/feta one was tasty, and it's quite high in protein :

https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/edamame-cranberry-salad/

Also, all kinds of beans make a good start on a salad. One I like is kidney beans or small red beans with onion, sweet pepper, cherry tomatoes, maybe sweet corn, and a vinaigrette dressing that includes prepared brown mustard (like Gulden's) and malt vinegar.

Cabbage or broccoli or kohlrabi slaws with vinaigrette are good. Apples add a bit of healthful sweetness, and celeriac is good in them, too.

The classic shredded carrot/raisin/walnut salad is tasty (with a citrus-y vinaigrette, maybe some spices like ginger, nutmeg or the like).

Using some cooked quinoa, lentils, or seeds (pepitas are a special favorite of mine) in a regular green salad can add some variety. Jicama adds crunch, too.

Consider salsa as a salad dressing, if you haven't tried that.

Roasting veggies for dinner can give you some roasted veggies as leftovers to put in salads to change things up a bit, too. Roasted caultiflower, sweet pepper, or onions are particular favorites of mine in cold salads.

(edited to correct the wrong URL I posted at first!)

Rachael_789

New one I tried this week. Walnut & Goats cheese salad with pear.
Mixed leafy greens including spinach, goats cheese, walnuts and a pear cut up. Could use figs or apple instead of the pear. Drizzled some balsamic vinegar on top.

Dnarules

dklibert wrote: »

I am making Salad Jars this week with:
Lettuce
Cabbage
Carrots
Purple cabbage
Celery
Green onions
Cilantro
Almonds
Baked Wonton Strips or Oriental Noodles
Asian Sesame Dressing

Google 101 Salads Mark Bittman he has great unusual salad ideas.

Do you have recommendations for a good Asian sesame dressing?

dklibert

@Dnarules I am searching too. I like the flavor of the Kraft light Asian Toasted Sesame one but lots of artificial stuff. I bought a Sam's Choice one this week.

fbg419

Got some great ideas to try this week

pita7317

Creamy Spinach Salad. Hands down fav.
Spinach. Red onion rings. Crispy bacon crumbles.
Add pear slices, artichoke hearts, toasted slivered almonds, mandarin oranges, bean sprouts.
Whatever you like. ?
Dressing. Serves 4.
1/2 c mayo
2 T sugar
2 T white wine vinegar
Let sit one hour for flavors to combine.
Use the dressing sparingly to your liking.
So dang good.
Hope you try it.

Nikion901

Potato Mushroom Salad
prep time 30 minutes, cook time 10 minutes.
Makes 6 cups

1 small onion
1 tablespoon butter or ghee
3 cups mushrooms (your choice of type)
2 yukon gold potatoes, boiled in skins and cooled
2 hard boiled eggs -peeled and cooled
2 pickles, preferrably lacto fermented
2 tablespoons green onions or chives, finely chopped
smal bunch of finely choipped dill or parsley
salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons pickle juice (from the jar of pickles)
1/4 cup kefir (or yogurt, or buttermilk)
3 tablespoons sour cream

Chop the onin finely and saute it with butter or ghee in a medium pan until fragrant and slightly transluecent.
While onions cook, chop the muchrooms into 1/4 inch squar chunks. Add to the onion and saute until their liquid evaporates. Set aside to cool.
Peel the skin off the potatoes, and chop them into 1/4 inch pieces. Dice eggs finely.
Cut pickles into 1/4 inch bites.
Toss mushroom/onin mixture with potatoes, eggs, and pickles.
Add green oninos or chives, dill, parsley, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Toss.
Add pickle juice, kefir and sour cream. Mix everything together
Allos to sit in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight for best flavor.

Nikion901

Probiotic Vegetable Salad

4 medium golden potatoes, boiled in skins, cooled and peeled
1 roasted beet, chopped into bite size pieces
1 small carrot, finely chopped
1 large or 2 small pickles
1 green apple, finely chopped
1 cup of sauerkraut
3 or 4 green onions, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
3 tablespoons of oil
1/4 cup of pickle or sauerkraut juice
salt and pepper to taste

Optional -
1 cup of red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup of frozen green peas

Mix all ingredients ina bowl, and allow to rest in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight for the flavor to develop.

Nikion901

Chicken Waldorf Salad
3 servings

1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup diced celery
2 cups diced red apples, unpeeled
1/4 cup coarse chopped walnuts
1 can (5 oz) chicken, drained (or poach an 8-ounce chicken breast for 20 minutes after it comes to a boil0

Blend mayonnaise, sugar, mustard, salt and lemon juice. Add remaining ingredients. Toss gently to coat. Serve on a bed of lettuce or mixed greens, or simply serve as is.

