Making Great Salads From Your Leftovers

When it comes to leftovers, people are most often than not having hard times in making family members eat the meal. After seeing the same meal served again for lunch, your family may tend to get very picky and the food won’t even get near to being eaten. What happens next is very obvious. The food will stay in the refrigerator for a couple of days and then, it goes to the trash for its final resting place.

When you think about it, this common scenario is such a waste. That’s why this article provides an easy solution to save you money as well as keeping the complaints about the leftover food to a minimum. And as the title suggests, why not make a salad out of it? It’s pretty simple when you think about it and it will certainly look like a brand new dish after you’re finished making one.

If your leftovers are composed entirely of meat, then it’s going to be a real walk in the park for your salad creation. That roast beef from dinner can be sliced and diced and added to a salad for some heavy lunch. And if you’re having some trouble with leftover pork, try making an Asian salad side dish by adding them with some coleslaw and sesame seeds.

Taco salads are also great when you have some leftover hamburger lying on the fridge. Add some lettuce, onions, black olives, cheese and tomatoes and you’ll have a real tasty treat. Toss the tortilla chips in and top the recipe for salad by some sour cream and you’ll have the perfect snack to delight your family and friends. Just be sure you have enough for the sure-fire demand though.

If you’re having problems with those turkey or chicken leftovers, I advise you not to throw them to the trash just yet. For these treats, try removing the meat from the bones and create strips from them using a fork. Add some pickles, hard boiled eggs, celery and mayonnaise into the chicken strips and you’ll have the perfect lunch time salad you can even make your kids eat at school.

Another easy leftover ingredient to use in a salad would be vegetables. Now, this is quite straightforward since all you got to do is to add them up in a salad bowl and top the mix with some flavorful dressing. Nobody wants to eat leftover vegetables again, but when those carrots, broccolis and cauliflowers are added to a salad, just sit back and relax while your family automatically digs in into the meal.

The same is true when you’re dealing with fruit. You have a certain hit on your hands if you’re going to add your leftover fruit into some mix complete with marshmallows, nuts and whipped topping as a crown. Serve this as a dessert and your family will even love you more for it.

All in all, there’s more life in your leftover foods than you might think existing. By using your leftovers in making salads, you’re going to save time, effort and more importantly, money from throwing away good food. Just go and give it a try so that you can make those leftovers end up in the belly of your loved ones instead of inside the garbage can.

Read more articles by: Letty Velasco

Some Good Alternatives For Iceberg Lettuce

Salads are just mostly mixes of various fixings that complement each other and taste great in the end, but most of the time, recipes for salad start with crisp, green lettuce. This time, we won’t be dealing with lettuce alternatives since in reality, people really love their little salad greens. Instead, we’re going to check out the different types of lettuce you can use to make perfect salads for your family and friends.

It takes a little bit of time to make the perfect salad. You start with the bottom base and you work your way up including all the fixings to make it taste just right. Considering this, lettuce is not the only ingredient that builds up your salad but constitutes about fifty to sixty percent in most salad recipes. With this in mind, finding the right type of lettuce is very important for any scrutinizing taste bud.

The most common type of lettuce is the Iceberg lettuce and coincidently, it is mostly the main ingredient of restaurant and home-made salads. One thing familiar about Iceberg lettuce is it has very little taste. But even with this trait, it is still considered as one of the favorite picks in every recipe for salad. A good hypothesis would be because of the other fixings and dressings we put on our salads; we fail to notice that this kind of lettuce doesn’t add much taste to the dish.

Bibb lettuce is probably the next most used salad base mainly because of its slightly sweet taste. It is visually appealing too with its rich green color adding vibrancy to the dish. Bibb lettuce partners great as base bedding for fruit salads as well as meat-based tuna or chicken salads.

If you are going to make Caesar salads, consider using Romaine lettuce on your recipe. Unfortunately, it’s a little more expensive than the common Iceberg lettuce but its mild taste makes it perfect on any recipe for salad. This kind of lettuce has a darker color than your common lettuce. Each Romaine lettuce leaf has a fibrous spine that runs its entire length and its long leaves add for a satisfying chew.

