Salads That Won’t Wilt
This past New Year’s Day, a few hours after returning from a three-day trip to San Diego, we gave a big open house. My friend Elizabeth said, “Well, you can do that, because you’re a cook.” But the real reason I could pull it off was the menu--a copious cheese board, endless loaves of bread, earthenware bowls piled high with tangerines and several beautiful, generous buffet salads, the most important one being black-eyed peas with a cumin-scented vinaigrette.
Rather than deteriorate over time, the best buffet salads get better. Instead of wilting, the ingredients marinate in the dressing, and the flavors and textures evolve and deepen.
Before I left for my long weekend on Friday, I had cooked the black-eyed peas and made the vinaigrette, a combination of vinegar, olive oil, cooking liquid from the beans, mustard, cumin, salt and garlic. I knew that the beans would keep for three days if they were refrigerated in the dressing (in fact, they kept for more than a week, until we finally polished off the leftovers). When I got home from San Diego, I chopped peppers and cilantro and added them to the beans before setting the salad out in big bowls.
The beans now taken care of, I cleaned, cored and sliced several bulbs of fennel, more red peppers, and mushrooms for a fabulous salad that I had perfected a couple of months before, when I made it at an event for 250 people. Making it for 40 took a lot less time (OK, I confess: I asked my friend Cliff to buy, wash and chop the herbs for both salads, knowing I would be away and miss the farmers market, and would be pressed for time when I got back). This salad has a lemony vinaigrette. As it sits, the mushrooms soak up the marinade while the other vegetables remain crisp. It’s light and heavenly, and pretty as well.
Salads that hold are often at the center of my buffets when I’m entertaining, especially for a crowd. When I lived in Paris, I gave a New Year’s Eve party every year that began at around 10 p.m. and often ended the next morning when the Metro began running again (they stop around 1 a.m.) Black-eyed peas vinaigrette was de rigueur , but I also set out other salads made with ingredients such as fennel and red peppers, endive and apples, and cucumbers--foods that don’t wilt.
My standard summer salad is a Greek salad made with tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, onion, feta and olives, seasoned with oregano and/or mint and a simple oil and vinegar dressing. Although the vegetables tend to sweat as the salad sits, they retain their crunch, and the liquid they release serves as a delicious feta-and herb-scented brine that is perfect for sopping up with crusty country bread.
It’s good to include a combination of foods that can absorb liquid without losing their integrity, such as beans and mushrooms, tomatoes and cucumbers, and foods that tend to retain their crunch and play off the dressing, such as peppers, fennel, celery and onion.
These salads have another great attribute: Not only do they last for a long time once you dress them and set them out, but they can also be made ahead. Some are best left undressed until you’re ready to put them on the buffet, but the beans will be fine sitting in their vinaigrette in the refrigerator while you run off for a three-day holiday.
If you’re grilling your main dish, with one or two of these salads on the menu you can get all of the accompanying dishes well out of the way beforehand. Leftovers are good too; you won’t throw these out, you’ll just keep eating them until they’re gone.
There’s one other fabulous thing about salads that hold: You don’t have to wash any lettuce!
Bean Salad With Cumin Vinaigrette
Active Work Time: 20 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 1 hour * Vegetarian
Although I usually use black-eyed peas for this salad, you could also make it with black beans or pintos, or a combination. The beans in their marinade will keep for 5 to 7 days in the refrigerator, but if you aren’t serving them right away, add the cilantro just before serving. If you make the salad with black beans or pintos, you will have to soak the beans, and the cooking time will be longer--about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. To make this with canned beans, use 4 cans of beans, and substitute olive oil for the bean broth. Drain and rinse, and proceed with the salad instructions.
BEANS
1 pound black-eyed peas, washed and picked over
6 cups water
1 onion, chopped
3 to 4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 bay leaf
Salt
Combine the black-eyed peas and water in a soup pot, casserole or Dutch oven and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly and spoon off any foam. When all the foam has been spooned off, add the onion, garlic and the bay leaf. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer 30 minutes. Add salt to taste, about 2 teaspoons, and continue to simmer until the beans are thoroughly tender but still intact, another 10 to 15 minutes.
