Sprucing Up Salads

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There are no rules to the culinary world. There are guidelines, so to speak, but the more open-minded you are, the more creative you get, the better it turns out.

— Andrew Kirschner, chef and owner, Tar & Roses

Dress Accordingly

Dressing can make or break the whole salad experience. "I think the most important aspect of the salad is the dressing," noted Bobby Niksefat, co-founder of the Coral Tree Cafe, which has several locations in the Los Angeles area.

Olive oil is an easy fallback for salad dressing, but you may be missing an opportunity to enhance the flavors of your ingredients.

"I use a lot of nut oil," Kirschner said. "Adding nuts in a salad can offer great texture, but flavor as well. So I'll back that flavor profile up by using that particular kind of oil. If it's a walnut, I'll use a roasted walnut oil."

Think about the flavors you have in your salad when deciding to forgo the go-to extra virgin olive oil, Kirschner said. "In an Asian-style salad you don't want olive flavor because that's very Mediterranean."

But if you do opt for a standard balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing, don't go for the bottom-shelf stuff. A higher quality vinegar and olive oil can make a world of difference in the finish of your dressing.

If you like a creamy dressing but want to avoid the heaviness and caloric regret that comes with ranch or blue cheese, Niksefat suggests using a low-fat yogurt-base for your dressing. "You get that same kind of tangy, creamy flavor, but don't feel bogged down when you're eating the salad," he said.

Emulsification

There's something utterly frustrating about stirring up a vinaigrette and returning five minutes later to find that the vinegar and oil have separated. But don't worry, you're not doing anything wrong.

You don't need to emulsify your dressings, according to Andrew Kirschner, restaurant owner and "The Next Iron Chef" contestant.

But if you simply must have your dressing ingredients harmonizing better, there is a solution. An emulsifier reduces the tension between oil and water, helping to bind the oil with water-based ingredients, such as vinegars. (Who knew you'd learn some chemistry while making a salad?)

Mustard and honey are tasty additions to salad dressings, but they double as emulsifying agents. And while some shy away from it, egg also is an emulsifier, and often the one at play in Caesar dressings.

Thus, you can now consider eggs, honey and mustard seed to be the peacemakers of the culinary world.

Fresh & Easy

Food pros agree that fresh, seasonal ingredients are key to a super salad.

Niksefat said that his restaurant modifies the menu seasonally, including some unique flavors, such as pomegranate juice-based dressings, only when they're in season.

So skip the frozen aisle, and buy fresh, seasonal ingredients. Seek out your local farmers' markets to find the best seasonal produce. With a stretch of warm months ahead, finding good salad ingredients shouldn't be hard.

"Spring and summer is the culinary new year, in my mind, in terms of great vegetables hitting the market," Kirschner said. He is a big proponent of shell bean salads for the summer, when haricots verts and fava beans come into season.

Along with seasonal veggies, fresh fruit adds flavor and texture to a salad. In the spring months, nab some fresh apricots and cherries, and in the summer, look around for yellow peaches and plums.

You'll get bonus points in freshness for buying your produce the day you're making your salad. But if you're stuck in a cold front with no fresh produce in sight turn to dried fruits, seeds and nuts as an alternative way to add flavor and texture.

Say Cheese

All these fresh vegetables and fruits need to be balanced out with some creamy indulgence.

Kirschner loves cheese in salads and recommends avoiding soft cheeses, as you'll get the inevitable clumps. When perusing the dairy aisle, go for crumbled cheese or hard cheese.

He recommends using a vegetable peeler to shave hard cheese very thin.

Herbal Remedy

Herbs and seasonings can do wonders to a salad. Niksefat recommends using either sea salt or coarse French salt (fleur de sel) to heighten the flavor.

Kirschner shared his recipe for an herb mix he used at his former restaurant, Wilshire, in Santa Monica, California. "I did an herb mix every day and it went into just about all of my salads. It was parsley, chervil, chive and tarragon, in equal parts. You toss those into any salad and it elevates it to the next level."

He advised steering clear of hard herbs such as rosemary and thyme in salad, though, as they're not palatable raw.

If you're making a Southeast Asian salad, the quintessential blend, according to Kirschner (and most Southeast Asian cookbooks), is cilantro, mint and Thai basil. Throw in a little lime and crushed peanuts, and boom: You have yourself an Asian salad.

Salad Missteps

One of the most common mistakes cooks make in salad preparation is overdressing or preemptively dressing salad. An overdressed salad can turn out soggy or the dressing flavors can overwhelm the ingredients.

"The Italians say it's not about the sauce, it's about the pasta," Kirschner said. "And a great pasta doesn't have too much sauce because you want to taste the pasta. The same thing is true for salad."

Additionally, dressing a salad too early can be a death knell for your lovely, crisp greens. Aside from the general sogginess pre-dressing causes, the acid in vinaigrette can break down ingredients, Kirschner warns. So if you're throwing a dinner party, serve the dressing on the side or dress the salad immediately before serving.

Also be mindful of the sizes and shapes in which you cut the produce. If the pieces are too big, they can become cumbersome to eat.

Salads should be a fun, creative avenue into culinary experimentation. If you feel you're in a rut, go out to the market and be a gastronomic adventurer.

"I always just go to the market and whatever I see, whatever I'm inspired by, I pick it up and can easily work into a salad," Kirschner said.

While we're not all famous professional chefs, all you have to do to create a superb salad is believe in your skills, explore, innovate -- and always dress the salad last, right before you serve it.

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