Frisee lettuce is mostly associated with mixed greens recipe for salad. This type of lettuce is mostly mixed with Mesclun lettuce. The distinction for these types is that they are both bitter in taste. These have a distinguishable leaf shape that looks like they are bitten by an animal before packaged for human consumption. The ragged looking leaves are long and are medium green in color.

One very healthy vegetable you can try with any salad is Spinach. No wonder why Popeye loves this vegetable so much since Spinach has a flavorful taste and a brilliant dark green color which is also its greatest benefit to the human body. In these darker color leaves, antioxidants are very much abundant. With antioxidants, you’ll also receive a generous amount of beta carotene, helping to free your body of harmful free radicals.

A kind of lettuce that can also confuse or surprise the unwary eater is the Radicchio. Radicchio is a lettuce type that looks more like a cabbage. One obvious distinction would be that its leaves are long, but in case of color and texture, it is definitely more cabbage-like. For example, the leaves have a white spine that runs through its entirety. Also, its purple or red color produces a cabbage appearance unlike any other lettuce. In terms of taste though, you’re better off adding Radicchio with other types of lettuce since it has a distinct bitter taste which can be unsavory if eaten alone.

Endive is a Belgian variety of lettuce that has a dark green color but unlike other lettuce types, its leaves are short and have a tendency to curl up for that added effect. It has a mild taste and is very much used on many salad offerings.

These are just a few of the many greens you can mix and match with any recipe for salad. Try creating a salad base coming from these lettuce types next time or if you’re the adventurous type, try exploring other greens too. You just might find one you’ll love to eat and share with your peers.

Read more articles by: Letty Velasco

Cooling Off With Some Summer Salad

Summer days signal hot and humid weather and whenever it comes, everyone is trying to find ways to stay cool and comfortable. This also means that mostly, people are consuming light meals that are both cool and refreshing. Salads fit these descriptions perfectly, especially when we’re talking about summer salads. And we’ll talk all about the dish in this article.

Basically, summer salad is just like your average everyday salad but especially made for the hot season. It is made of fruits and vegetables that are refreshing to the senses. Of course, the most important factor to consider is that they should be light but still nutritional in value. And lastly, they should be easily prepared, since moving a lot during summer is definitely not an ideal thing to do, right?

Just the same, what works well in a summer salad is still the age old ingredient lettuce. Lettuce is mostly stored cool and very refreshing to the taste. Even its crisp property gives a little relief to those who eat it. Besides lettuce though, there are many other ingredients you can throw in a summer salad, and let’s check them all piece by piece.

Fortunately, fruits and vegetables are plentiful enough in the summer months. Whether you are in grocery stores, fruit and vegetable stands or even farmer markets, you’re sure to find wonderful sights and smells of these fresh little gems. And with that said, let’s start talking about vegetables.

Just about any vegetable goes well with summer salads but there are especially better ones available out there. Cool favorites would be tomatoes and cucumbers, and when we’re talking about summer tomatoes, we’re talking about various shapes and colors that can also make your salad very lively. Tomatoes are mostly associated with the color red, but yellow and orange ones are plentiful in the summer months. Bite-sized cherry tomatoes to large beefy tomatoes, the variety is just something everyone can be excited about.

Another colorful vegetable that is perfect for any summer salad is pepper. Bell peppers are very tasty and you can get really creative with its variety. All pepper types: green, orange, red, purple and yellow peppers look very pretty in a salad dish and the color makes them much fun to eat too. For a little bit more crunch, try adding in some squash or zucchini into the mix. Now, that’s one yummy treat for the whole family.

When we’re talking about fruit, there’s also an abundance to choose from to put body into your summer salad. Mostly, we’ll have citrus fruits growing very much during summer season, as well as pears, peaches, apples and many kinds of berries too.

Citrus salads are very welcome since they are mostly composed of juices perfect for the humid season. Try mixing some limes, lemons and oranges together for a simple citrus salad. And if the sour taste of citrus is not to your liking, try making a salad composed of grapes, bananas and strawberries. To top the salad off, put in some marshmallows or whipped toppings. Add a cherry on top and voila! You now have a salad that will make even the pickiest eater water his mouth in anticipation.