Taste and adjust the seasonings. Drain the beans over a bowl (reserve 1/2 cup of the liquid for the vinaigrette) and return them to the pot or transfer to a large bowl. It’s fine if some of the broth remains.
VINAIGRETTE
1/3 cup red wine vinegar or Sherry vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced, pounded or pressed, optional
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons ground cumin
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup cooking liquid from the beans
1/4 cup olive oil
Mix together the vinegar, garlic, mustard, cumin, salt and pepper to taste, bean liquid and olive oil. Stir the vinaigrette into the beans.
ASSEMBLY
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
3 to 4 cups baby arugula, spinach, or salad greens, optional
If you’re serving the salad warm, add the red and green bell peppers and cilantro. If serving it cold, allow the beans to cool slightly and refrigerate them, 2 to 3 hours. Shortly before serving, stir in the bell peppers and cilantro.
Taste and adjust the seasonings. Serve the salad from a large bowl or earthenware pot, or if using the greens, line a big salad bowl or platter, or individual plates with the salad greens. Give the beans a stir, pile them onto the greens, and serve.
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4 to 6 main-dish servings or 8 starters. Each of 8 servings: 136 calories; 87 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 7 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 17 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 3.91 grams fiber.
Greek Summer Salad
Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 30 minutes * Vegetarian
Once tomatoes hit the farmers market I begin to make this salad on a regular basis. In addition to the flavors of the vegetables with the feta and olives, I appreciate the ease in preparation; nothing is finely chopped, and there’s no lettuce to wash. The ingredients, without the salt and herbs, can be prepared and assembled hours before serving. Add salt and pepper, and toss with the vinegar, olive oil and herbs shortly before serving. Have plenty of crusty bread on hand for sopping up the brine.
1 red onion or sweet onion
1 teaspoon white vinegar
5 medium or large tomatoes
1/2 European cucumber or 1 regular cucumber
1 large green, red or yellow bell pepper
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 to 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar or Sherry vinegar
4 to 6 tablespoons olive oil
3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint, or 1 teaspoon dried oregano, or a combination
12 to 16 Kalamata olives, pitted if desired
Cut the onion in half lengthwise, then slice it crosswise into semi-circles. Place the onion in a bowl, cover it with cold water and add the vinegar. Let the onion sit for at least 10 minutes, preferably longer, while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
If the tomatoes are thick-skinned, peel them, then cut them into wedges, and cut the wedges in half if they’re very large. Peel the cucumber, if you prefer, then cut it in half lengthwise, then slice it. Cut the bell pepper into 1-inch pieces or rings.
Drain the onion and place it in a serving bowl. Toss it with the tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, salt and pepper to taste, vinegar, oil, feta, mint and olives. Taste, adjust the salt and pepper, and serve.
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6 servings. Each serving: 149 calories; 468 mg sodium; 13 mg cholesterol; 14 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 9 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 2.33 grams fiber.
Fennel, Red Pepper and Mushroom Salad
Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 35 minutes * Vegetarian
Slice the vegetables as thinly as you can for this salad.
2 pounds fennel bulbs, trimmed, quartered and cut into thin slices crosswise
2 large red bell peppers, seeded and cut into 2-inch-long pieces
8 mushrooms (about 1/4 pound), thinly sliced
2 tablespoons minced parsley
1 tablespoon minced chives
1/4 cup shaved Parmesan
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons Sherry vinegar
1 clove garlic, very finely minced or pressed
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
Combine the fennel, bell peppers, mushrooms, parsley, chives and Parmesan in a large bowl.
Whisk together the lemon juice, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper to taste and the olive oil. Toss with the salad and serve.
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8 servings. Each serving: 179 calories; 148 mg sodium; 2 mg cholesterol; 15 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 11 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 3.91 grams fiber.
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Shulman is author of “Mediterranean Light” and “Provencal Light” (both published by William Morrow).
Bowl and plate from Smith & Hawken stores.