How do you eat your salads?

With small amounts of regular dressing? With "light" dressing? With a vinaigrette of some kind? With no dressing at all?

Help, please. Need salad inspiration.
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Replies

  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,149 Member
    I use a flavored balsamic reduction, about 3/4 tablespoon (10 mL), or if I'm having mussels I use the oil that comes with them as the dressing,
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    With dinner I like olive oil and balsamic or red wine vinegar.

    If it's for lunch I like a bit of light Caesar dressing mixed with light zesty Italian. There are lots of low calorie dressings out there, make sure you measure them, some of them can add up.
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    Typically with balsamic vinaigrette or any other vinegar based dressing. I'm not a fan of salads with no dressing.
  • k8eekins
    k8eekins Posts: 2,264 Member
    With small amounts of regular dressing? With "light" dressing? With a vinaigrette of some kind? With no dressing at all?

    Help, please. Need salad inspiration.

    Autumn/Winter preference: Reduced balsamic vinegar vinaigrette
    Spring/Summer preference: Lemon or just the salads
  • TheCountryLife
    TheCountryLife Posts: 25 Member
    Newman's Olive Oil & Vinegar Dressing with 0 carbs & 0 sugar :)
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
    Bernstein's Light Cheese Fantastico with added fresh garlic and some lemon juice and balsamic vinegar. That's my favorite sometimes I make homemade creamy dressings.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    In a giant mixing bowl, usually dressed with a mixture of apple cider vinegar and hot sauce. If I'm feeling especially crazy, I'll use salsa.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Sometimes I make my own vinaigrette...otherwise usually Bolthouse Farms blue cheese dressing or Newman's Own lite Italian...just depends on my mood. If I'm having a salad at a restaurant I just get whatever dressing on the side.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Hummus or full fat mayo for me. A little goes a long way plus fat helps keep me full
  • Panini911
    Panini911 Posts: 2,325 Member
    i don't do salads. i do eat my veggies raw and cut up though.

    Hungry Girl recommends "dip don't poor". she dips her fork or the salad in portioned out dressing
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,212 Member
    Salad is optional for weight loss or nutrition, but I like salad. I mostly use various vinegars (flavored or not), usually with nuts or seeds or cheese rather than oil or vinaigrette. (It's good to eat some fats with veggies in order to better absorb the fat-soluble vitamins.) I add my own herbs/garlic/spices.

    Sometimes I make a dressing with Greek yogurt and seasonings. Sometimes I use salsa. Sometimes I include something like tahini (ground sesame seeds) with vinegar instead of another fat source. Sometimes I dress the salad with cottage cheese (or cottage cheese and salsa).

    There are many reduced-calorie dressings nowadays that many people find tasty. There's a current thread about dressings here: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10705278/the-salad-dressing-post

    I don't buy commercial bottled dressings because (1) l like variety, (2) I live alone and it takes forever to eat a whole bottle of dressing, and (3) I like to cook.
  • amy19355
    amy19355 Posts: 805 Member
    i eat green leaves right from the package. sometimes i put them on a plate first. rarely if ever do i dress them. I prefer to save my fat and sugar intake to come from other foods.

    if i'm at a salad bar, i will, sometimes, add olives and roasted red peppers for a simulation of dressing.

  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    edited November 2018
    I don't! A salad for a meal just seems so sad to me. I will have a side salad now and again and I usually do ranch which isn't good on the calories but they do make light ranch. I have also done cottage cheese to kind of get that dressing feel, and maybe just a tiny bit of ranch to get the flavor.
  • leen2389
    leen2389 Posts: 1 Member
    Lemon juice or salsa are my go to
  • COGypsy
    COGypsy Posts: 1,353 Member
    Vegetables must have some kind of flavor on them or I'd never be able to choke them down. I like the Bolthouse yogurt dressings spiked with hot sauce. They're low calorie enough that you can use enough dressing to actually cover the whole pile.
  • k8eekins
    k8eekins Posts: 2,264 Member
    k8eekins wrote: »
    With small amounts of regular dressing? With "light" dressing? With a vinaigrette of some kind? With no dressing at all?

    Help, please. Need salad inspiration.

    Autumn/Winter preference: Reduced balsamic vinegar vinaigrette
    Spring/Summer preference: Lemon or just the salads

    Forgot: Apple cider vinegar vinaigrette
  • Cbean08
    Cbean08 Posts: 1,092 Member
    I don't eat much "salad" like lettuce and little veggies.

    I do eat roasted/sauteed/ steamed/ grilled/baked etc etc vegetables with olive oil, garlic, lemon, salt and pepper.
  • stephieleee
    stephieleee Posts: 113 Member
    I love salads, especially in summer time. I also love all types of salad dressings. I know some people are like "don't use that it has so much hidden sugar or fat" but I honestly don't care.
    As long as I portion it out correctly and keep it within my calorie limit there's no issues.
    Some of my favourites are:
    Newman's Own Creamy Caesar or Caesar Vinaigrette
    Creamy Balsamic
    Or recently I've been making a vinaigrette with olive oil, white wine vinegar, wholegrain mustard and a bit of salt and pepper :)
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,739 Member
    When I ate salads, I'd make my own dressing and take it with me to wherever I was eating that day (usually a fast food restaurant). I'd use a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and a tablespoon of sugar free maple syrup and then do the dipping the fork into the dressing first and then spearing the lettuce thing. It kept the calories and sodium down that way.
  • AmyC2288
    AmyC2288 Posts: 386 Member
    edited November 2018
    I love ranch and recently tried the Hidden Valley Ranch made with greek yogurt. It's 60 calories per serving (the regular is 120 per serv) and it tastes very very close to the original. Also- I really dislike greek yogurt by itself so if you do too you may still like this. I discovered that I really like salsa as a nice low calorie dressing as well.
  • NewTnme
    NewTnme Posts: 258 Member
    I cook my chicken breast with seasonings that I like with about 1 tbs of olive oil and the juices from my chicken I pour it on my salad and cut my chicken up on top of my salad. Yum😋
  • kami3006
    kami3006 Posts: 4,979 Member
    Thousand Island, French, or Catalina. I just use light or fat free and the food scale to keep the calories down.
  • jamesjeffsmith
    jamesjeffsmith Posts: 34 Member
    Balsimic vinegar and hot sauce or salsa mixed with cottage cheese is a go to
  • SabAteNine
    SabAteNine Posts: 1,867 Member
    I usually eat mine without dressing, just salt and pepper. In all fairness though, tonight's salad was almost 2 lb of lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, pickles, sweet corn, one avocado and 7 oz of oil drained tuna. That would be a salad for me. I don't get the sides... I mean either you DO, or you don't.

    If I need dressing, I'll just dump in a Greek yogurt, thinned a bit and with dried basil, sage, oregano etc. mixed in.
  • 777Gemma888
    777Gemma888 Posts: 9,578 Member
    Lately, I have been preferring to eat veggies as is. On the rarest occasion, lemon and chili dressing.
  • nicsflyingcircus
    nicsflyingcircus Posts: 2,855 Member
    Depends. Anything from a very light drizzle of light balsamic dressing to a good dollop of ranch, to getting my dressing on the side and dipping my fork before stabbing the salad. Depends on my calories for the day.

    Also, I prefer a form for eating salad.
  • dulcitonia
    dulcitonia Posts: 278 Member
    Just some nice balsamic vinegar