In summary, there are quite a number of fruit and vegetable choices tossed together to form a great summer salad. Using a bit of imagination, you can make the summer days just as cool and refreshing as the salad you can concoct. Just be sure to not make it too complicated. You won’t want stressing yourself in the summer days, right?

Read more articles by: Letty Velasco

Fruit Salads: A Change From All That Lettuce

Face it. When someone tells you about salad, the first thing that pops into your mind would be lettuce. Although lettuce is the primary ingredient for most salads, it’s not really a necessity for some salad recipes. Salads can be made from just about any ingredient you can think of and if you want to change things up a bit, fruit can be the best way to do it.

Obviously, fruit salads are mainly composed of, well, fruit. Some lettuce can be added to the salad if you wanted to, but still, the main component of the meal would be fruit. Fruits, like vegetables, come in different types and varieties too. Now, just thinking of the many ways you can use those fruits in luscious salads is enough to make your mouth water, right?

Like most salads, traditional fruit salads are also easily prepared. Most of the time, you just buy cans of fruit cocktail in the grocery, drain them of water, and dump the contents into the salad bowl. You can add a few extras into the fruit salad mix too, like sprinkles of coconut, whipped cream toppings, marshmallows and nuts.

Of course, traditional fruit salads don’t need to come from just cans of fruit cocktail. You can make it healthier and take it a bit further by adding more fresh fruits into the mix. For this, you might be thinking that berries can very much work well. Not only berries though, but also peaches, pears, oranges, or well, just about any fruit you can think of that you’re sure that will complement the overall taste of the fruit salad.

Traditional fruit salads are not meant to become main dishes though and are mostly associated as side dishes or dessert. In any case, they are still something your family or friends will look forward to eating. Basic fresh fruit salads can complement any breakfast perfectly well and if you’re eager to have some quick snack, you can always reach for some of that chilled fruit salad as well.

One special type of salad would be citrus salad. Obviously, when we talk about citrus, it will most certainly be composed of oranges, grapefruit, lemons and limes, which will certainly have a tinge of sour taste in it. Add in some toppings and other flavorings you believe will enhance the salad’s flavor and it will become a certain hit for kids and adults alike. Of course, given the sourness of the ingredients, it always helps to add some whipped topping or some sugar-based dressing so to keep those eager lips from puckering up too much.

If you haven’t tried it yet, why not make a fruit salad composed of some exotic ingredients for a little change in pace. Conveniently nowadays, lesser known fruits like kiwis, star fruit, papaya and pomegranate show up more and more frequently in local supermarkets. Exotic fruits are mostly very tasty and will make your fruit salad very well stand out both in presentation and palate.

In summary, we can always say that fruit salads are very easy to make. With the many varieties of fruits available today like apricots, cherries, grapes and other berries, you can always make this type of salad a constant companion side dish at the table. If you want it simple, you can always use canned fruits. If you want it extravagant, try using fresh and exotic fruits. And if you want it fun, why not try dry fruits in the mix? No matter which way you decide, fruit salads are set to become a big hit for your family and friends.

Read more articles by: Letty Velasco

All Things Pasta Salad

Salad is no longer just about dishes purely composed with vegetables. Recently, pasta salads have also taken their place on salad bars everywhere. They have been perfect companions when it comes to family reunions, potluck dinners and even when people are eating inside their favorite restaurants. This is because pasta salad is very easy to prepare but delicious too. It’s just perfect for you to create one for your own dinner table at home.

One thing wonderful about pasta is that these days, they come in different shapes, sizes and colors. This feature may spark some creativity within you when choosing a pasta type. From the usual spaghetti and elbow macaroni to tiny shell or angel hair pasta, most grocery shelves are jam packed with varieties. As such is pasta’s downside since with its many kinds, it’s sometimes hard to decide which one is to be used.

If you’re having a hard time in choosing, it’s always easier to just prepare traditional macaroni salad. It’s been a favorite when it comes to family dinners and picnics and can be made with most of the pasta varieties. Add in a little mayonnaise, sweet pickles and hard boiled eggs, some mustard and dill, or even onions and cheese cubes. It’s going to be a perfect macaroni salad as long as it accounts for your taste.

