Show Up for Salad

FIVE KITCHEN TOOLS FOR SALAD SEEKERS

Good tools are essential for making better salads. No matter if you fancy yourself an artist crafting an elegant repast or a handy person bolting dinner together—these tools are essentials in the kitchen rather than simply nice to have. Yes, you can make some kind of salad without them, but your salad-making game will be so much more productive, fun, and rewarding with a Japanese mandoline or a knife sharp enough to slice a tomato. Worried about breaking the bank for salad? Most of the tools below will last you—and you can get most of them for a reasonable price. And you may already have some version of these essentials lurking in your kitchen!

(ACTUALLY SHARP) KITCHEN KNIVES

Chef’s Knife (8- or 10-inch blade)

If you’ve been cutting vegetables up to this point with an ancient steak knife, get ready to have your mind blown. Chef’s knives, when properly maintained, will transform your slow and tedious country-roads chopping into an express HOV superhighway breaking-the-speed-limit chopping. While you’re at it, get yourself a knife steel (the thing that looks like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle weapon); this does not sharpen the blade but keeps the knife edge straighter for cleaner slicing.

A great knife should not cost more than a new sofa. Quality knives can run between thirty and fifty dollars, have a blade than runs the entire length of the handle, and feel heavy and balanced in your dominant hand. Chef’s knives are designed to rock on the cutting board. The blade should stay in constant contact with the surface. Scour your local T.J. Maxx or Marshalls for discounted knives, or get a knife from my friends at Misen (misen.co), who have made it their mission to create excellent business-class knives (and cookware!) at economy-seating prices.

After you get that knife, learn how to use it. For the most control of you knife, place your thumb on the base of the blade and not just the top of the handle. YouTube is full of great knife skills videos, or see the Misen site (yet again) for some nice displays of chef’s knives in action.

Santoku Knife

Santoku are classic Japanese kitchen knives, as effective and ranging wildly in price as chef’s knives. Santoku knives have a shorter, wider blade with a rather flat edge, unlike the curved edge of a western knife. If you would rather chop chop chop chop things up and down, instead of scissor rocking back and forth on the cutting board, then consider a santoku knife. Many santoku knife blades have the handy feature of a granton edge (shallow divots near the blade), which help prevent hard, starchy vegetables (potatoes, carrots) from gluing themselves to the blade while slicing. There are beautiful knives with blades rippled like samurai swords that cost hundreds, but you can attack salad recipes effectively with a budget santoku under twenty dollars.

Sharp Knives Spare the Tomato

A heavy knife with a really sharp edge practically cuts vegetables for you. It’s a pity when a good knife is too dull to effortlessly slice a tomato. Hear me out: You are far more likely to cut yourself working with a dull blade than a sharp blade (dull blades can slide from vegetables onto fingers faster than you can blink). Respect your wrists, your knuckles, and hard-earned produce and learn how to keep your kitchen knives sharp. I use a simple sharpening tool (less than ten dollars on Amazon.com) for knife-edge upkeep about once every few weeks. A few times a year, I take my hardworking knives to a professional knife sharpener for a hard-core sharpening. Your salads will look, and even taste, all the better for it!

Y-SHAPED PEELERS (STRAIGHT BLADE, SERRATED, JULIENNE PEELER)

In the eternal struggle to determine which vegetable peeler is best, the Y-shaped peeler wins every time. Great for tired hands, achy hands, big hands and small, the Y-shaped peeler is much more pleasant to use than the standard stick peeler.

The Kuhn Rikon Swiss peeler is worth the hype and the same peelers have lived in my kitchen for years and still blast vegetables to shreds. Beyond the standard blade, a serrated blade is ideal for skinning hard winter squash or bumpy-skinned roots like celeriac. For salads, a julienne blade peeler (with large grooves) creates long, elegant threads of carrot, daikon, cucumber, and the like that are more attractive on salads than the stubby, flat shreds that fall out of a box grater.