Optional ingredients to the salad ...
green grapes cut in half
chunks of pineapple
pecans instead of walnuts

AnnPT77

Folks, find your power: Make your own dressings! It's dead easy. Yes, they might not be ideal at first, but they'll be decent . . . and if you keep experimenting, they'll get better and better.

Asian sesame: Ideally rice vinegar (but substitute any mild white vinegar), olive or peanut oil (if you put oil in your dressing, I usually don't *), salt or a dash of soy sauce as long as you're not sodium-restricted, a bit of toasted sesame oil (Asian section in a bit supermarket), perhaps some finely minced garlic or finely minced fresh ginger or powdered ginger, toasted sesame seeds. Add some hot pepper flakes if you like a little heat. Toasted sesame seeds: Put some seeds in a dry frying pan on medium heat, shake'n'stir until they start to smell good, brown slightly, or pop a bit.

if you want a peanut-y Asian dressing, put in some PB2 peanut butter powder (put the powder in a dish, stir in a tiny bit of liquid (any of the above ingredients) until smooth. Add a tiny bit more liquid, stir until smooth. Keep repeating until it's quite thin and will mix nicely with the rest of the liquids. (This will avoid lumpy clumpy behavior.)

You can make vinegar-based dressings with any seasonings you like. If you want them to emulsify (the watery liquids to mix evenly with the oil if you use oil), use something kind of powdery in it, such as mustard powder, and shake it in a jar or whisk like crazy (shaking's easier)jj. But it's fine if the oil & vinegar are kinda separate: The flavors mix in your mouth anyway.

You can make creamy dressings with Greek yogurt, or cheesy dressings with ricotta or skim-milk-thinned neufchatel (aka reduced fat cream cheese) or similar cheeses.

Once you know how to do it yourself, you don't have to have seventy-eleven bottles of dressing in the fridge in order to have variety available. Just keep some basic vinegars and seasonings on hand, and you can make whatever you want.

*Instead of putting oil in my dressing, I prefer to get my fats - needed for your body to absorb all the vitamin goodness in the salad - from nuts or seeds that I put on the salad. Nuts or seeds can be added as is, but the flavor is enhanced if you toast them, either in a medium-heat dry frying pan, stirring & heating just until they start smelling wonderful, or in a 350 degree F oven for around 12 minutes (fewer for smaller seeds/nuts, more for larger - 12 is about right for walnut kernels). Just watch them - pay attention to the smell, and don't let them get too visibly brown.

aprilricks86

my favorite salad recipe ever is the nordstrom chicken apple & goat cheese salad which you can make at home using this recipe:

http://www.seattletimes.com/life/food-drink/recipe-nordstromrsquos-chicken-apple-and-goat-cheese-salad/

It is a bit labor intensive, but it is 100% worth it in my opinion! So tasty

goodkoalie

My favorite salad is a simple balsamic vinegarette, with some chicken breast, feta cheese, romaine lettuce, and half an apple cubed.

RaeBeeBaby

I'll make a salad out of just about anything. I start with a pile of greens in a big bowl, then add whatever leftover proteins and veggies that are in the fridge from a previous meal, add nuts, fruit, cottage cheese and a little homemade vinaigrette. In the winter I warm up the protein and some of the other ingredients and dump on top of the cold greens. My recent favorite pre-packaged greens are the Sweet Kale Salad mix. It has kale, cabbage, brussels sprouts and radicchio. That mixture holds up in the fridge for quite awhile and it comes with a packet of cranberries and pepitas, plus poppy-seed dressing. The dressing is a little too sweet for my taste, but hubby likes it.

Every week I usually make a batch of quinoa or rice, mix in a can of rinsed beans and keep that in the fridge as an add-in for salads or a side dish for dinner. As far as dressings, I normally make my own vinegar-based ones (from my homemade vinegar). Once in awhile I like a creamier store-bought dressing. The best ones (in my opinion) are the OPA greek yogurt dressings. They have minimal ingredients and only about 35 calories for 2 Tbsp.

J3nnyBeanz

Hi!

My favorite is

Spiniach, arugula, Swiss cheese, walnuts, a few cran raisins, tomatoes and a few green olives.

lenette88

garbanzo (bagged or canned to make it easier)
chopped: cucumber, tomatoes, and bell peppers

olive oil
freshly squeezed lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste (I add Tony's to make it a bit spicy)
feta cheese or queso fresco

*I did not include quantities because you can really just make it to taste