If you’re tired of the same old mashed potatoes or rice dishes every time you have a meal, you can always make a pasta salad to take their place. Pasta salads make great side dishes too. They go well with all kinds of meat like fish, chicken, beef or pork. Also, everyone will like the change, making mealtime more enjoyable for your family.

Pasta salads are mostly not served hot so remember to cool the pasta before adding any of your desired vegetables and dressings. For the vegetables, you can either add them fresh or frozen. To top it all off, add in your favorite dressing to the mix. But if you’re in a fix, you can always try Italian or Ranch dressings since these are the ones mostly used for pasta salads.

As I mentioned earlier, pasta salads are great to take along picnics and potluck dinners too. For picnic style salads, you can either use Orzo or Tabbouleh pasta to act as their base. These pastas are wonderful kinds that quite resemble rice grains. Use them to create warm or cold pasta salads that will stretch, making them ideal for feeding crowds of people.

If you’re gearing into the health side, pasta salads can still be an ideal choice. To make it better, use wheat pasta for the base, add some fresh vegetables and some low calorie or low fat dressing of your choice. Your salad will definitely taste so good that no one will even care or know how healthy your creation is.

Pasta salads are easy to make and the possibilities in making them are endless. While there are already plenty of pasta salad recipes that are already known and loved, you can always mix up the menu a bit for a bit of surprise. It’s all about your favorites, your favorite pasta for the base, add your favorite vegetables and other ingredients, your favorite dressing, and before you know it, people will like to know the recipe you used to create such a masterpiece. That is why once in a while try using pasta salad as a side or main dish for your family. You’ll surely love the results afterwards.

Read more articles by: Letty Velasco

All You Need to Know About Kosher Sushi

So, you’ve decided to try sushi for the first time. Good for you! Trying something new can be intimidating, especially if that something involves eating raw fish. It shows you have an adventurous spirit and an open mind, and going into this experience with the right attitude is half the battle.

Most people who are reluctant to try sushi just automatically assume they won’t like it. A few will even say, “I don’t like fish, period! Why would I possibly consider eating raw fish?” My normal response to this would be, “Do you like tuna?” As it turns out, about 99 percent of people, particularly those who say they don’t like fish, like tuna.

What people who say they don’t like fish really don’t like is fishy tasting fish. Tuna has a very mild, almost sweet flavor and is therefore a good place to start when trying sushi for the first time. Granted, raw tuna is completely different, in terms of texture, than the stuff that comes out of a can. The texture is closer to that of meat, and is a good choice for people who think they only like meat.

When eating sushi, the trick is to not jump immediately into the deep end of the pool. If you are afraid of raw fish, begin with vegetable rolls, then try a sushi roll made of cooked fish (there are plenty of these, including the popular California roll), and then move on to a mild raw fish, like tuna. Don’t start immediately which a strongly flavored fish like mackerel or salmon (unless you are already familiar with, and like, salmon).

Misconceptions

A common misconception about sushi is that sushi means raw fish. The word sushi actually refers to the rice, which is flavored with vinegar. The literal translation of the word sushi comes from an obsolete phrase meaning, “it’s sour.”

The term sushi encompasses a great many dishes, all of which include sushi rice. There are wraps and rolls, pressed and formed items, and dishes which simply incorporate various ingredients scattered over sushi rice. All of these items are properly referred to as sushi.

Alone, slices of raw fish served in sushi bars and restaurants are known as sashimi. Only when sashimi is placed on top of sushi rice does it become sushi.

Types of Sushi

Some common fish used in the preparation of sushi include: tuna, yellowtail, toro (a fatty cut of tuna), snapper, mackerel, salmon, kani.

For those of us who are squeamish about fish, some vegetable rolls are available. Common vegetables used in sushi include: cucumber, avocado, asparagus, yams, sweet corn mixed with mayonnaise, gourd, burdock, pickled daikon radish, and fermented soybeans called natto.

