salad Archives - Joie De Vivre

Appetisers and Hors D'oeuvres, Fruit Inspired, Salads, Savoury, Vegetables & Sides

Pomelo Salad [VG] [GF]

Pomelo isn’t the regular, run of the mill kind of fruit you’d just find, lying around your house. But if you do find it, you know, just lying around the house, be sure to make this salad with it! My Pomelo Salad uses humble ingredients like coriander, mint. peanuts, shredded coconut, onion, chilli, sugar, soy sauce and peanuts to give that amazing mouthful of sweet, savoury, nutty, sour, spicy and crunchiness, all in each and every bite! Pomelo salad is a staple Thai salad, which can also be replaced with grapefruit or even raw papaya.

I’ve buried my nose in Samin Nosrat’s book, Salt Fat Acid Heat, which explores how to cook, rather than what to cook using a recipe. Of course, the book does have recipes, but the fundamental idea that sets this book apart from a “cookbook” is that the book makes you understand the rules elements of cooking – how to use acid, how to cook with fat, how to season your food with layers of salt, how to apply (or not apply) heat. AND, the one essential unwritten rule that would take you the furthest when you pick up an apron is this: TASTE, TASTE, TASTE. Read more…

October 8, 2018 | 1 Comment

Appetisers and Hors D'oeuvres, Salads, Savoury, Vegetables & Sides

Carrot, Chickpea and Pistachio Salad

As someone who grew up in Bombay (ah, this “Mumbaikar” terminology just doesn’t sit well with me) I am no stranger to the monsoon. This isn’t like any other type of monsoon. Apart from the massive downpours and days of grey gloom, there’s also much to enjoy about it (mostly indoor activities, such as eating and drinking). But my ode to the rain and the link to this particular salad is that in the monsoon, reliability and availability of fresh produce is slim, especially the leafy variants. Of course, living in the buzzing metropolis means we get blueberries in the monsoon and strawberries in the summer heat, but I like the idea of having some seasonally favourable salads in my repertoire. Read more…

August 6, 2018 | 0 comment

Appetisers and Hors D'oeuvres, Salads, Savoury, Vegetables & Sides

Im back, with a baby! (and the Perfect Summer Salad)

Hi there,

Its been a while.

Almost shy of a year, but who’s counting?

(I am, its been 10 months).

My last post was in June, while braving the summer heat and the insane humidity that is a forbearer of my beloved monsoon, when I was slaving away making pasta from scratch, figuring out innovative ways to use morel that was freshly brought in from Kashmir (which now, 10 months later, is still lying patiently in a glass jar in the pantry). But all this aside, we’ve been blessed with the most adoring little baby girl, and I’m over the moon. She’s almost 2 months now, which is why I now feel slightly able to hit the kitchen again (I couldn’t stand the strong smells in the kitchen for all my trimesters, and all I wanted to cook was comfort food like manchurian and iced tea which I wasn’t risking to eat out due to the fear of MSG overload).

My pregnancy was a ride, but a really welcome one! Now that baby is out, mama’s feelings towards the smells have alleviated, letting me slowly but surely return to my beloved kitchen. I wondered whether my first post-natal blog post would include any of my pregnancy experiences, like aversions / obsessions / recipes and Read more…

April 17, 2017 | 0 comment

Appetisers and Hors D'oeuvres, Fruit Inspired, Salads, Savoury, Vegetables & Sides

Kale Salad with Pecans, Cranberries, Apple and Baby Radish

Is there a thing such as ‘Blogger’s Block’, you know, like writer’s block? Essentially, I too am writing, but just online and on a blog, so does that make me not a writer? I’m not so sure about that hypothesis, but what I am sure about at this hot, humid, sticky moment in the beginning of what threatens to be a horrendous summer, is that I have a case of whatever block you may term it. So now coming to the crux of my irrelevant public analysis of what block I am being plagued by – I am basically looking for an excuse to not continue tapping my fingers feverishly over the keyboard, as if it is a mission which I cannot fail.

But today, I am going to delve right into this beautiful, summary and fresh salad recipe. I know I’m (fashionably) late to join the Kale Revolution – but better late than never! This salad first came together as a beautiful mish-mash of ingredients in the fridge plus a big bunch of kale that was incredibly inviting at the supermarket, I had to get my hands on it. I started with apple, to add a bit of sweetness to the otherwise bitter kale, but this batch of american kale was far from bitter! Adding some thinly sliced baby radish, plump ruby red cranberries, toasted pecans, white & black sesame seeds and a few tablespoons of garlic scented cheese (you can easily substitute cheddar or crumbly cheeses like feta or goats cheese) with a basic and effective honey mustard vinaigrette to tie it all together!

Iceberg Lettuce Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing

Sometimes, stinky cheese is just what the doctor ordered. Well in my case, any doctor that ordered me (any kind of) cheese would become my new favourite person. While I love adding cheese to salads, very rarely will I made a dressing, whose entire flavour profile is derived from the cheese. I also find that of all cheeses, it is blue cheese that most people shy away from, not due to lack of an acquired taste, but more due to preconceived notions. And the fact that it smells. Last evening, I just wanted a salad, without fuss and too much effort. So begins the birth of the Iceburg Lettuce Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing.

Baby Spinach & Avocado Salad with Tomato Wedges and Dried Cranberries

Let me just begin by saying that I’ve made and shared (with friends) this recipe a few times already, and I felt that it needed to get on the blog ASAP. That being said, I also realised that because I’ve made it again and again and again, its become like second nature to me, and often when I am mechanically going about my favourites and staples, I forget to pay attention to the important details like photographs!

I do hope this little glitch will not deter you from re-creating this superbly simple and satisfying salad at home. I personally find honey mustard and avocado to be a match made in heaven. The use of two types of mustard and 2 types of citrus really complement the salad ingredients, and require very little prep and chopping. The salad and dressing kept separate, make a great lunch at your desk as well. I also love the fact that it is gluten free, vegan and dairy free. Read more…

April 16, 2015 | 0 comment