Ideas for making salads more interesting without using cheese

[Ladybird69]

Bored over eating the same old salad again and again. Can I have some ideas of making them more exciting and enjoyable. I like pretty much everything except cheese 🤮 tia

Nuts. Especially toasted hazelnuts which improve everything

Im doing salad with pot barley, chick peas, mint, parsley, spring onion, chopped tomato, cucumber, pepper, carrot with lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Also beetroot and orange salad with crushed corriander and mild chilli flakes. DP will have his with roast pork and me with a wedge of cold nut roast.

It’s the dressing that makes the difference in my view, so I’d google for ones you haven’t tried

Fruit. Is my contribution. I love it in salad. Tonight we had strawberry hazelnut mint basil watercress with percorino cheese it was amazing

Mixed salad beans, tuna, chicken, olives, roll mops, cooked meats. Xx

Dammit. Forgot I have pomegranate seeds in the fridge. Just ate a dull salad.

I tidied the pantry yesterday and found a jar of Opie's Pickled Walnuts ( don't know why I bought them, probably to put with pasta ) they;d be nice in salad I reckon.

Some of my favourites are:
tabbouleh (I sometimes do add halloumi but sometimes don’t and it’s just as lovely without)
chicken, bacon and avocado
tuna nicoise
panzanella
tomato, red onion and thyme
grains as a base and then just whatever is lurking in the fridge - olives, cucumber, tomato, roast some tenderstem broccoli, and then a citrus and olive oil dressing

i find that dressings and fresh herbs can really elevate a salad, I eat a salad of some kind most days for my lunch.

i recently saw someone make a peach and burrata salad, obviously not a recommendation for you op and not something I’d eat myself as I don’t really like sweet fruit in savoury food but it was quite an interesting looking salad and it did spark my curiosity.

This is my favourite salad at the moment, so zingy and refreshing (I don’t bother with the coconut sugar):

https://www.cookrepublic.com/thai-prawn-mango-and-salad/

Yeah, chop it in half, cut out the core, brush with a wee bit of butter (or oil) and grill both sides. I then slice them hot and mix them in.

Mixed leaves chopped
herbs chopped
dill
mint
parsley
corriander
olives halved
beetroot
walnuts
roasted chickpeas
with a Japanese dressing

Things I add to salads:
Red onion
Sultanas, raisins, dried apricots cut up
Cut up oranges, pineapple or apple if I have fruit to use up.
Beetroot (pickled or fresh)
Green Olives
Tinned anchovies cut up.
Apple cider vinegar.
Seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, chia, poppy, hemp, sesame, flax)
Chicken
Coriander

I'm going to try some of the other ideas when I have more energy.

I tried a recipe recently that was gorgeous: red onion marinated in balsamic vinegar, olives, capers, a little oil and lemon, tomatoes, sweet or new potatoes, and a bit of greenery, could be rocket, lettuce, cucumber, spinach, whatever you fancy.

Olives
spiced baked chicken peas

I chopped broccoli very small then blanched it and made it into a salad with red kidney beans, roast peppers (from a jar - home bargains sells the cheapest ones), finely chopped red onion, balsamic and oil dressing with toasted seeds sprinkled on top.

was lovely with garlic bread etc

Fruit - pomegranate, nectarine, orange, mango, passionfruit. Up your dressings. Add something crunchy/cooked. Baked banana.. sugar snap peas. Depends on your ordinary salad.
Mint always helps too I think!

Yeah it's superb isn't it! Goes with pretty much everything.

I love the spicy one. Hot ayvar. It comes in a jar with a black label. I forget the brand but my co-op does it. No other regular supermarket seems to through. So the Turkish shop is the other option.

Strawberries, apple, bacon bits.

I think I have seen the hot one. Might have been sainsbury. Or Tesco!I go for the other one. It is addictive.😘

Ah thank you. yeah I think my local tes. etc are shite as they don't have it. In fact I need to buy some right now! I would get the massive jars but I had it go fizzy and had to chuck some away before.