SALAD SPINNER

I’ve been asked what’s the most-used gadget in my kitchen, and beyond a knife, it may be a salad spinner. Beside drying soft, tender greens perfectly, it’s the ideal thing to wash nearly every vegetable or fruit from kale to blueberries. There are cute little spinners for cleaning 3 lettuce leaves at a time; skip these in favor of the biggest spinner you can fit on your shelf; a 3-quart spinner is the standard for cleaning greens for 3 to 4 servings.

A HUGE STAINLESS STEEL MIXING BOWL (OR A FEW)

I’ve cooked in the kitchens of friends and strangers the world over and often just down the street from my home, and the one thing overall that most people lack (after a suitable kitchen knife) are big mixing bowls! A big bowl, the kind you could cradle a small watermelon starting at about 14 inches wide, is highly effective for making a big salad. They are annoyingly hard to find! I have a set of stainless steel bowls from IKEA’s BLANDA line that after years of cooking look as good as the day I got them, even after making many, many, many salads (and a lifetime of bread and pizza dough for parties too). If you see big stainless steel bowls (or something similar), get them and hold on to them like your salad-making life depends on it.

LONG-HANDLED TONGS

Another item I can’t find salad happiness without and, like everything else in this list, can be purchased for next to nothing and made out of materials build to last. Pick up a pair or two of stainless steel tongs and get ready to combine salad like a pro!

TOOLS OF HONORABLE MENTION

Japanese Mandoline

Not your mother’s or your brother’s French cooking school mandoline! The Japanese mandoline was a revelation to me. I knew well the proper French mandoline—a massive, heavy tool from my ancient cooking school days that cost upward of $300. Hated it. Years later, with a Japanese mandoline in my life, this incredibly useful kitchen tool has changed my salad life unlike any other gadget.

This slim, lightweight, easy-to-store, simple-to-clean device runs about forty dollars. Translucent slivers of daikon or paper-thin slices of zucchini, beets, radishes, and piles of needle-thin cucumber matchsticks slide out of this thing in an instant. The blades are still sword-edge sharp and deserve the same respect as a French mandoline, but cleaning and storing a Japanese mandoline will feel like second nature. Benriner is the brand of choice; steer clear of cheap and flimsy knockoffs. My little “green knob” older-model Benriner mandoline has shredded me through this salad book along with mountains of cucumber and papaya salad meals.

Mason Jars

If you’ve ever seen food on Instagram, you know what a mason jar is, but it is worth the mention that quart widemouthed jars are my go-to storage setup. German mason jars are beautiful and interesting, but I find the combination of a rubber gasket, metal clips, and easy-to-chip glass lid too fussy and fragile to bother with.

High-Powered Blenders and Immersion Blenders

Smooth, creamy dressings need a quality blender to get the job done. I love my Blendtec blender with the extremely effective Twister Jar top: The “arms” of the jar lid scrape down the sides of the jar with minimal effort from you. For a more budget-friendly option, consider the Ninja blender. An immersion blender (stick blender) is my sidearm of choice for puréeing soups and making the occasional dressing too. I don’t use food processors often, with the exception of a mini food processor for attacking small batches of chunky dressings or sauces.

THE SALAD PANTRY

Everything but the Veggies

The following pantry items appear throughout recipes in this book. They’re shelf stable and typically sold in generous portions to stretch into many recipes, so grab them on your next shopping trip and don’t be surprised when you find uses for them in many recipes.

Vinegars: Essential for dressing salads. A bottle of apple cider, red wine, sherry, and white wine vinegars will last through many salads.

Oils: Extra-virgin olive oil and grape-seed oil are my preferred oils for vinaigrettes. On occasion, I may use deep green avocado oil or mellow walnut oil in place of grape-seed oil (they are expensive oils but an affordable luxury). Virgin coconut oil and refined coconut oil (coconut oil refined just enough to remove the coconut aroma) show up in a few tofu recipes and soups in this book.

Dried herbs: The standard jars of dried basil, dill, garlic powder, onion flakes, oregano, and thyme are used in many of these recipes.

