Refreshing Salads

They say great ingredients make great food. Gone are the days when salads consisted of tomatoes ,cucumber, onions and may be lettuce – as an add on to the main meal, relegated to one corner of our dinner plate.

Today Salads are much more complicated and interesting and can be the main meal with other food items taking the side and corner place of a Dinner plate. I give here a few salad recipes that are nutritious and healthy besides being tasty!

Chicken salad

This is probably one of the most popular salads for non vegetarians and being served in a few dozen combinations all over the world..Here I give my own version of it.

Ingredients

• Cooked and shredded Chicken - 1 small cup ( reserve and keep aside a few boneless chicken pieces while making a curry ), add salt and pepper and mix thoroughly before making the salad.
• Capsicum ( red, green,yellow,orange or whatever is available ) - sliced finely
• Tomatoes 2 - sliced finely Boiled corn - one cup
• Boiled potato one - peel and cut into small pieces
• Lettuce - 6-7 leaves , keep aside 2 large ones and tear the rest into bite sized pieces
• Cucumber one small - peeled and cut into pieces
• Spring onions 2 or 3- cut into small pieces
• Shredded cabbage either green or purple
• Chopped Coriander leaves a handful
• A few walnuts and cashew nuts broken into small pieces
• 2 or 3 crisp puris ( used for pani puri) broken into bits or a handful of bread crotons ( cut bread slice into tiny squares and deep fry them until golden brown)

To make the dressing

• Olive oil - 2 table spoon
• Lime juice - 2 table spoon
• Hung Curds 2 tablespoon – to this add a spoonful of chilly powder, and a pinch of sugar and beat well
• Ground mustard (Available in markets ) - a little
• Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all the above items in a bowl until well blended and keep aside.

To make the salad

1. In a large shallow salad bowl or any bowl of your choice arrange the two lettuce leaves that have been kept aside.
2. In another large bowl add all the salad ingredients and mix well adding salt and pepper sparingly since dressing too has salt in it.
3. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix thoroughly
4. Arrange the salad on the lettuce leaves, sprinkle coriander leaves on top and serve chilled or at room temperature.

This is a great party dish and can also be eaten as a meal when you are on a diet or prefer eating something other than the everyday rice roti and curry...

P.S – You can use Prawns or steamed boneless fish filet instead of chicken for a change and any left over can be used as sandwich filler.

Potato salad

ou require

• Boiled potatoes – 2 or 3 peeled and cubed into medium sized pieces
• Curds – one large cup \, mixed well
• Green chilies – 2 or according to taste, finely chopped
• Grated carrot – 1 small cup Chopped
• Coriander leaves – handful
• Jeera (cumin seeds) – half teaspoonful
• Oil – one teaspoonful
• Salt and pepper according to taste
• Peanuts – 2 tablespoonful toasted on a tava until crisp

Method

1. Heat oil in a pan and add the jeera and when they splutter add the green chilies and the grated carrots and stir for a minute.
2. Add the peanuts and the potatoes as well and check salt and pepper.
3. Take off the stove and cool to room temperature.
4. Beat the curds well adding salt and pepper to it.
5. Spread the potato and carrot mixture on a shallow dish. Pour the curds over it.
6. Sprinkle coriander leaves and serve chilled or at room temperature as a side dish .

P.S - You can also make this salad using boiled eggs . Cut Eggs into halves or quarters and take care to see that they remain intact.This can be done by arranging the eggs in the serving plate .Sprinkle salt and pepper on them. Mix the seasoning with the curds and pour over the eggs and serve either chilled or at room temperature.

Mixed Vegetable Salad

Ingredients

• Cucumber one small chopped into medium sized chunks
• Tomatoes 2 cut into pieces
• Carrot one grated
• Beet root one small par boiled and cut into thin slices S
• prouts a handful – either green gram sprouts or a mixture of 2 or 3 varieties
• Capsicum one cut into thin slices 
• Cabbage shredded finely
• Lettuce a few leaves , tear into small pieces
• Orange – one peeled and chopped into segments without removing the fiber
• Lime juice
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl combine all the above. Check salt and serve chilled or at room temperature