How do you make salad tasty??

[CaptainWarbeck]

So following on from the halloumi thread, I fried some off, chopped it up and scattered the bits on some leaves with cucumber and a lot of creamy salad dressing (I know, totally not healthy but I'm breastfeeding, hungry and don't care ). It was delicious and actually the first salad I think I've EVER enjoyed! What else can I do/put in to make salads tasty?

Some faves of mine
Cumin roast carrot, spicy Cous Cous and hallumi.

Falafel, beetroot, rocket, hallumi and French dressing

I love a good Greek salad with looooads of olives

Puy lentils, garlic mushroom, rocket and feta

Basic vinaigrette dressing, basically 3 parts oil to one part vinegar, plus salt, pepper and any other flavourings you fancy.

Completely agree with PP about leaving things to soak in the vinaigrette while getting other ingredients ready. It's a particularly good way to deal with raw onion - takes the sting out.

In fact, if you don't have any dressing on the go, you can just stir a teaspoon of vinegar into a bit of finely sliced onion, with a little salt as well if you like. Leave for at least 30 mins and the onions will be tamed and mildly pickled.

Cheapish wine vinegar is fine for the vinaigrette, as is lemon juice.

Balsamic vinegar you can use on its own.

Nice article about yummy salads here

Also popular in this house is yoghurt "mayonnaise." Whisk olive oil into yoghurt until it's the consistency you want. Season with mustard, salt, pepper, maybe some lemon zest... whatever you fancy.

My sisters in law love the dressing I make. I am Spanish and this is just how we dress salads. No need to mix it on a different bowl. Prepare your salad with any ingredients you want, even sweet ones like apple. The sprinkle a good pinch of salt, a bit of good vinegar balsamic or not, and about 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil (depending on size of salad). Mix it all well before serving. It works in all salads, I have never bought salad cream or sauces.

I love balsamic glaze over a salad. Dont know or care if that's what its meant to be used for

Also worth bearing in mind that lots of the flavoursome leafy ingredients are cut-and-come-again plants, which can be grown on a windowsill and harvested much of the year.

Rocket, coriander, parsley, basil...

Sorrel might need a bigger pot but is well worth it - like lemony spinach. It can be cooked, too, but does turn into unattractive khaki sludge: still yummy, but.

frozen butter nut squash is a good idea as it is a faff to cook a whole squash to just add to a small salad

Had a lovely salad at a party recently that a neighbour made. It had coriander, chilli, mango, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, red onion, olive oil and prob some other stuff. It was delicious and I don't even like tomatoes! It's not often you go back for salad seconds but this creation deserved revisiting! Was kind of salsa like with a little added sweetness from the mango

Feta, mozarella, olives, sundried toms, toasted seeds,chickpeas (roasted), butternut squash, spicy dressings. mmmmm just had a lovely salad for lunch of 'what was in the fridge' - cheese, ham, leaves, carrot, olives, sundried toms, cucumber, tomatoes, humous, dressing. I just bung anything in most of the time!

Classic tuna nicoise also good.

Best thing to eat with nice soft milky mozzarella is sliced beef tomatoes and basil... a bit of chunky pesto is also really good with it. I love that. Don't think I could really call it a salad though...

Try adding all sorts, I usually do the usual lettuce and cucumber then I add peppers and sweet corn. Brightens it up and makes it flavoursome x

Spinach, avocado, celery, tomato, cucumber, onion, tuna and feta cheese with a good squeeze of lemon juice

Sweetcorn
Olives
M&S mixed bean salad
Quinoa
Roasted veg
Onions
Bacon bits
Jalepenos
Sliced sausage
New potatoes marinated in Dijon mustard and olive oil
Roasted cauliflower
Broccoli
Shredded cabbage
Bulgar wheat
Spinach

Pomegranate seeds
Pesto
Nuts
Grapes
Mozzerella/ goats cheese/ cheddar
Roast chicken/ bacon