Foolproof green salad
There is nothing worse than a boring bowl of green leaves served at a table with a meal. I like to add some crunchy vegetables to it and I have a trick to let you make this ahead so the lettuce doesn’t wilt even though you prepared it a couple of hours ago!
Ingredients
For the dill dressing
- 8 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- 1 bunch fresh dill, chopped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the salad
- 8 spring onions, thinly sliced
- 8 celery sticks, thinly sliced
- 1 small fennel bulb, thinly sliced
- ½ large cucumber, halved lengthways and sliced
- 200g/7oz mixed salad leaves, roughly torn
- 1 Romaine lettuce, roughly torn
- 100g/3½oz rocket or watercress, roughly torn
Method
For the dressing, put the oil, vinegars, mustard, sugar and salt and pepper in a bowl and whisk until evenly combined and thickened. Taste and season again if needed, then mix in the dill.
Put the spring onions, celery and fennel in a large salad bowl. Pour in the dressing and toss well.
Place half the cucumber and half the mixed leaves, Romaine lettuce and rocket in the bowl. Season, then top with the remaining cucumber, leaves, Romaine lettuce and rocket. Season well and chill for up to 4 hours
Just before serving, toss everything together.
Recipe Tips
Don’t toss everything together until ready to serve, as the dressing will soften the leaves. The dressing can be chilled in the fridge for up to a week in a screw-top jar. Give it a good shake before using and add the dill just before serving. Use the best quality olive oil for the best flavour.
