Category: Salad

Ukrainian Salad

  • I bought this jar of salad from my Polish shop.
  • It is Sałatka ukraińska – Ukrainian salad.
  • It was very good.
  • Good to have in as a standby.
  • I wanted to make a similar salad.
  • I looked this up and could not find a recipe similar with beetroots.
  • I noted down the ingredients written on the label.
  • Vinegar and sugar were used in the jar – I used lemon juice and honey.
  • The salad will come out differently each time if you change the proportions of the vegetables.

Ingredients

  • 3 medium boiled beetroots
  • 1 onion
  • ½ a small white cabbage or sweetheart cabbage
  • 1 large or 2 medium carrots
  • 1 red pepper
  • Juice from 2 lemons
  • 2 tablespoons of runny – honey 
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Method

  • Grate the beetroots using a coarse grater.
  • Chop the onion into fine pieces.
  • Shred the cabbage into fine strands.
  • Grate the carrot using a coarse grater
  • Chop the pepper into small pieces.
  • Mix all the vegetables together.
  • Mix the lemon juice and honey.
  • Mix the dressing with the vegetables
  • Season to taste.

Note

  • Tastes good straight away but can be kept in the fridge for several days as well.

    Carrot Leek & Apple Salad

    I was sorting out my recipe box notes and cuttings when I came across this recipe from one of my cousins in Białystok for a salad made from carrots, leeks and apples.

    I had not noted down whether the leeks were just sliced or if they were blanched as well so I tried both ways and both salads were super.

    Ingredients

    • 2-3 carrots
    • 1 leek
    • 1- 2 eating apples – Braeburns are good
    • Juice of a lemon
    • 2-3 tablespoons of Mayonnaise
    • Salt & pepper to taste

    Method – 1

    • Grate the carrots using a coarse grater.
    • Thinly slice the leeks and cut the rings into halve or quarters.
    • Core the apple and chop into small chunks.
    • Pore the lemon juice over the salad.
    • Add the mayonnaise and mix well.
    • Salt and pepper to taste.

     

    Method – 2

    • As above except for the leeks.
    • Put the cut leeks into hot water and simmer for a few minutes.
    • Allow the leeks to cool.
    • Drain the leeks and pat dry with kitchen roll or a clean tea towel.
    • Mix all the ingredients together.

    Fruity Cabbage Salad

    Here is a salad made with one of Poland’s favourite vegetables – cabbage.

    It is a more fruity variation of a cabbage & orange salad I posted over three years ago!

    Ingredients

    • A small white cabbage or sweetheart cabbage
    • 2 oranges
    • 3 eating apples – red skinned for colour contrast.
    • 1 tin of  pineapples
    • 80g raisins or sultanas
    • A pinch of salt & pepper to taste
    • *
    • Dressing – Mayonnaise & pineapple juice

    Method

    • Peel the oranges removing all the pith.
    • Cut them into slices, separate the segments and then chop these into small pieces.
    • Finely shred and chop the cabbage

    • Core the apples and chop them into small pieces.
    • Drain the pineapples from the juice.
    • Chop the pineapples into small pieces.
    • Mix the cabbage and fruits together.
    • Mix mayonnaise and some pineapple juice together to make a thin dressing.
    • Add the dressing and mix everything well together.
    • You can add salt and pepper here if desired.

    Served here in my mother’s vintage glass bowl.

    I tend to make this salad a while before it is needed as with the magic of osmosis – raisins become plumped up with the juice from the oranges and pineapple. The dressing becomes sweet from the sugars in the raisins.

    This salad goes well with roast dinners, cold smoked meats and Polish style sausages.

    Another Pasta Salad

    • When I am cooking some pasta for a meal,  I often do a bit more so I have some left to make a pasta salad the next day.
    • Small shapes are the best or you can chop larger or longer pieces up.
    • Try not to over cook the pasta.
    • Mayonnaise or mayonnaise based dressing  are best with these salads.
    • Cooked vegetables work well with pasta salads and also tinned or bottled vegetables and so this is a good store cupboard dish.

    Ingredients

    • 400 – 500g cold cooked pasta.
    • 1 small tin of sweetcorn, drained (or frozen loose sweetcorn – cooked)
    • 150g of cooked frozen peas
    • 150g of cooked whole green beans – chopped.
    • 1-2 tablespoons of full fat mayonnaise
    • *
    • Salt & ground back pepper to taste

    Method

    • Mix together the pasta and cooked vegetables.
    • Mix in the mayonnaise.
    • Season to taste.

    Cabbage & Gherkin Salad

    I had half a sweetheart cabbage left after a meal and not much else in the fridge.

    I put together the ingredients I had and got a delicious new salad.

    Use red onions if you can as these give a good colour contrast.

    Ingredients

    • ½ a sweetheart cabbage
    • 4-5 medium sized gherkins
    • 2 small red onions
    • 3 tablespoons of gherkins liquid from the jar
    • 2-3 tablespoons of full-fat mayonnaise
    • Salt & pepper

    Method

    • Cut the cabbage into fine shreds.
    • Cut the gherkins into round slices.
    • Chop the onions into small pieces.
    • Mix the chopped ingredients with the gherkin liquid and the mayonnaise.
    • Season with salt and pepper.

     

     

    Carrot, Leek & Apple Salad

    As well as any cookery books and magazines, I have notes and cuttings  from various sources.  Ever so often I look through these for inspiration and think “Yes, I must try that!”.

    Here is a recipe for a salad that I jotted down when visiting one of my cousins in Białystok.

    Ingredients

    • 2 large carrots – coarse grated
    • 2 leeks cut into fine slices
    • 2 eating apples – cored and rough chopped
    • Juice of half a lemon
    • 2 -3 tablespoons of full fat mayonnaise
    • Chopped chives to serve

      Method

    • Mix everything together apart from the chives.
    • Put into a serving dish
    • Sprinkle the chives on top and serve.