Maki-zushi

Maki rolls are what most people think of when they think of sushi. Maki rolls are cylindrical pieces of sushi formed with the use of a bamboo mat, and usually wrapped in a piece of nori. Nori is a kind of dehydrated algae, or seaweed, which is dried and formed into sheets. Nori is placed on the mat first, followed by a strip of sushi rice and other ingredients which may include vegetables and/ or seafood. The bamboo mat is then used to form the roll into a long cylinder which is cut into bite sized pieces.

Some maki rolls have nori on the inside with the sushi rice being the outermost layer. These inverted rolls are called uramaki.

Nigirizushi

Another common type of sushi, nigirizushi is a simple preparation where a slice of fish, known as a neta, is draped over an oblong mound of sushi rice. Two pieces of nigirizushi are typically served per plate.

Oshizushi

A specialty of Osaka, oshizushi is formed using a block-shaped wooden mold. Fish and/ or other ingredients are placed into the bottom of the mold, which is known as an oshibako. The ingredients are then covered with sushi rice and pressed, forming a block which is then unmolded and cut into pieces.

Inari-zushi

Inari-zushi is a form of sushi in which a pouch is made in a piece of fried tofu which is stuffed with sushi rice. This type of sushi is a great option for people who don’t like fish, as there is usually no fish involved.

Fukusa-zushi is a common variation on Inari-zushi, in which a thin egg omelet replaces the tofu as the wrapper

Chirashizushi

This is sushi in its simplest form. Fish and other ingredients are simply spread on top of a bowl of sushi rice. This style of sushi makes for a heartier, more filling meal and is a good choice for someone who is particularly hungry.

Narezushi/ Funazushi

This type of sushi is hearkens back to the oldest forms of sushi, but variations on the dish still exist today. Originally developed almost a thousand years ago as a way to preserve fish, the technique for making Narezushi is lengthy, involved, and to be frank, not very appealing to the average Westerner. As such, I will spare you the details, except to say that it is a process which can take years, and involves preserving and fermenting the fish using layers of salt and cooked rice, sticking the salted fish in a barrel for six months or so, and repeating the process until the fish is edible.

Sushi Etiquette

Besides being intimidated by the idea of raw fish, the other concern that first time sushi eaters usually have is in actually going to the sushi bar or restaurant. They don’t know how to order, what to order, what the proper table manners are, or even how to use chopsticks.

Unfortunately, the latter is not something I can really help you with. It takes practice, and it’s best to get a friend to teach you. So that is my first piece of advice. If you are intimidated, go with a friend, preferably one who has been to a sushi bar before.

But the truth is there are not a great many rules involved, only a few customs which it might be polite to observe.

Firstly, it’s a good idea to sit at the bar. Seeing your sushi being prepared is half the fun. It also gives you an opportunity socially with the other customers, as well as the sushi chef, known as an itamae. Order all your sushi from the itamae, and anything else, including drinks, from the servers.

Almost immediately after you sit down, it is customary for you to be given a warm towel. Use this to clean you hands before you eat. It may be left during the meal, or taken away before the food comes.

It is acceptable to eat your sushi using either your hands or chopsticks. If using chopsticks, they will come stuck together at the top and need to be separated. After pulling them apart, rub the tops together to dislodge any splinters.

If you are ordering any communal dishes that you will share with your friends or family, it is considered good manners to take the food from the communal plate using the top side of the chopsticks, or the opposite end of the chopsticks from that which you stick in your mouth.

If you are feeling adventurous, ask the itamae to prepare his choice of sushi. He will know what fish is freshest that day, and what his specialties are. The chef’s choice menu is known as omakase. Many sushi restaurants offer a fixed-price menu. They are usually listed in order of price. Matsu is usually the most expensive, followed by take, and ume is the cheapest.

While there are no rules for ordering sushi, it is considered good form to order sashimi first if you are going to be eating sashimi. The delicate flavor of the fish is thought to be best enjoyed when you palette is fresh. Beyond this, you may order as many pieces as you like as often as you like until you are satisfied.

When you have finished your meal, thank the itamae. “Domo Origato” is considered a very polite form of thank you. Tip the itamae well, and separately, from the rest of the wait staff.

