Post: #1

I'm excited about 21DHL and one of my strategies during the challenge involves eating a lot more garden salads.

But to be perfectly honest I have never enjoyed salads. The ones i make are generally quite boring. Usually I just throw together some lettuce, spinach, and maybe some broccoli. I never use dressings. This is not very exciting or tasty. Since I have always found salads so dull I was hoping I could become more interested and enjoy them more by finding some delicious new recipes.

If you have any special salad recipes I would love to hear them!

What do you put in your salads?
Do you have a special way of preparing them?
What are your favorite dressings? (please mention the name of the brand)

I look forward to reading what you guys have to share!

Post: #2

Hey Matt! Have you ever come across salad bars like Salad Stop? Usually I'd find salads boring too, but ever since coming across salad bar chains like Salad Stop (in SG) and a myriad of salad bars in New York, I realized that salads can be very fun and exciting. There are tons of different ingredients that can be put in a salad, and lots of interesting dressings to spice up the taste.

"If you want to get something you have never gotten before, you've to do something you've never done before."
Personal Excellence - For people passionate about achieving excellence in life

Post: #3

I wish I Salad Stop or something similar in my location. I did a quick Google map search for salad bars in my area. The results I got included Blimplie and Chick-Fil-A .

I think it would be especially difficult to find healthy options when dining out in my city. There are no establishments that are exclusively salad bars. That's why I'm so focused on finding new recipes for salads.

Do you eat all your salad and other vegetarian meals when dining out or do you usually make your own meals at home?

Post: #4

(01-01-2012 08:03 PM)Matt Wrote:  Do you eat all your salad and other vegetarian meals when dining out or do you usually make your own meals at home?

My ideal diet is largely raw, so it's really easy for me to satisfy my meal needs. I eat fresh fruits, raw nuts, have fruit smoothies (which I buy from the supermarket - the fresh, blended ones not from concentrate). For vegetables, I just buy fresh vegetables, microwave them if I don't want to eat them raw (say, broccoli), and eat them right after - no sauce or condiments whatsoever. If I want to eat fancy salads or fancy vegan stuff, I dine out. I'm usually one to go for the no-frills, minimalistic approach where eating is concerned - whatever is convenient AND nourishes my body in the highest manner.

Have you seen my vegan veggie wrap recipe? It's easy to just set up a makeshift salad bar (like what I did in the recipe) by first preparing all the ingredients, storing them in container boxes, and just making as many ingredients as you want whenever you want to make your salad.

"If you want to get something you have never gotten before, you've to do something you've never done before."
Personal Excellence - For people passionate about achieving excellence in life

Post: #5

Almost any sort of vegetables that can be eaten raw is good in a salad! And quite a few fruits as well. I really like onions and corn because they are both really flavorful without having to add much in the way of dressing. Another idea in that vein would be to go through the citrus fruits because if properly juicy then you would need less dressing as well. I prefer spinach to lettuce because it has more nutritional value though typically adding fat helps digest many of the nutrients in spinach better. So I usually do a very light drizzle of olive oil and then pour on the vinegar or whatever else I may like.

When I was on my fruit and veggie kick last year I did a wonderful home made pesto dressing, though it was based in olive oil and had to be used sparingly. Plus, you can make pesto with so many other greens other than just basil. I've heard of spinach and arugula pesto!

Of course, I'm very much not a vegan so I also toss a bit of feta cheese on top of my salad. I don't know if that is a suggestion you would be interested in though.

A quick google search gave me a pretty interesting website with a whole bunch of low fat dressing recipes though some of them are very much not vegan as well. Check it out!

Post: #6

I just disovered that one of supermarket chains we shop at a now have a self serve salad bar where you can fill a big container. But for $15.99/kg, I think they're a bit expensive! The vegetables on their own rarely cost even close to half that amount. That seems to Be the problem with all salad bars I've been to including Sumo Salad. They just don't give you enough for the money. If I eat a salad, I want a big bowl of it! Otherwise I'll still be hungry afterwards and will be looking for something else to eat.

Matt, one of the simplest dressings I've used is rice wine vinegar. I think the Japanese use it a lot. But it tastes nice on its own. Otherwise, citrus based dressings with orange, lime or lemon juice blended with another ingredient such as avocado can be nice too. Just be creative, and if you have a blender, try blending a few different ingredients together. See what works.

Glenn Thomas - Sydney, Australia
Avene Website | Personal Website | Facebook Page | Twitter

Post: #7

(01-03-2012 06:04 PM)Glenn Wrote:  I just disovered that one of supermarket chains we shop at a now have a self serve salad bar where you can fill a big container. But for $15.99/kg, I think they're a bit expensive! The vegetables on their own rarely cost even close to half that amount. That seems to Be the problem with all salad bars I've been to including Sumo Salad. They just don't give you enough for the money. If I eat a salad, I want a big bowl of it! Otherwise I'll still be hungry afterwards and will be looking for something else to eat.

You said that right Glenn! After all the traveling I've been doing, I've concluded that vegan/vegetarianism is an expensive lifestyle, relative to mainstream diet (that includes meat). It's really just because lesser people are veg*n, and hence the charging of premium prices to cater to this audience, vs. it being representative of the real costs involved (though with so many people eating meat, I gather they can leverage on economies of scale where production is involved). I think it'll improve as more people become veg*n over time. And another way to address it would be to make our own meals, which is very easy nowadays with ready made salad/stir-fry packs and what not.

"If you want to get something you have never gotten before, you've to do something you've never done before."
Personal Excellence - For people passionate about achieving excellence in life

Post: #8

Celes, actually, the veg options are still usually cheaper. Add chicken or any other meat options to those salads and they will bump the price up considerably.

The same goes for restaurant meals. With a lot of the Thai restaurants here the tofu/veg option might be $8.95, but for each meat option the price will increase by a dollar, and then the seafood option will be even more at around $12.95 or more.

It's just food prices in general that are expensive compared what you can make those dishes for yourself at home. The meat options that may seem cheaper than veg options are usually the processed meats the cancer groups warn against. Even at places like Subway, the Vegie Delight is the cheapest option.

For the small quantity salads, a good option might be to include ingredients that are more filling, like chick peas.

Glenn Thomas - Sydney, Australia
Avene Website | Personal Website | Facebook Page | Twitter

Post: #9

Here are some of my favourite combinations:
1. Raw cauliflower, tomatoes, onion, greens. Dressing: plain yogurt, salt, pepper. You can also use oil/vinegar dressing, if vegan.
2. Winter salad: boiled beetroots, parsley, garlic, greek nuts, sesame oil, vinegar
3. One more winter salad: boiled beetroots, parsley, garlic, low fat cheese, plain yogurt, (salt, if needed).
4. China cabbage or any other leafy greens, sun dried tomatoes, bell pepper, parsley. For dressing use the oil/vinegar souce, that's already on tomatoes. Add greek nuts, if you want more calories and omega 3

Post: #10

A nice salad variation (especially if you aren't always into salads or your salads are always looking the same) is to take raw spinach leaves and top them with heated stir-fry left-overs or a bit of thick soup / stew / chili. You don't need dressing because the stir-fry juice or soup acts like one. It's great when you have just a little of something left--not enough to eat it by itself, but with the spinach it will make a nice salad.

I've started watering down my ranch a bit for my traditional salads--I actually like it better that way because I like a little bit of dressing on every bite and I get more dressing taste for the same amount of calories.