Spices: Anaheim chili powder, black pepper (ground and whole kernel), cayenne pepper, chipotle chili powder, cumin, curry power, paprika (hot, sweet, and smoked), mustard powder, and turmeric are essential. A few spice blends are also used in many recipes, including Chinese 5-spice powder, Indian garam masala, and Ethiopian berbere. If you can’t find these blends, I’ve included my version of these spice blends too!

Nuts and seeds: I use plenty of unroasted cashews, sesame seeds (roasted, unhulled), sunflower, sliced almonds, walnuts, pepitas (hulled pumpkin seeds), shelled hemp seeds, and chia seeds, which are essential for creamy dressings and crunchy toppings, in these recipes.

Canned: Pantry staples of beans and tomatoes boost the flavor and nutritional content of many salads! Pick up a few cans of black beans, chickpeas, black-eyed peas, tomato paste, and diced tomatoes (plain and fire roasted).

Dried legumes: While they require a little more planning, nothing beats the flavor of homemade beans. A bag of cranberry beans, green lentils, black lentils, French lentils, red lentils, and sprouted mung beans go into many recipes in this book.

Condiments: Most are refrigerated, and a little goes a long way. These recipes make good use of Dijon mustard, hoisin sauce, tamari, wasabi prepared paste or powder, white or yellow miso, and sriracha hot sauce.

Salt: I am picky about salt! Diamond (brand) kosher salt is a flaky, crunchy, lightly textured salt I use for these recipes (see A Word from the Salt Box, here).

ETHNIC MARKETS

These pantry items can be found in some larger grocery chains and natural food stores but are sometimes cheaper in ethnic markets.

Black sesame seeds: Black sesame seeds have a firm bite and a slightly smoky flavor, and they look great sprinkled on any Asian salad.

Gojuchang (Korean red pepper paste) and Korean red pepper powder: There’s simply no substitute for the mellow heat of Korean red pepper products. Gojuchang is thick, sweetened paste made from fermented chiles; if you love sriracha, you’ll be a fan of gojuchang! Korean red pepper powder are fine flakes with mild fruity heat. Do not substitute with red pepper flakes.

Thai bird chiles (Asian, Thai): When it comes to really hot Asian chiles, slim red Thai bird wins every time. Full of flavor along with spark, a small bag will last through many salads. One or two chiles is usually enough for an entire dish.

Soba noodles: This ever-popular buckwheat noodle makes for fantastic summery salads. Udon noodles (wheat noodles) also are regularly on my shopping list.

Sumac powder (Middle Eastern): This maroon powder with a unique sweet-and-sour flavor is made from ground sumac berries. A dusting over salads just before serving adds a final punch of flavor.

Vinegar, rice: A mild, versatile white vinegar that’s another staple in my pantry of vinegars. Great for adding tang to Asian marinades and dressings.

NATURAL FOODS

As the line between natural and mainstream grocery stores continues to blur, you’ll likely find these items in some mainstream, well-stocked markets.

Nutritional yeast: The essential vegan food that adds umami, cheesy flavor to so many recipes. If possible, buy it in bulk or by the bagful; this is an ingredient and not just a sprinkle-on condiment. For an added boost of B12, look for brands labeled vegetarian support formula.

Seaweeds (also common in Asian markets): There’s a little bit of seaweed in this book, mostly sushi-grade sheets of nori. If you’re looking to add a little ocean flavor to a dressing, look for powdered arame or wakame seaweed.

Tamari: Japanese-style soy sauce that adds salty richness to so many vegan recipes. Grab a bottle of organic or low-sodium or gluten-free tamari, if desired.

Tofu: For the array of tofu recipes you’ll soon dig into, use only firm or extra-firm water-packed (Chinese style). Note: I don’t use silken shelf-stable boxed tofu in this book.

Tempeh: The firm and nutty fermented soybean cake that’s great grilled, baked, or pan-fried. If you have access to fresh, locally made tempeh, then by all means try it with these recipes.

Seitan: The “meat from wheat” is a gluten lover’s best friend when it comes to hearty, chewy meat substitutes. You can make your own simple steamed version at home (here) or use a ready-to-eat, plain, or flavored seitan off the shelf.