Garden Salad
User Reviews
5
Garden Salad
Description
The Garden Salad is a fresh blend of chopped iceberg lettuce, cherry tomatoes or their alternatives, sliced cucumber, grated carrot, and finely chopped parsley or chives. The salad is dressed with a mixture of cider vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, Dijon mustard, salt, and black pepper. This dressing offers a standard vinegar to oil ratio which you can adjust by increasing oil for a creamier texture or vinegar for more tanginess. The preparation involves shaking the dressing ingredients and tossing them with the salad components for even flavor distribution. The salad is best served immediately to retain the crispness of the vegetables.
The salad provides a crisp, light texture from the variety of vegetables and a bright, mildly tangy flavor from the dressing. The grated carrot adds subtle sweetness while the mustard in the dressing offers mild depth. The use of fresh parsley or chives adds subtle herbal notes.
This salad can accompany many main dishes, serving as a snack or a side. The dressing is flexible and may be customized with different vinegars or additions like garlic or sugar as noted in the recipe notes.
The dressing is forgiving and can be tailored to personal tastes. Vinegar alternatives include white wine, balsamic, red wine, sherry, champagne, or rice wine vinegar. Adding a small amount of minced garlic or a touch of sugar or honey can soften the sharpness of the dressing.
Ingredients
Salad:
- 1 iceberg lettuce chopped into big bite size pieces (5 to 6 big handfuls, small head, or other lettuce or leafy greens
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes ~125g/4oz), or 2 tomatoes cut into wedges or chunks, or grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 cucumber , sliced (medium Lebanese / Persian cucumber, or 1/2 long Telegraph/English cucumber)
- 1 carrot , peeled and grated using a box grater
- 1 tsp parsley very finely chopped (if you're feeling fancy!, or chives
Dressing:
- 1 tbsp cider vinegar (or any vinegar or lemon juice) (Note 1)
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (or other neutral oil)
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard (or other non spicy smooth mustard)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt or 1/4 tsp table salt, cooking salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Dressing: Shake Dressing in a jar. Taste and adjust - more oil for creamier/less tang, vinegar for more tang, sugar if you want touch of sweet.
- Toss: Place all Salad ingredients in a big bowl. Pour over Dressing. Toss well.
- Serve: Transfer to serving bowl and serve immediately!
Notes
- Use any vinegar such as apple cider, white wine, balsamic, or rice vinegar to customize the dressing’s flavor.
- Adjust the dressing by adding more oil for creaminess, more vinegar for tang, or a bit of sugar or honey for sweetness.
- Fresh herbs like parsley or chives can be added for extra freshness.
- A small amount of minced garlic can complement the dressing without overpowering.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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