You may think that making a good salad involves nothing more than the ingredients and dressing that you add to it. However, there is more to consider if you are striving to make them even better than your previous efforts. Therefore, let me share some tips that can definitely help you make elevate the quality of your salad.
The first thing that can make a big difference for the outcome is how you handle those greens. The reason this matters is because regardless of what type of lettuce it is those leaves can be damaged easily when being too rough with them. Instead of tearing the leaves from the head of lettuce, cut them with a knife or kitchen shears helps save them from bruising and wilting.
The next step is just immersing them in a bowl of cold water before placing in a salad spinner. Give those leaves a few swirls and check the water to remove dirt or any insects. Follow with a second rinse if needed until the water is clear.
You don’t want to overcrowd the leaves in the spinner just the same. Otherwise, you can still bruise them. Instead, try adding some leaves in batches. Furthermore, another method to dry the leaves is just gently patting them, if you prefer.
Here’s another trick when working with a head of lettuce that can help you easily separate those leaves. Hit the core sharply, but carefully against the countertop or your sink. This simple action will enable you to twist out that core without hurting the rest of the head of lettuce.
I love onions in green salads, but they can make the eyes water when chopping them. You can avoid this problem if you simply freeze the onion first beforehand for about 15-30 minutes. The reason is because that bitter cold will slow down the enzymes called allinases that cause that chemical reaction that cause the tearing. If you forgot to freeze, you can also cut the root end off the onion last. This is not as effective, but it will prevent less tearing when chopping the onion since this is the place where most of those irritating enzymes are located.
Something else to try is rinsing the chopped onion under cold water. It may sound odd since you already cleaned the onion, but it also will wash away more of those enzymes from bothering your eyes. Besides that, this step will also help get rid of a bit of that onion odor.
Another tip for keep the greens from getting soggy before serving it is remembering to place an inverted saucer in the bottom of your bowl to help with drainage from the dressing you add to maintain crisper greens.
Speaking of keeping the greens crisp, when you soak the leaves you also might want to add a few slices of raw potato to that cold water. This may sound strange, but the raw potato helps the lettuce or even celery crisp up much faster.
By chance if you’re using a wooden salad bowl and want to keep the leaves from becoming too sticky, try rubbing a piece of wax paper inside the bowl as well as outside. Believe it or not, this works and improves those odds when serving from that wooden bowl.
By following these beneficial tips and tricks, you can make a perfect salad that is fresh, crunchy, delicious, and satisfying. Enjoy!
If you have any tips to share, then let me know.
