The Summer Salad
We bring you four salads that are perfect for summer lunches
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2014-02-26 23:34 GMT
The Hyderabadi summer can drain out everyone. And since the temperature is not showing any signs of dipping, we might as well make the best of what is available around us and try and stay cool. This week, we bring you four cool salads from restaurants around the city. They are easy, healthy and are guaranteed to help you stay cool. The recipes are from the kitchens of Soups and Salads, Peperoncino and Freshies — Gourmet Salads.
Pasta Chicken Salad with Mint, Cilantro dressing
Ingredients:
1 packet pasta – penne or fusilli (preferably whole wheat) cooked in salt water
½ kg boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 bunch of fresh mint
1 bunch of cilantro
1 green chilli
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
Garlic
Salt and pepper to taste.
Salad Toppings:
Cherry tomatoes
Cucumbers, thinly sliced
Red capsicum, thinly sliced
Method:
Boil pasta according to package instructions. Marinate chicken breast with lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper with fresh cilantro for 2 hours. Grill the chicken and keep it aside. For the dressing, blend the mint, cilantro leaves, lemon juice, salt, pepper and little olive oil and green chilli to make a puree and keep it aside.
In a big bowl, add the boiled pasta, diced grilled chicken pieces, cucumber slices, tomatoes and red capsicum and toss with the green dressing.
The salad is light and perfect for a summer lunch or dinner
Anti-Oxidant Salad with Orange dressing
Ingredients
Salad greens - different varieties
3 fresh oranges, segmented
4 tbsp olives
Few sprigs of mint
Dressing :
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 lemon juiced
½ cup olive oil
1 tsp honey
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp roasted fennel seeds powdered
Salt and pepper to taste
Toasted almonds for garnish
Method:
Whisk together orange juice and zest with lemon juice, honey, mustard paste, fennel powder, salt and pepper. Wash the greens and spin the water out of greens and add fresh orange segments. Drizzle dressing on salad and toss it gently and garnish with slivered almonds to give a crunch to the salad.
Insalata Panmolle
Ingredients:
400 gm chunks of dry bread,
7 tbsp extra virgin olive oil,
2 tbsp red wine vinegar,
1 medium cucumber (peeled, cut into small chunks),
1 medium red onion or a handful of shallots,
500 gm cherry tomatoes (or roma tomatoes),
3 garlic cloves (finely chopped),
Handful torn basil leaves
Method
In a bowl, add the bread and salt and pepper to taste. Add the olive oil and half of the red wine vinegar to the bread. Then add the tomatoes, along with the cucumber and red onion. Scatter over the finely chopped garlic and add a pinch of salt. Mix until well combined. Pour in the remaining red wine vinegar, plus more to taste. Add the basil leaves and mix together until well combined.
Mediterranean Feta Salad
Ingredients:
½ red pepper, eggplant, zucchini and carrot. Seeds removed and cut into sticks.
30 gm French green beans
50 gm lettuce
20 gm red cabbage
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
15 gm feta cheese
Pomegranate seeds
For the dressing:
1 tbsp pomegranate seeds, 1 small garlic clove, crushed
Apple vinegar 1 tbsp
½ tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, ½ tbsp honey
Method:
Marinate chunks of red pepper, eggplant, zucchini, carrot and beans with olive oil, honey, mixed herbs and salt and pepper and put aside for 10 minutes. Heat oven to 180ºC. Grill the vegetables for 8-10 minutes. Cut the lettuce and red cabbage into long thin strips. Prepare the base with the lettuce and red cabbage. Put the grilled vegetables on the top of the base.
For the dressing: Mix all ingredients and blend for 30-40 seconds. You can pour the dressing on your salad as per your taste and requirement. Garnish with pomegranate seeds (½ tbsp), broccoli, cherry tomatoes and Feta cheese