Men's Clothing Forums banner

Do we need a salad thread or maybe just a healthier eating thread?

24K views 415 replies 11 participants last post by  Oldsarge 
#1 ·
Red meat, pizza, pasta, and adult libations are all delightful, but In this household we have been trying to continue eating, exercising, and reading our way to better physical and emotional health through the pandemic. We have been eating a good bit of salad and have developed some nice combinations to turn them into meals.

Tonight will be mesclun (mixed spring greens), thinly sliced red onion, canned beet slices, artichoke hearts canned in water, and green olive slices tossed with sliced, pepperoncini rings, and grilled chicken in a vinaigrette of 2:1 olive oil and white wine vinegar, shaken with a bit of Maille Dijon. I know it doesn't speak to the soul the way steak frites does, but it is a very tasty combination.

Another healthy-ish one we like is "cheating" ramen. Heat vegetable broth with a splash of mirin, a splash of light soy, grated ginger, and garlic and cook shiitake mushrooms, carrot matchsticks, and green onion in it. Make an eight minute boiled egg and peel it. Into the broth toss some very thinly sliced lean beef and some ramen noodles. Garnish with more green onion, sunflower sprouts, and the egg, halved.
 
#3 ·
LOL. The reason I keep posting pictures of things 'illegal, immoral and fattening' is that I crave what I'm not eating. Yes, by all means. Let there be a salad thread. However, be warned. If I ever come across a picture of a 'Bacon and Bleu' salad, you'll get it with both barrels.
 
#7 ·
As long as my salad looks and tastes like a Caesar salad, with anchovy rubbed around the bowl and several hard boiled eggs sliced on top, I really like salads!

Seriously, a well prepared salad is really quite good, just don't make it half a head of iceberg lettuce with a slice or three of tomatoes, drenched in ranch.
 
#9 ·
The classic 'wedge' with iceberg, bleu cheese, hard cooked egg and bacon is quite acceptable. Make it big enough and it's a satisfactory lunch. Make it small and it is an excellent accompaniment to a rare ribeye.

Iceberg-Wedge-Salad-with-Blue-Cheese-Dressing-square-Culinary-Hill.jpg
 
#10 ·
Not salad but delicious...Start some short grained brown rice and set the timer forty minutes. Chunk extra firm tofu into bite sized pieces and cut up red bell pepper, onion, celery, and carrot. You can add other things if you like such as sweet potato, okra, zucchini, or crookneck. Press the tofu to make it more dry. Shake the tofu in cornstarch. Sear the tofu in a wok in a little hot oil. Add the vegetables and half a four ounce jar (or more) of Thai Kitchen red curry paste. Add a can of coconut milk, three spoons of brown or Turbinado sugar, and a splash of oyster sauce, fish sauce, or soy sauce. Let it simmer, covered, until the rice is ready. Serve it over the rice garnished with chopped peanuts, coconut, mango chutney, and piccalilli.
 
#13 ·
Food Ingredient Stew Recipe Soup
Another "not salad but still delicious" one, triggered by a current discussion about Olive Garden on the pasta thread...minestrone!

The key is the broth. I may have shared this before, but get a one gallon freezer bag and stuff any broth appropriate vegetable trimmings in it: onion, celery, carrot, and mushroom ends, lettuce cores, tomato navels. When the bag is so full it won't hold any more, dump the contents onto a jelly roll pan, sprinkle lightly with olive oil, and roast about half an hour at 400F. Put the roasted vegetables in a stock pot with about five quarts of water, a dozen pepper corns, three tablespoons of sea salt, and a couple of palmfuls of herbes de Provence. Simmer three hours and strain into containers to freeze or use.

To make minestrone take a couple of quarts of broth and add a diced potato, a sliced carrot or two, and half a sliced onion. Simmer until they are soft. Add a can of cut green beans, a can of cannelini, a can of ceci (garbanzos), and a small can of whole San Marzano tomatoes, crushed in your fist. Add some peperoncino (red pepper flakes), ground black pepper, and dried oregano. Add a Parmigiano rind. Toss in pasta of your choice. I like orecchiette. Let it simmer until the pasta is done and you are ready to eat it. Optional...add fresh spinach leaves and fresh basil.
 
Top