How to make a brilliant salad
With recipes for two beautiful dressings, a savoury granola for crunch and lots of tasty salad ideas
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Do you get irrationally impatient about certain kitchen tasks? I do. Waiting for the microwave to ping – even it’s just a few seconds – is tantamount to being on hold to HMRC for me. Yet, half an hour spent frying and grinding a long list of spices for a curry brings me happiness. Likewise, I mostly leave knives to sharpen themselves because I can’t be arsed to do it, but cleaning out the fridge (and re-organising all those condiments!) brings much satisfaction. Go figure.
Regrettably, I often bring these peccadillos to salad making. Pop a few ingredients in a jar, give it a good shake and pour over vegetables? Nah. Easier to do the bare minimum with a drizzle of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon and pinch of salt. This is despite the fact I know a properly emulsified dressing – even a basic one – can lift a bowl of leaves into something glorious. Similarly, chopping and slicing ingredients is often a slapdash affair for me, even though I know the salad is worse for it. At heart, I’m a lazy cow, except when I choose not to be.
With summer here – at least in theory – I’ve decided to up my salad game and follow my own advice. I’m not short on know-how. I wrote a whole book about salad, and several chapters in others, including my latest, Second Helpings, which has a master recipe for making one with leftovers. Basically, I just need to give salad making a bit more welly in the effort department
So, today I‘ve got a flexible guide to making a basic but substantial salad. It’s not a recipe, more of an approach, with suggestions about elements to include. Below the guide, you’ll find three recipes for salad dressings – one vinaigrette, a creamy one, and another - plus a recipe for savoury granola that’s brilliant for adding crunch and flavour.