Refrigerator Salad
30 Min
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Refrigerator Salad

When I don’t feel like cooking, which does not happen very often given my insatiable desire to cook, dinner turns into a salad. It’s seldom an act of planning, so what ends up on the table is a medley of disparate refrigerator leftovers that need to be used up — aka a refrigerator salad.

 Last week, I bought green and purple beans from three different farmers to determine which tasted best — answer_ They were all indistinguishably delicious — and between home and the restaurant, we are overflowing with persimmons. Boiled whole potatoes are a fixture in our refrigerator ready to be turned into hash browns for breakfast, a sabzi (cooked vegetable) or roasted with herbs and spices for dinner.

 In my book, what all salads must possess is varying qualities of fresh, warm, crunchy, sweet, creamy, tart and spicy, and then they can pass off as a lazy but satisfying dinner. Use this as a guide to create your own.

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Cook Time

30 Minutes

Serves

2

Step 1
Clip the heads off of the green beans and remove any strings the beans may have on their sides. Cut the thicker beans in half lengthwise.
Step 2
Prepare a bowl of ice water. Bring a large pot of salted water (roughly 4 cups of water with 1 teaspoon salt) to boil and blanch half the beans for no more than 30 to 45 seconds. Immediately transfer them to the bowl of ice water. Repeat with rest of the beans. Drain.
Step 3
Marinate the beans with olive oil, minced serrano, salt, and lemon juice. They can be refrigerated for up to a day.
Step 4
Cut the boiled baby potatoes in half and combine them with oil, amchur, and salt. Either roast them for 10 to 12 minutes in a preheated 350°F oven or pan-sear them until golden on all sides.
Step 5
To make the salad, layer the marinated beans with warm roasted potatoes and persimmon wedges. Squeeze lemon juice on top, sprinkle the sesame seeds, add more olive oil if desired, and top with herbs.

GREEN BEAN MARINADE:

8 to 10 ounces fresh green beans (roughly 2 to 3 cups)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small serrano pepper, minced (optional)

1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt

Juice of half a lemon



ROASTED POTATOES:

8 to 10 baby potatoes, boiled

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon amchur (dried green mango powder)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt



TOPPING:

1 medium Fuyu persimmon, peeled and cut into wedges

Juice of half a lemon

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

3 to 4 sprigs of herbs (such as mint, pea shoots, or cilantro)

Olive oil for garnish (optional)

Notes & Variations

  • To maintain the color of green beans, they have to be blanched ever so slightly — they actually taste better when they are cooked longer; however, they will lose the bright chlorophyll green.
  • This salad was made using black sesame oil, but any oil (sesame, olive, or avocado) will work.
  • Chèvre or brie cheese would add a creamier touch to the salad — add it just at the end when building the salad.
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30 Min
DF
GF
V

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