Guide to Salad Making

If you are having your leafy greens delivered fresh from Hader Farm, then your salad-making is already on the right track. Wholesome, fresh greens make the base of any salad.  What comes next is up to you!  If you’re having trouble getting started, though, here are the components we believe make a truly great salad:

The Greens

Lettuce, arugula, bok choy, spinach, kale, swiss chard and more are all regular components in a Hader Farm CSA.  We encourage you to mix as many of these together as you like in your salads.  The more the merrier!  Chop into bite sized pieces, and place into a container that has room to hold all your salad, even when you’re mixing it.

The Herbs

Flavor your salad with fresh herbs!  Rosemary, sage, lovage, chives, lemon balm, and more are all frequently included in a CSA share.  Use herbs liberally and feel free to combine flavors in your mouth before you commit to combining them in a salad.  Fresh herbs are often the ingredient that takes a salad to the next level.

If you use your CSA share to meal-prep for the week, then we recommend chopping up your greens and herbs and storing these components WITHOUT the additions below.  Leafy greens and herbs are sensitive to moisture and will spoil quickly if stored with other salad components like tomatoes or dressing.  When meal-prepping, store your DRY greens in an air-tight container or bag and keep in the “crisper” drawer of your fridge.  

The Veggies

Raw peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions are all lovely and traditional components to a salad.  But your salad veggie options include more!  Make it spicy with raw radishes. Enjoy a sour twist with kimchi, pickles, or sauerkraut.  Add cooked veggies like brussel sprouts, broccoli, or peas for extra texture, or add cooked veggies like beets and potatoes for extra calories.

The Proteins

Eggs, cheese, chicken, bacon bits, shrimp, and baked or canned fish are all great in a salad, but there are a lot of vegetarian options, too, like tofu, beans, lentils, quinoa, and nuts.  Adding proteins helps your salad become a meal and not just a side dish, and the diversity of textures (from the crunch of a nut to the softness of baked fish on the tongue) help elevate your salad to expert-level.

The Dressing

Add some healthy fat and extra zest with a quality dressing.  Click HERE to access our list of 51 different salad dressing recipes to enhance your salad.

Feeling Overwhelmed?

Are you feeling overwhelmed with all the choices you can make for your salad?  You’re not alone!  One of the best parts about salad-making is the versatility of salad, but that also means it can be hard to know what a salad needs or what ingredients might make yours better.  Here are some guiding principles to help you make your salad choices:

  • Prioritize Diversity

We believe salads taste best when there is a diversity of textures, flavors (as in herbs and spices), food groups, and colors.  Keep mixing and matching to get yours the way you like it.

  • Include Proteins and Fats

You don’t need to drench your salad in dressing (in fact, we recommend you don’t), but fatty nuts, sour cream, oily dressing, etc. will improve your salad immensely.  Some proteins also serve as fats, such as eggs, cheese, and nuts.  Not only do these ingredients make your salad more filling, but they also make your salad so much more enjoyable.

  • Give it Some Zest

We believe the best salads have at least one acidic flavor enhancement.  These can include fermented toppings, citrus zest, or apple cider vinegar, for example.  If you feel that your salad is bland, make sure to add something acidic!