- Wash all lettuces and herbs in a sink full of cold water to remove dirt and grit.
- Invest in a salad spinner to dry lettuce instantly.
- Buy your ingredients in season.
- Experiment with different oils such as pumpkin, hazelnut or walnut.
- Add cheese, nuts, croutons or crumbled prosciutto.
- Grow your own baby lettuces from seed in pots.
- Use an old jam jar to mix your salad dressing - no whisks are needed.
- Chew on a piece of flat-leaf parsley after eating garlicky salads to remedy bad breath.
- Refrigerate lettuce wrapped in damp paper towelling and plastic bags to keep it fresh.
- Try making Thai salads with lime/fish sauce dressing.
- Choose the right lettuce. Most fall into three groups: spicy (watercress), bitter (radicchio) and mild (red oak leaf).
- Never buy tired-looking lettuce with brown spots.
- Don't mix too many flavours. Stick to one theme (eg, Thai, Mediterranean)
- Avoid cheap acidic vinegars and bland blended oils.
- Don't buy mayonnaise or aioli dressing. Make your own instead.
- Don't stop with lettuce. Tomatoes, chickpeas, couscous and fruit are all excellent in salads.
- Don't add onions until just before serving or the flavour will overwhelm the other ingredients.
- Don't limit your self to supermarkets - farmers' markets have interesting lettuces, such as mesclun and mizuna.
- Don't dress your salad until just before serving or it will go soggy.
- Don't refrigerate tomatoes because it changes their texture.
- Don't assume a salad must be served cold - make warm dressings as well.
- Don't skimp - pay that little bit extra for buffalo mozzarella.
Many years ago, when I used to be a landlady for university students, one student said 'the worse your food looks, the better it tastes'! Backhanded compliment or what?!
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