The joy of salad

In the days when I went out to work, rather than now when I stay in to work, my colleagues frequently suffered from salad envy. My lunch most days would comprise a large jam jar layered with salad and beans or seeds for substance and protein. Rainbow jars full of fresh vegetables became a bit of a signature for me. However, my love of salad developed late in life, it was prompted by illness and trying to eat a cornucopia of multi-coloured fruit and veg every day. Having discovered it though I have never looked back

In my parents home salad with a meal meant a lettuce leaf and maybe slices of tomato and cucumber. My grandfather, originally from Germany, made great salads and used exotic things like dandelion leaves and endive and I remember his salads fondly, but I was too young to really appreciate them and he died before I had much interest in foods other than salad cream on toast and tinned peaches.

In my twenties I recall many gatherings where the ritual setting out of lettuce, tomato and cucumber heralded the advent of a light tea, usually accompanied by slices of egg, cheese or ham, depending on one’s preference. I can still picture the aunties of my first boyfriend flocking together, setting out the smaller plates with their green and red fare. Having become vegetarian at 17 and vegan a year or so later, I did encounter salad when eating out, I have fond memories of falafel and salad from Gaby’s by Leicester Square tube station – sadly no longer there, but the aspiration to create the kinds of salads found there passed me by.

Now though, salad has become a go to meal, something to put together when I really can’t be bothered to cook and which, when I do, always makes me feel better. Salad now is a multi-coloured extravaganza, something that just requires a few fresh ingredients in the fridge and which, from a meagre selection of parts, magically comes together to create a visual feast.

I am a great fan of grated root vegetables in salad, they add dashes of colour but are easy to eat and digest. Carrots and raw beetroot are my staples for this, if you have never eaten raw beetroot give it a try, combined with all of the other ingredients it adds a sweet, slightly earthy, note. I have also added young turnips grated which have a slightly spicy taste.

Leaves of some kind go without saying in salad but are not obligatory. Lettuce will, of course, do the job but there are so many other forms of leaf that will too, baby spinach, young beetroot tops or crunchy leafy veg like red, white or pointed cabbage.

Tomatoes add some great nutrients to salad, and red pepper can add colour and texture. Other possible additions include, celery, apple, avocado, radish and cooked ingredients such as sweet potato, butternut squash or lightly cooked thin stem broccoli.

Onion or not onion is a consideration, I like a little spring onion or chives if I have them, but the large lumps of onion sometimes found in salads accompanying pub meals, are in my opinion too much and their overwhelming taste lasts for hours to come

There really are no rules with salad, just whatever vegetables you have to hand and a dressing. For a more substantial meal I like to add chickpeas or kidney beans, both of which work well with salad (if using canned beans then wash them first so they are not too starchy). I also keep a jar of sunflower and pumpkin seeds by the stove and toast them in my crepe pan for a crunchy topping.

For dressing salads, a simple mix of cider vinegar and olive oil usually hit the spot, but sometimes I add a dash of tamari or a splash of ginger, chilli, smoked paprika or chipotle. Another favourite dressing in our house is tahini mixed with lemon juice.

Eaten with rice or pitta bread (gluten free in my own case), a salad can be a satisfying meal in itself a long way from the uninviting garnishes of yesteryear.