THE ULTIMATE SALAD RECIPE

Salads are normally considered boring and most people I know hate salads. I, on the other hand love them and can eat them all the time if I could. Off late, I’ve started making salads at home every morning for my family and it’s become one good habit I’m proud of. We must make salads a regular part of our diet for the numerous benefits we all know that comes from eating vegetables, especially in their raw form. So the idea here was to get in as many raw vegetables along with a few fruits in this recipe and at the same time make it palatable for everyone else eating this. Because unless you don’t like it, you won’t look forward to it and very soon you’ll find yourself going back to your old food habits. This one is also so easy, it won’t take you more than 10-20 minutes.

The ingredient list may seem like a lot, but don’t you worry. Most are readily available in your kitchen, if not you can easily source them from your local market and if you don’t find them anywhere, just skip those. I’ve tried to include everything I could possibly eat raw, but if you have other veggies or fruits in mind I could try, do comment below and maybe it will be a great addition to this salad.

If you want to reap maximum benefits from this salad, always have them first. Salads just like Sprouts, should be eaten before an actual meal. You can follow a salad with cooked meal and not the other way around and definitely not along with food. Though I’ve mentioned some cooked or roasted snacks in this salad but treat that as an occasional addition only to help you get in raw vegetables into your system. If you can do without those, it’s obviously going to be better. Make salads a bigger portion of your meal.

INGREDIENTS
1 Carrot
1 Cucumber
1/4 Raddish
1/4 Cabbage/Salad Mix Greens
1 Tomato / Cherry Tomatoes
1/4 Yellow Bell Pepper
1/4 Red Bell Pepper
1 Spring Onions/ Leeks (Optional)
1 Beet Root
2 Slices Pineapple /1 Orange / 1 Plum
1/2 Apple (Optional)
4 Tbsp Sprouted Mung Beans (Optional)
2 Tbsp Basil / Mint Leaves
1/2 Lemon Juice
1/2 Inch Ginger (Optional)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Optional)
Pink Himalayan Salt as per taste
1 Pinch Pepper Powder
20 grams Feta Cheese (Optional)
5-6 Nuts/Seeds (Optional)
Roasted Peanuts / Peas / Puffed Rice / Crisps / Crackers (Optional)

METHOD

• You first need to wash your veggies in water thoroughly. You can also soak them in water mixed with a little BAKING SODA for 15 minutes to rid off any residual pesticides.
• After this, I like to scrape off dirt (if any) from my carrots , beetroots, cucumbers and PEEL the skin if required.
• I then give all these veggies a quick WASH in water and wipe them with a clean towel.
• Also peel my oranges, etc. Basically PREP the veggies and fruits for chopping.
• So if you’ve read the top of this blog post, you know you don’t have to include all these veggies or fruits mentioned. Use whatever is available and feasible and start somewhere, even if it’s just 5 ingredients from my list.
• So once I’m ready with my veggies and fruits all cleaned, I sit with my chopping board and knife and CHOP all the veggies and fruits and add them into a large mixing bowl. You can also use a food processor or vegetable chopper if you don’t have enough time to chop them all.
• I try to include at least one FRUIT, be it an Orange, Grapes, Mango, Plum, Pineapple or simply an Apple. Whatever is available and in season. I prefer citrus fruits because they give a nice freshness to the salad along with sweet and tangy undertones.
• Use at least one type of GREENS. It could be Baby Spinach Leaves, Iceberg or Cabbage if you have nothing available. The greens you can also use are – Red & Green Butter lettuce, Romaine, Oakleaf, Batavia, Bibb, Mizuna Mustard Leaves, Kale (Green, Red or Tuscan), Tatsoi, Pak Choi or Arugula. You might have to hunt a little, but if you can find a supplier for these, nothing like it.
• Also don’t forget to add in some FRESH HERBS like Parsley, Oregano, Dill, Chives, Thyme, Sage, Basil, Lemon Balm or good ol’ Mint leaves. Though used in very minimal quantities, any one of these will help enhance the flavour of your salads and make it taste bright. Don’t know how brightness can taste, but you get my point or at least I hope you do 🙂
• If even this doesn’t help you fall in love with this salad, the last resort would be to add a little bit of FETA CHEESE. But careful, a lot of these that I’ve ordered are salty on their own, so add salt only if you really need in your salad. Though I wouldn’t recommend using Feta Cheese everyday, but if it helps you eat your salad happily, then yes this can change the whole game for your salads.
• Also sometimes you might feel that it’s too much of raw that you are eating. If it does get boring, you can add in some CRUNCHY SNACKS, though not recommended but it’s okay once in a while and in moderation. Roasted Peanuts/Chickpeas (Shing-Chana) or add in crushed Puris from your pani puri or sev puri or some Puffed Rice (Kurmura) or Multigrain Crackers or some Chips. Just very very veryyy little.
• To help you further, you can add a PROTEIN like sauteed Cottage Cheese, Tofu, Boiled Egg, Chickpeas, American Corn or Chicken. But it’s better if you eat this after you finish your salad.
• You can add NUTS AND SEEDS like Walnuts, Pumpkin Seeds, Watermelon Seeds, Flax Seeds. They will give a nice crunch to your salad and not yo forget the nutritional benefits.
• Also adding in SPROUTS to this is a great idea. Not more than 4 Tbsp at once. You can read more on this here if you want to know how to consume sprouts the right way for maximum benefits.
• In the end before you eat, add in the DRESSING like the Lemon Juice, Pepper Powder, Grated Ginger, Salt (preferably, Himalayan Pink Salt or Rock Salt) and Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Avoid store-bought salad dressing. they are loaded with unhealthy fats, preservatives and stuff that’s not good for your body.
• The pictures I’ve put up are of all the variations I’ve tried. So do check them out 🙂
• Toss your salad and serve fresh!
• Do COMMENT below if you’ve tried something new or if you’ve tried this Salad. DM me your Salad pictures on Instagram. Follow me here and on Instagram. Your love and support keeps me going because to be honest I haven’t monetised my blog. I don’t blog to make money, it’s just my passion to share the knowledge I’ve gained over the years through my recipes and help everyone start taking care of themselves. Love <3