    Served in Royal Doulton – Carnation – 1982 – 1998

    Pepper & Apple Salad

    Here is a refreshing salad with a honey and yoghurt dressing for a sunny day.

    Ingredients

    • 1 red pepper
    • 1 yellow or orange pepper
    • 2 onions
    • 2 eating apples such as Braeburn
    • Juice of 1 lemon
    • *
    • 2 tablespoons of runny honey
    • 3 tablespoons of Greek style yoghurt
    • *
    • Flat-leaved parsley to garnish

    Method

    • Cut the peppers and remove the stalk and seeds.
    • Cut the peppers into very thin strips.
    • Slice the onions finely.
    • Put the lemon juice into a bowl.
    • Core the apples and cut into small chunks.
    • Place the apples into the lemon juice.
    • Mix the peppers, onions and apples together.
    • Put the salad into a serving dish.
    • *
    • Mix the honey and yoghurt together.
    • Put this mixture on top of the salad.
    • Garnish with chopped flat-leaved parsley.

    Waldorf Salad

    Recently I have been watching my box set of Fawlty Towers DVDs, which is still so amusing after all these years.

    Whilst watching the episode with the American guest and the Waldorf salad  – when famously Basil Fawlty says  “I think we’re just out of  waldorfs” – I thought – I have never actually had that -must look it up and make it!

    Waldorf salad was created by Oscar Tschirky, a Swiss-American, at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York in 1896.

    The original was made with celery, apple and grapes – nuts were added a bit later.

    Either use green skinned apples for an all green look or red skinned for a nice contrast.

    Toasted walnuts are delicious – just take care and watch them so you do not burn them!

    Ingredients

    • 6 sticks of celery
    • 2 eating apples – Braeburn are good
    • 100g walnuts – toasted
    • 100 -150g of seedless green grapes
    • 2-3 tablespoons of full fat mayonnaise
    • Juice of half a lemon
    • *
    • Crispy lettuce leaves to serve

    Method

    • Trim the celery and cut into small slices.
    • Core the apples and chop into small pieces
    • Chop the toasted walnut into small pieces
    • Cut the grapes into halves
    • Mix the celery, apples, nuts and grapes together
    • Mix the mayonnaise with the lemon juice
    • Mix the dressing with the salad
    • *
    • Hand shred the lettuce leaves and put them in the bottom of a shallow bowl
    • Heap the salad on top of the lettuce

    Serving Variation

    For individual servings put one or two lettuce leaves per person in a small dish and spoon some salad in the middle.

    Salad after Fawlty Towers

    Recently I have been watching my box set of Fawlty Towers DVDs, which is still so amusing after all these years.

    Whilst watching the episode with the American guest and the Waldorf salad  – when famously Basil Fawlty says  “I think we’re just out of  waldorfs” – I thought must try that!

    I needed a salad for dinner but realised I did not have all the ingredients so decided to make a similar salad with the ingredients I had.

    I will get all the ingredients for a real Waldorf salad and make that soon.

    Ingredients

    • Half a white or sweetheart cabbage
    • 2 eating apples – I used Braeburn*
    • 100g of walnuts – chopped
    • 2 -3 tablespoons of mayonnaise – full fat is best

    Method

    • Shred and chop the cabbage into fine pieces.
    • Core the apples and chop into small pieces.
    • Mix the cabbage, apples and walnuts together.
    • Mix in the mayonnaise.

    * 

    Braeburn apples originated in New Zealand in the 1950s.

    They are named after Braeburn Orchard where they where first commercially grown.

     

     

     

    Red on Red!

    • I recently went to a family gathering, although it was in fact a very sad occasion, it did include a lovely buffet meal.
    • There was a beetroot and carrot salad served, which had a lovely sweetness and seemed to me quite Polish in style.
    • I asked one of cousins if she knew who had made the salad and was told that this was one of the dishes supplied by a local “deli” in Consett.
    • So I have had a go at making this and made one with beetroot and another with red cabbage – both delicious.
    • Serve with cold meats and Polish style sausages or roast pork or grilled lamb chops.

    Sweet Red Dressing

    I made the same dressing for both of the salads – using redcurrant the first time and lingonberry the second.

    Ingredients

    • Around 200g (7-8 tablespoons) of either Redcurrant jelly, Lingonberry jam or Cranberry sauce.
    • Juice of one lemon.

    Method

    • Put the jelly/jam into a small saucepan.
    • Add the lemon juice.
    • Heat gently and stir with a wooden spoon.
    • Keep stirring until the ingredients have combined and you have a thick liquid.
    • Leave to cool before use.

    Beetroot & Carrot Salad

    Ingredients

    • Boiled beetroots  – I used 2 vacuum packets
    • 2 Carrots

    Method

    • Chop the beetroot into small chunks or cubes.
    • Grate the carrots using the coarse grater.
    • Mix the beetroot and carrots together.
    • Pour the dressing over them and mix well.
    • *
    • I found that this was better if it was left for many hours as the beetroot really absorbs the dressing.
    • You can add the dressing to the beetroots first and leave overnight and then add the carrots the next day.

    • Instead of chopping the beetroot you can grate it using a coarse grater.

    Red Cabbage & Carrot Salad

    Ingredients

    • Half a red cabbage
    • 2 carrots

    Method

    • Grate the red cabbage using a coarse grater.
    • Grate the carrots.
    • Mix the red cabbage and carrots together.
    • Pour the dressing over them and mix well.
    • *
    • This is also better when left for several hours before serving.

    Note 

    Both keep well for several days in a covered glass or plastic container in the fridge.