Styling salads is one thing, but the mechanics of it could become another ‘job’ unless you’re savvy with ingredients. That requires knowing your ingredients, how to buy them, store and meal prep like a chef.
I’ve dedicated this post to visually unpacking what goes into a range of well-known salad recipes and a few obscure ones to give you an idea of how best to strategise your meal prep.
Another factor worth noting is that knowing what goes into your salad recipes affects your budget. Ingredients, especially organic ones are generally not cheap no matter where you in the world.
Everything beautiful and delicious when styled and plated into little bowls as seen in the reference images below.
Make a list of factors to consider when building your salad recipes:
- Look closely and take inventory of how much the ingredient packaged, will cost you.
- Be realistic, beyond appetite appeal and check whether that ingredient aggravates any allergies you may have.
- Which salad ingredients has beneficial or nutritional components.
- Be honest about cravings – which ingredients would you prefer to eat and which not so much
- Is there anything you’re willing to try and be okay with discarding or donating if gone unused – that affects the budget?
Let’s take a look at how recipe developers engineer their salad recipes. If you’ve always been someone who ‘throws’ together a salad, these flat lays will literally give you an aerial shot of what goes in and what surprisingly stays out.
You never really what you’re eating right? Unless you make a dish yourself, you’re mostly guessing at what you’re tasting and smelling. But, if you have allergies, weight-loss goals or a simple motivation to eat healthy, you’ll want your salads to align with what you need and want to consume.
Making salads everyday can become a budget concern because you’re meal prepping with fresh, volatile ingredients. Fruits and vegetables will go off if you’re not organised and attentive. As a full-timer, I know how tricky that gets when most of your attention is not on what’s going in your salads. All I care about is which salad I’m going to eat because I’m already stressed and hungry (WFH). But, if you’re not careful about deteriorating fruits and veggies and everything else that goes in it, you might be spending more by discarding expired ingredients. It’s worth considering if what goes in it is better bought cut-chopped-washed and ready to eat than prepping from scratch.
Now that I’ve mentioned work and eating – time is an ultra important factor when organising salad recipes.
Ask yourself:
- Is it realistic to cook from scratch if you’re a full-timer?
- Are you someone that likes to be in the kitchen, cooking, chopping, prepping and cleaning even if you’re a stay-at-home?
- How much time can you allocate to designing and building your salad, per day or per weekend? Remember these are fresh ingredients, so time might be the most underplayed yet crucial meal prep factor.
So, lots to contemplate. I bet you never thought all these factors go into building a salad. Now you can consider what goes in and what needs to stay out.
Easy Omega 3 Salmon & Lentil Salad
Here’s a roundup up how recipes are structured and it gives you a clear idea of what goes into building a salad:
Spinach and Rocket (arugula) salad
Watch out for the salad accents in this one – are you allergic to dairy or nuts? If so, those need to stay out. Could you swop it for something else?
tip: how to choose fruits & vegetables
Classic Waldorf salad
Here’s another volatile ingredient worth mentioning if used in organic form and that’s raw honey. Which do you prefer – raw or processed? I’d recommend not using raw honey heated because of nutritional constituents breaks down, and the aroma and flavour can change. For dressing a salad, I think the bottled, processed kind will be fine. Though creamed raw honey is delicious – here’s the one I always use (not sponsored).
tip: how to select fresh produce the right way
Sweet Potato (or Butternut squash) and Kale salad
I love this because you can easily alternate between the sweet potato and butternut, depending on what’s available to you. Even carrots, they’re sweet too. But, it’s not the sweetness I’m calling out, it’s the beta-carotene in any orange veggies. It’s very high in anti-oxidants and other nutritional goodness.
tip: how to test fruits + vegetables for ripeness
A Fruity, Antioxidant Powerhouse
This one’s even better for gut health – blueberries and peaches are high in fibre. Those with existing IBS, may want to skip this one. On a lighter note, blueberries are a great belly-flattening fruit too. And cucumber is perfect for hydration – set aside some cucumber slices and add it to your water to sip throughout the day.
tip: how to choose fruits & veggies at the market
Cannellini beans, Farro and Pesto salad
Any pesto elevates a salad into more than a side dish mainly because of its rich, deep flavour. Cannellini have so much nutrition built into them and a great source of protein if you prefer a vegan option.
tip: how to select the right lemon at the market
High Protein Quinoa and Chickpea salad
It’s not the cheapest alternative to couscous, but it is gluten-free and very high in protein. Chickpeas are really versatile – save for falafel or use the tin juice to make aquafaba (the juice makes vegan egg whites when whipped).
Citrusy Chicken Salad
No salad roundup is complete without adding some shredded chicken. Get creative with this well-known source of protein – try torn pieces of roast chicken, ginger-poached poached chicken breast cut into cubes or air-fried slices of roasted masala chicken breast.
cook’s notes: swop regular soy sauce for low-sodium for tamari or coconut aminos
tip: do you know how to choose a red cabbage?
Roasted Coconut Tamari Chips recipe
Beets & Cranberries salad
I can’t overstate the health benefits of beetroot. From helping to lower blood pressure, to aiding digestion because it’s high in fibre, to improving fitness for endurance sports due to its nitrate content (which help blood vessels relax allowing for the flow of more oxygen).
You don’t have to eat them raw, try these variations in a salad:
- Steamed beetroot – milder flavour but you don’t lose any of the natural constituents
- Roasted beets – sweeter, tastier flavour
- Pickled and brined with vinegar – tangier and more acidic, especially out the jar
tip: how to test whole foods for ripeness at the market
Bell Peppers and Chicken salad
Pear and Rocket (Arugula) salad
Pears are excellent for people with skin allergies. It’s very low in salicylates (allergen) which causes inflammatory reactions in the skin. It’s also rich in polyphenol antioxidants and provitamin A which supports skin health and helps with wound healing.
tip: pears can be a hit-and-miss, do you know how test for a ripe one?
Conclusion: Why build it yourself when you can get storebought?.
The salad recipe builder was designed to help you think about what you’re building a salad with and why. To promote choosing ingredients consciously for the goodness inside it – the nutritional components beneficial to building optimal health. But beside that, the tool was created to make a salad fun to eat because it’s yours – designed by you. And then, if there’s time, ‘styled’ by you too – this curated list will inspire you to get creative as well.
If you liked this post, you’ll love this one.
Disclaimer: The content of this article is not offered as professional medical advice. It is nutritional insight that should be followed with discretion and/or in consultation with your healthcare practitioner or physician as it pertains to your health and/or health conditions. Always consult your doctor before embarking on any dietary changes if you are suffering from chronic condition. Use the information provided at your sole discretion. See our Legal Policies for more details.
Photo by Luisa Brimble on Unsplash
