2024 is still very green. So, for our first guide of this New Year, we have Mumbai’s OG salad goddess, Karishma Dalal of Bombay Salad Co, telling us how to enjoy making and eating more salad.
Dressed for success: Kari’s ultimate salad guide
The mantra at Bombay Salad Co is “eat more salad” and the only way to make that true was to make salad great again. For too long the word “salad” made us think of boring insipid greens on a plate and we’ve attempted to inject fresh life into this dish by incorporating certain practices.
1. The foundation of a great salad is fresh quality ingredients.
That’s it. Aim to incorporate these and you won’t be disappointed. Use freshly harvested fruits and veggies whenever possible. And if you do happen to find yourself with slightly old veggies – season or flavour them, or cook them.
2. Add flavour and texture wherever possible.
This is key. Use a variety of different ingredients to compose a salad – greens, grains, lentils, veggies, fruits, nuts, cheeses, protein. Keeps things interesting. Here are some ideas.
- Chop or shred your lettuce. Massage your kale. Don’t use iceberg (boooring) as the only green.
- Season all your grains and beans individually.
- Try different methods of cutting veggies: grate/shred/chop.
- Use a food processor/mandoline/spiraliser or even the humble peeler.
- Stir fry greens.
- Roast for greater depth of flavour.
- Use pickled vegetables.
- Add lots of herbs.
- Add some fruits/nuts and seeds.
3. Ditch the mayo. It’s crap.
For light dressings, use acidic ingredients like vinegars, lemons, oranges. For creamy dressings, use yoghurt, nut butters, tahini, avocado, cheese. Add mustard, garlic, shallots, cumin, cinnamon, fennel, paprika, herbs, and the forgotten condiments in your fridge. Experiment.
Pro dressing tip: Toss a leafy salad with dressing only just before serving. Toss a grain salad a few hours before serving.
Karishma’s favourite thing at Bombay Salad Co is to build her own salad (they have over 100 ingredients) and this is the game changer – ask for everything to be chopped – so each and every bite is a flavour bomb.
As Kari says, “It’s 2024 and there’s no need to have a boring, bland salad ever again.”