5 Simple Tips to Make Every Salad Amazing
Make Every Salad Amazing
Simple, delicious tips to make the every salad enjoyable.
I readily admit that I don’t really like salads. Who’s with me? I think it’s all the chewing. So much chopping and then so much chewing.
Enter my husband, who loves salads. Like, a lot. When we go out to dinner he orders salad, I order steak. We confuse every waiter, every time. Or we did, before COVID. And even after a few years of marriage, every time I make my family’s Mediterranean Salad he says “I love this salad.” You can’t see me, but know that when he says this I’m rolling my eyes.
But when it comes to our kitchen, our intentionality around food revolves around eating healthy, real food that we both enjoy. So, here’s the rub, I have eaten more salad in my married life than ever before. I can’t remember every eating one in my blissful, salad free single life. It’s fine.
Salad are great but… they are salads. So if we are going to eat them, they need to be really good. I’m not ok with making dishes for a meal I don’t enjoy. Over the past few years I learned a few tricks to hack salad making so it doesn’t feel like too much effort. And now, I actually enjoy salad as a meal. Here are my best, simple tips to make your salads taste amazing:
Make your own dressing. The flavors will shine through so much more than you expect. And you can tailor it to your preferences. Like more tang? Add some extra lemon. Love garlic? Add more! Sweet tooth? Add another drizzle of honey. You’ll be surprised at how easy making your own dressing actually is, I was. We stick to a pretty regular rotation of our favorites: caesar, blue cheese, chipotle, roasted garlic, and variations on a Simple Vinaigrette (see this post for the recipe and variations). And sometimes I make a salad (egg salad, chicken salad, pasta salad) to use on top of a greens. And that has the dressing in it, for example check out this Black Bean Salad where the dressing is in the topping.
Use a variety of textures, flavors, and temperatures. There are so many ways to be creative. You can use crisp greens or massage kale and soften it with dressing. Top softer greens with a crispy apple. Use raw or roasted veggies, or a mix of both. Add some salt or sweet with spiced nuts/seeds. Try spicy buffalo chicken on cool romaine with a tangy blue cheese dressing. The possibilities are endless! And don’t be afraid of fruit. Some of the best salads I’ve eaten have grapes or cantaloupe in them.
Use a basic formula for ingredients. Something like this works well for a single salad:
2 Cups Greens
1/2 Cup Veggies and/or Fruit (not starchy)
1/4-1/2 Cup Protein (cheese, nuts, meat, eggs)
1/4 Cup Starch (grains, pasta, croutons)
Herbs (any amount)
1- 1 1/2 TBS Dressing
Plan for them. In saying that, all I mean is to intentionally keep some leftovers to use in a salad. I’ll often tuck away noodles (think fusilli, penne, farfalle), farro, beans, grilled chicken, etc. to use in a salad later. In the Cobb Salad pictured above (and featured in the 1 Week of Salad Meal Plan) I grilled extra corn on the night we were eating it fresh off the cob. Once cooled, I cut off the kernels to use in a salad later in the week. When I have a crusty end of bread I don’t want to use, I’ll tuck it in the fridge or freezer to make homemade croutons later. Simple, easy steps like this to prep salad can make them one of the easiest ways to use leftovers into a meal during the week!
Toss your salad. Use a large bowl and tongs to toss your salad with the dressing. This is one of the tricks they use in restaurants to coat the salad evenly and pull all the flavors through. If you don’t have a good set of tongs, they are well worth purchasing. When assembling, add the dressing to the bottom of the bowls, then the toppings, and finally the lettuce (see photos below) Using the tongs, toss until well mixed.
Buy some tongs,
Toss your salads like a pro!
Want to make salads but not sure where to start?
I’ve got a meal plan for that.
You’ll get the full grocery list (including options to make your own or buy dressing), 5 different salad recipes, and directions on how to meal prep the week if you want to! It includes recipes for:
Cobb Salad
Spinach Salad with Roasted Beets & Goat Cheese
Salmon Caesar Salad with Brussel Sprout “Croutons”
Mediterranean Salad
Kale Caesar Salad with Grilled Chicken
Caesar Dressing
Simple Vinaigrette
Honey Cider Dressing
Tips on Homemade Croutons
Need some inspiration?
Click Here to See all Wandering Hearth Salad Recipes.
Here’s a list (links to recipes) of our favorite salads. Thank you, Joe:
Salad with Grilled Chicken, Grapes, and Cantaloupe and Raspberry Vinaigrette
Buffalo Chicken Salad with Grilled Corn and Blue Cheese Dressing
(Any)-Salad Salad (Chicken, Chicken Curry, Seafood, Ham)
Wedge Salad
Arugula, Watermelon and Parmesan
Beets, Fusilli, and Goat Cheese
Chicken Shawarma Salad Bowls (as mentioned in the 4 Week Meal Plan)
#KitchenAcumen Tips:
Above, I said to make your own dressing. But, honestly, do what works for you. You know what works in your kitchen and with your people.
There are a lot of great ready-made proteins available at grocery stores that you can pick up. Sandwich meat, smoked fish, rotisserie chicken are all great options for protein that you don’t have to cook!
You don’t have to use all the veggies in your fridge when making a salad. I used to make this mistake all the time. Now I stick to one or two veggies.
