Salade Verte
Fresh Green Salad with Vinaigrette
Preparation info
Difficulty
Easy
Appears in
The Cuisine of the Sun
Published 1990
You can choose from a variety of cultivated greens, such as:
Ingredients
- arugula (also called rocket or roquette)
- Bibb lettuce
- Boston lettuce
- chicory
- endive
- escarole
- fennel
- leaf lettuce
- romaine
- watercress
- dandelion leaves
- field lettuce, or lamb’s tongue
- purslane
or wild or semi-wild greens, such as:
Method
Always follow the same process in preparing the greens: Remove any wilted leaves; wash and dry the greens carefully; break into pieces with your hands; put leaves between kitchen towels and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Prepare Vinaigrette. Put the greens in a large glass, china, or earthenware bowl, add vinaigrette, and toss with your hands. Add Chapons and serve.
Variations
Salade de Noël, to accompany the Christmas turkey, is made with the tenderest celery leaves and the thick lower part of the stalks a few fresh truffles, anchovy fillets, and seasoned with newly pressed olive oil.
Salade de Pâques, to accompany the Easter leg of lamb, consists of crisp Boston lettuce seasoned with vinaigrette and garnished with hard-boiled eggs quartered lengthwise.
Salade mesclun (from the Niçois mescla, to mix) is a strong, bitter, invigorating salad made with dandelion, arugula, field lettuce, purslane, and watercress seasoned with vinaigrette and garnished with garlicky chapons.
Lastly, you can, of course, prepare endless variations of salades composées (mixed greens) using such combinations as endives and fennel bulbs or watercress, or endive and Boston lettuce—all seasoned with vinaigrette.
© 1990 Mireille Johnston estate. All rights reserved.