Salad Days

Fresh, local salad greens will soon be showing up in our produce department. Spicy arugula, tender spinach, crunchy romaine, and delicate red and green leaf lettuce from local farms will all available shortly. Meanwhile, organic national lettuce is seeing us through.

Salad greens, except for boxed greens, which are prewashed, should be rinsed well. Local greens especially tend to be gritty. The best way to wash fresh greens is to submerge them in cold water, either in a clean kitchen sink or large bowl, swirl them around to loosen the dirt, lift out and let most of the water drip off, and then spin them dry in a salad spinner.

For a head of lettuce, cut off the bottom so the leaves are loose before washing. Washed and spun dried lettuce will keep for a week in the refrigerator. Green plastic bags made especially for storing produce do seem to extend freshness. They are designed to release ethylene gases which accelerate the aging process. Oryana sells these bags in the produce department.

Some say you should never cut lettuce but this is perfectly fine and saves time when prepping a salad. Stack washed lettuce leaves on top of each other and make cuts about an inch apart with a sharp chef’s knife. Then cut the strips about 1 inch apart. This is much faster than tearing apart one leaf at a time.

Here are some simple vinaigrette dressings to go on your salad

Lemon Vinaigrette

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon dried herbs or 1 teaspoon chopped fresh herbs such as thyme, oregano, basil, dill
1/2 teaspoon natural cane sugar
salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

Mix all ingredients except the oil in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the oil until combined.

Mustard Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients except the oil in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the oil until combined.

Greek Vinaigrette

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried mint
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients except the oil in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the oil until combined.

Asian Vinaigrette

1/4 cup light olive oil
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
white pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients except the oil in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the oil until combined.