A Note on Condiments

The most common condiments used in Japanese cuisine are: soy sauce, wasabi, and sweet pickled ginger known as gari.

Soy sauce is usually served in a small bowl on the side of your meal. It is considered polite to dip the fish side of the sushi into the soy sauce, so that you don’t end up leaving little bits of rice in the soy sauce.

Wasabi is a very pungent root similar to horseradish. In fact, most of the wasabi we get in this country is an imitation form of wasabi made from horseradish and dried mustard. Wasabi can be applied directly to the sushi or mixed into the bowl of soy sauce to your liking. If it is too strong for you, you may decide to leave it out altogether.

Gari, or pickled ginger, is a condiment that is not applied directly to the sushi, but rather eaten in between sushi pieces to cleanse the palette.

Kosher Sushi

Sushi is gaining in popularity among people of the Jewish faith. Because there are specific rules for kosher cooking with which the typical Japanese chef may not be familiar, kosher sushi restaurants have begun to spring up around the city to fill this need. Many ingredients commonly used in traditional sushi, including shellfish, are not Kosher, so people who follow a kosher diet are advised to eat only at kosher sushi restaurants.

Read more articles by: Mark Etinger

Salads as a Center Stage Meal

When people talk about salads, they mostly think that it’s just the little dish made up of lettuce and other fixings, toppings and dressing they eat before starting the main course of every meal. Some will think that it’s just the optional food you get from the salad bar at the corner of the restaurant. But nowadays, as more people become health conscious, making salad as the main course of the meal is becoming a great idea.

Main course salads have become quite a hit during these times when people are already mindful of what they eat. And in order for them to enjoy each meal, they are trying find ways into making their salads a delightful treat. Besides, salads are very easy to prepare. They are simply fixings thrown together and then consumed to fill up any empty stomach, taking you at most 15 minutes to prepare.

In preparation for a main course salad, try using a salad plate or some decorative salad bowl to enhance the presentation of the meal. Taco salad bowls can also work perfectly for any salad. These salad bowls can be seen on most grocery stores and doesn’t necessarily need to be used for tacos. And if you really want to be creative, try using pita bread or taco shells for the main course salad base.

As for the filler, hands down the best vegetable to fill any salad is still lettuce. They come well with any meat enhanced salad too. And even if you’re trying to make some pasta salad with some seafood like shrimp or tuna, lettuce leaves are still great for filling and presentation by making them act as a bed for the whole salad.

After creating the bed and filling, you can then go ahead and put all of your prepared vegetables into the main course salad mix. Possible examples would be mushrooms, onions, peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers. These veggies act as enhancement ingredients for your main course salad. As a matter of fact, the more veggies you pack in, the better. Of course, this is as long as the vegetable you’re putting in will taste good for you. You really don’t want to make something you wouldn’t want to eat right?

Salads can be a complete main course dish too and with that said, let’s take an ease now on all the vegetables and make the salad more filling. Chopped, sliced or diced meat like chicken, beef or pork is an optional addition to a perfect salad. They certainly add a great deal of flavor to the mix besides making the salad more filling and satisfying. Other alternatives can be seafood, ham or turkey if you have the budget. Or if you want to add some more protein, get some eggs into the mix (but not too much of course).

Don’t forget to top your salad off afterwards before serving them. For toppings, you can use croutons, bacon bits, seeds or nuts, or even a combination of these options. Adding some cheese for the salad climax can add more substance to the presentation. Afterwards, let’s get on to the dressings and we’re all done.

If you want a change to the ordinary main course salad you’re used to eat, try exploring other flavors to make the dish more exciting. Try making the salad with Mexican or Asian fixings to provide some spice or sweetness whichever you prefer. For example, adding some chow mien noodles gives the main course salad some oriental flare. Be sure to match the salad with a flavorful dressing afterwards. After all is said and done, dressings are still the ones that mostly dictate the flavor of the salad.

Salads have come a long way from becoming just rabbit food. I hope you’ll have fun in making your own main course salad and please do keep in mind that when preparing the dish, let your taste buds and health consciousness dictate each step of the way.

Read more articles by: Letty Velasco