Favorite Salad Toppings/Combinations?

brighteststitcher

Hi everyone! I've been digging salads lately, and I've been having a massive one for dinner with chicken, but I need more ideas for combinations here. I like some serious crunchy stuff in my salads, but trying to get them to be big and crunchy without a crazy amount of calories.

Ones I've tried:

Mandarin Chicken Salad - chicken, cilantro, mandarin oranges, slivered almonds, wonton strips, ginger dressing

Beet Salad - Chicken, beets, mandarin oranges, goat cheese crumbles, slivered almonds

goal06082021

Marinate and/or cook your chicken in raspberry-walnut vinaigrette, then make a salad with said chicken, mandarin oranges, sunflower seeds or walnuts, and craisins, over baby spinach. Feta or goat cheese is a welcome addition if you want some cheese in there. Dress with more raspberry-walnut vinaigrette.

SuzySunshine99

I like crunchy salads, too. I'm a big fan of raw brussels sprouts, sliced very thin. Sunflower seeds or pepitas give a good crunch.

My salad for lunch yesterday: romaine lettuce, sliced brussels sprouts, cucumber, carrots, tomato, pepitas, dried cranberries, canned tuna, and Asian sesame dressing.

corinasue1143

I like green peas and dressing made with dill pickle juice on lettuce.

Noreenmarie1234

My favorite is..

Salad with lettuce tomato onion, radish, sauteed zucchini, banana pepper, mustard, hot sauce, TONS of onion powder, garlic powder, smoked salt, truvia, honey dijon walden farms, balsamic walden farms, and grilled chicken cooked in hot sauce.

I also like putting cauliflower "rice" roasted in the oven on top of my salads. Or roasted zucchini so that its so thin its crispy.

wilson10102018

I like shrimp salad. Saute raw jumbo shrimp in something spicy, remove tails chop in thirds and stir into a lettuse salad. Fried Spam Lite is also a great addition to a green salad with a tiny bit of Mayo. I use 14g of real Mayo per salad of chopped Romaine with shrimp, cold salmon, Spam Lite, or BBQ pulled chicken. Of course, the rest of the rabbit food can go in there but I don't really care about it. I do think if you are adding cold salmon one should always add capers.

Skyler103

My favorite has chicken baked with Fiesta Seasonings jalapeno salt. It has salsa, tomatoes, avocado, onion, black beans, corn, pepper jack cheese, a little light ranch, and crunched up tortilla chips!

meganv2017

Apple chunks, blue cheese crumbles, walnuts, and dried cranberries with balsamic dressing!

VegjoyP

Plant based Feta, sundried tomatoes, Napoli balsamic vinegar, crushed cashews, homemade herb and spice blend, Nutritional yeast. 😋

VegjoyP

Plant based queso dip, Nutritional yeast, herb and spice blend.you can add chickpeas or other beans, almonds or other nuts, seeds.

ReenieHJ

Ok, I'm just gonna say it. The more cheesy garlicky croutons the better.

acpgee

If you like something crunchy and have an air fryer I would recommend this. You could make this in the oven as an air fryer is essentially an oven with a very aggressive convection fan.
https://www.tastecooking.com/best-thing-make-air-fryer-isnt-fried

My favourite salad topping combination is salty cheese (blue, feta, parmesan) + candied nuts.

In a dry non stick frying pan melt a tablespoon of sugar until it starts to caramelize. Once liquid, remove from heat and stir through a single layer of walnuts, pecans, pepitas, add a sprinkle of salt and allow to cool. When hardened chop roughly and keep in an airtight container. A small sprinkle is enough for pimping up salads. Also goes well with salads with fruit such as sliced pears, stone fruits or berries.

Another french classic combo is frissee au lardons. That's bits of crispy bacon on top of a salad with a poached egg. The classic technique is to fry the bacon to a crisp and toss the rendered fat with vinegar to make the dressing.

Another easy way to add crunch is those ready made fried shallots or onions. The fried shallots are often used to top SE Asian salads and can be bought at Asian supermarkets. In the regular supermarket look for the fried onions Americans use on Thanksgiving green bean casserole.

I haven't tried this myself but this thread got me thinking of toasting unsweetened breakfast cereals with a smidgen of melted butter, garlic or celery salt in the oven to make a crunchy topping for salads. I guess you could store this in an air tight container to have on hand to add to salads. I was thinking of bran flakes, corn flakes, rice crispies, or shredded wheat.

MaltedTea

* Paillards (breaded poultry) with snap peas over greens
* Furikake and sesame seeds with eggs over greens
* Carrots, mixed nuts and dried fruit...over greens
* Crushed rice crackers 'n broccoli / 🥗

🤷🏿‍♀️ plenty of possibilities

seltzermint555

chopped ham or chicken, chopped boiled egg, honey mustard, homemade croutons, sliced cucumber & red onion

micro greens/arugula, feta cheese, black olives, red onion & vinaigrette

TVP seasoned like taco meat, sauteed peppers & onions, crumbled taco shells or chips, and for "dressing" dollops of sour cream & salsa. Cheddar is good on this too.

MsCzar

My latest obsession: Sliced thin: 1 medium cucumber, 1 medium yellow summer squash, 1/4 large sweet white onion or red onion, handful of thinly sliced red cabbage.

Dressing: 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar, 1T almond butter, 1T soy sauce, 1T honey, 1t sesame oil.

Mix thoroughly. I like to let it sit in the fridge for at least an hour and then drain in a colander for a few minutes. I save the liquid to later add to stir-fry sauces. Top with roasted sesame seeds. I also top with Chanachur Mumbai Mix (hot) which adds spicy crunch. Yum!

suzij27

Lettuce or greens of choice, chicken, diced carrots, cucumber, red peppers, onion, sugar snap peas, tomatoes and whatever dressing I’m in the mood for. The key for me is everything cut small (diced) so I get some of everything in each bite.

OnceAndFutureAthlete

Bacon.
Bacon, Bacon, Bacon, Bacon, Bacon (bits).

Aldi Tuscan Harvest bacon bits. < $1.50/pouch (US).
2T = 60 calories and a LOT of flavor.

To quote from another commercial: "I put that [bleep] on everything!"