In winter and summer, such a wonderful storehouse of vitamins as green salad leaves became available to us. Not only is this noble culture low in calories and healthy, it is also very tasty and full of healing properties. It turns out that this wonderful dietary plant has more than a thousand varieties!

If you at least periodically add an edible herbal delicacy to your diet, you can not only enjoy the rejuvenating effect of the body, but also improve the functioning of the digestive system and cardiac activity.

In addition to the mineral-vitamin complex, its leaves are rich in fiber. The use of this natural product helps to significantly improve metabolic processes, and, consequently, to lose unnecessary kilograms.

Among the advantages of this product is the fact that it is excellent "friends" with meat, vegetables, and cereals.

And therefore, it is used not only as one of the main components of the dish, but also decorate salads and snacks with it. Thus making them much more appetizing, attractive and spectacular.

The variety is really great, but conditionally they can be attributed to only two categories: leaf and head. The leafy ones grow in the form of a rosette or a bush, and the head ones very much resemble white cabbage in shape, only the head is formed from not too tight and slightly “loose” leaves.

Iceberg

Another name is "ice salad". An amazing crunchy product, really very similar to ordinary cabbage with large green juicy leaves of light or vice versa bright color.

A distinctive feature is its cold resistance and the possibility of a three-week storage.

If during the growth period it did not have enough water when watering, then it can get a slightly bitter taste. If the care was organized correctly, then it will turn out not very pronounced, and a little sweetish. You can even consider it neutral. This is what makes it a favorite ingredient for many cold dishes.

As a rule, it is served simply by separating the leaves from each other, or cut into strips or cubes, or torn into pieces by hand.

By the way, in order for the leaves of any variety in the finished dish to always look fresh, and also to keep their taste and useful qualities for a longer time - they need to be torn with your hands, without using cutting devices, including a knife !!!

"Iceberg" can be easily combined with any kind of meat, seafood, vegetables and sauces, because it does not drown out the taste of the main ingredients, but gives just the right touch of freshness.

Batavia

This species is one of the brightest representatives in its category. Its value lies simply in the record content of vitamins and nutrients. Here is the whole complex of B vitamins, magnesium, beta-carotene ..., it is probably easier to list what it does not contain.

It can be recognized by the wavy edges on the leaves, while the rosette itself is quite large and sprawling. Depending on the variety and growing conditions, the plant can be either a beautiful, rich green color or have a red-brown color.

He is loved by many for his pleasant slightly sweet taste, as well as for his gentle crunch. Batavia goes perfectly with any meat, poultry and fish, as well as with all available vegetables. In each of these compositions, it can be used both as one of the main components and as a decoration.

Butterhead

This salad is the most affordable and inexpensive and has been known since ancient times. Previously, it was specially grown for vitamin E of plant origin. And indeed, if you lightly rub its smooth beautiful leaves, you can feel the oily tenderness on your fingers.

Its taste is delicate and incredibly tender, with soft pleasant notes, and at the same time it is juicy and slightly sweet.

The outer leaves of the plant and its petiole may be slightly bitter, so they are often simply cut off and not eaten.

It is quite affordable and affordable. Who knows what it looks like, always tries to get it for eating. It goes very well with its other relatives, and even a sandwich turns out to be especially tasty with it. And just using it as a decoration is always nice.

An excellent fatigue reliever, it is best enjoyed simply with your favorite dressing and can be completely dispensed with other ingredients.

This plant also has one more feature - its leaves can be used to wrap rolls at home.

But it is worth remembering that the butterhead cannot be stored for a long time, because the content of harmful nitrates may increase in it because of this.

Witloof

Its other name is lettuce chicory. Crispy original-shaped heads of succulent leaves can have a color from white to bright purple. The paler the color, the tastier and less bitter the taste.

The method of growing it is interesting - it takes place in two stages: first, in the summer, root crops are allowed to ripen on the beds, and then in the dark, so that bitterness does not form due to light, fairly dense, slightly elongated and pointed heads of cabbage weighing less than 100 grams each.

This plant is quite versatile in terms of its use - they eat it fresh, boiled, baked, stewed, and you will be surprised even fried. Like this! And also he is excellent friends with all citrus fruits, and is very good with almost all vegetables. Therefore, they love to cook with him.

And if you fill all this splendor with some delicious sauce, or just mix it with sour cream, pour olive oil, then it will be just a culinary song!

But it is best to eat witloof fresh. Of course, all its beneficial qualities and properties are preserved in this way, a lot of vitamins, ascorbic acid contained in the plant, phosphorus, calcium, carotene with thiamine, and iron with intibin, and much more ...

It is noteworthy that witloof is recommended to eat to improve the gastrointestinal tract, improve the functioning of the pancreas, as well as for better functioning of the body's blood-purifying system - the kidneys and liver. It has been scientifically proven that the nervous system becomes calmer when using this wonderful plant at least several times a week.

Like other leafy representatives, witloof can also be slightly bitter. Usually bitterness is observed in the part of the compacted bottom. However, it is not problematic to simply remove it and not use it for food. But it happens that the leaves are slightly bitter, it depends on the characteristics of cultivation and watering.

But this can also be eliminated: the leaves can be soaked in salted water, holding them there for about two hours, you can literally put them in boiling water for a minute, or hold them under running cold water for about 20 minutes.

If you cook it using heat treatment, then the above manipulations can be omitted, since the bitterness will disappear during baking or stewing.

Watercress

This representative is the richest in the number of vitamins and trace elements of all varieties and varieties that we are considering today.

It tastes slightly bitter, and this is no coincidence, its leaves are rich in mustard oil, which gives it a taste slightly reminiscent of another bitter plant - horseradish.

