The weather is still warm and I just planted seeds in hopes of having a successful fall harvest of lettuce. That’s why salads still taste so yummy! I have been experimenting with a variety of dinner salads lately, so I thought I’d share some of my favorites.
Asian Chicken Salad
I made this the other night (sorry no photo!) and it pleases all – even the little guy. I actually obtained the recipe when I was doing marketing research, and have made a few minor changes to make it easier to prepare!
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 cup Teriyaki sauce
- 2 packages Top Raman noodles
- ~1/2 cup sliced or slivered almonds
- 2 green onions, sliced
- 1 TBSP sesame seeds (or more if you like them a lot!)
- 1 TBSP butter
- ½ cabbage, diced (about 3-4 cups)
- 3-4 cups of lettuce
- 1 can Mandarin oranges
Marinate chicken for 2-3 hours in teriyaki sauce. Grill the chicken while preparing the salad.
Break up noodles and lightly brown them in the butter. Add almonds and seeds. Then combine cabbage, lettuce and green onions.
Dressing:
- ½ cup oil
- 1/3 cup rice vinegar
- ½ cup sugar (I use less)
- 2 TBSP soy sauce
Shake well.
When serving, mix in noodle mixture and oranges. Slice chicken on top and add dressing.
Grilled Steak and Potato Kebabs Over Tomato Watercress Salad from Cuisine at Home Magazine
Sadly, this magazine does not post recipes on its web site, but the Runyon Canyon Community re-printed it in its entirety.
In a nutshell, you grill kebabs of tenderloin and potatoes and place atop a bed of greens. The recipe suggests a watercress and tomato salad, but I use whatever greens I have handy in the fridge with a basic lemon vinaigrette. The mint chimichurri is the secret to making this dish fabulous!
Grilled Lamb Chops and Sausage on Arugula and Mint from License to Grill
Again, I change the recipe to simplify it – and nix the sausage because I’m not a sausage fan. Costco offers lamp chops at a terrific deal, so I buy them and make the dish whenever I summon the energy to fight the crowds.
A wet rub is used to coat the chops that are also sprinkled generously with salt and freshly ground pepper:
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic (I use more)
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes (I use less)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
This rub is great for almost anything, but especially steaks. After the lamb is grilled, I place the chops atop a bed of greens – recommendation is a mixture of arugula and mint – with sliced red onion and cherry tomatoes. Again, I often use mixed greens that I have on hand, but don’t skimp on the mint!
A lemon vinaigrette is a nice accompaniment to the greens.
Have yet to try….
This month’s Cooking Light has two more salads that look delicious, too. The first is the grilled pork salad (this one looks easy) and cheese and pear pork (a little more effort but looks sure to impress).
Please send me your dinner salad ideas! I’d love to try them out!