Because of this peculiarity, it does not combine well with other herbs. He has enough of everything without them. Amazing piquancy is his calling card.

And in order to preserve its individuality, watercress is not crushed, but added almost entirely to any "faceless" dish. In this form, he can show everything he is capable of, making any dish with him truly exquisite.

If you have never cooked a unique “green” oil with it, then be sure to try it - the taste will blow your mind. And also experiment using these leaves in various cold dishes, all kinds of cheese appetizers, canapes and sandwiches, as an addition to side dishes of meat dishes, in soups, as well as in sauces and various fillings.

Heat treatment softens the peppery taste of watercress, but thanks to this, any soups and vegetable purees become much more aromatic and interesting.

Korn (field lettuce)

Outwardly, the root really looks like a field grass with bright small juicy leaves resembling roses. The spicy note of tender leaves does not open immediately, but almost from the first seconds it is easy to catch the sweetish nutty flavor and aroma of real hazelnut.

Olive oil is ideal for dressing the root, allowing the plant's nutty flavor to really come out. But do not discount the unique combination with sour cream, citrus fruits and even vinegar essence.

Whatever you cook with root, the incomparable spicy note of taste will not be lost. But you should know that it can show its maximum aromatic features in collaboration with fried bacon, smoked trout, or other similar fish, chicken meat, mushrooms, fried onions, boiled beets, apples, other herbs, with the addition of chicory, and of course, with any nuts.

You can just make a light salad out of it, or you can get a great refreshing side dish for both meat and any seafood. And if you use it without any additives, then it will be an excellent dish for diet food.

Try experimenting and using the root to make various soups or sauces (especially green pesto) and it will be loved and desired in your kitchen.

It is worth saying a little about the medicinal properties of this plant. The juicy pulp of the root contains a complex of vitamins B and E, ascorbic acid and carotene, as well as rutin, which belongs to the vitamin P group, so it is recommended to eat it with hypovitaminosis.

Moreover, it perfectly tones, adds strength and improves mood. And this is also not accidental - the plant belongs to the category of natural aphrodisiacs.

leaf lettuce

Leaf lettuce is also known under another beautiful name - coral salad. So he was named for his enchanting and incomparable combination of burgundy with coral color. Nature gave such a riot of colors to its curly leaves.

It is worth noting that it is one of the oldest on the planet in its category, and currently has over a hundred varieties that can differ from each other not only in color and size, but also in shape - from loose rosettes to plump heads of cabbage.

Lettuce does not have any pronounced taste and is quite bland on its own, but this is what makes it just perfect for pairing with its own kind, and many vegetables.

Its usefulness lies in the fact that it is easily absorbed by the body. And believe me, he has something to absorb - in addition to a whole complex of vitamins and nutrients, it contains a lot of potassium and magnesium, which are so necessary for the proper functioning of the cardiovascular system. And also it contains a lot of iron needed by the body.

And with thyroid disease and hypertension, it is also recommended, but already as part of a special dietary diet.

Colorful lettuce leaves are used in numerous salads and dishes, cream soups are cooked with it, as well as side dishes for meat and fish dishes. Sandwiches cannot do without it, if you decorate the most ordinary of them with such beauty, then it will at least become twice as tasty.

Do not just wrap hot meat in leaves, in this case the coral color and, of course, the appearance will be lost. But, as you know, any dish is met with it.

There is one little trick - in order for the lettuce to remain juicy in any of the cooked dishes for as long as possible, it should be kept for 20 minutes immediately before cooking in cold water.

Lollo Rossa

This plant is the most popular variety of lettuce. It is very beautiful, coral in color, and with the same beautiful name - Lollo Rossa. It has an incomparable intense bitter nutty flavor, and at the same time a very delicate and refined filling.

Beautiful, wavy, rather soft and slightly crispy leaves allow you to achieve a beautiful volume in any of the salads, as well as decorate any portioned or general dish. Lollo Rossa is ideal with baked vegetables, grilled meats, various sauces and a variety of snacks.

When choosing it in a store or on the market, you should pay attention to its color.

If the leaves have a dark red color over their entire area, then this means that the greens are overripe. In this case, she will be very bitter and instead of juicy tenderness, you will only get disappointment from his rigidity.

Therefore, be careful when choosing, and purchase the product of the desired degree of maturity.

Chard

This is the name of a variety of beets. And the main feature of the plant is that it is by no means root crops that play the main role here. Pay attention to very beautiful leaves with ruby ​​veins and delicate stems - this is actually what you should cook from.

Chard is a very famous plant, since time immemorial. And then it was called nothing more than "Roman cabbage."

But in fact, it is the closest "relative" of spinach, and is grown in the same way. It also tastes like beets and spinach. Its pleasant soft greens are sweetish in taste, filled, like all its closest relatives, with vitamins and nutrients.

The younger the plant, the more it contains all sorts of "usefulness".

In cooking with its use, cold snack dishes are very popular - these are summer borscht, numerous, salads and sauces. And if you wish, with a little fantasizing, you can treat yourself to cutlets, cabbage rolls, pies, and casseroles.

As a rule, the leaves are eaten fresh, although they can also be boiled. And if we talk about the stems, then they are stewed more, and they are most delicious with this method of preparation.

Oakleaf

Outwardly, its reddish green leaves as part of loose cabbages are very similar in shape to oak, which is why it is also called oak lettuce.

Possessing a memorable delicate and very pleasant flavor of a nut, in turn, it is characterized by a very short shelf life. Also, sudden changes in temperature are completely contraindicated.

Therefore, it is practically not used as jewelry, as it quickly loses its appearance. It also doesn't go well with any sauces. As a rule, they are all rather heavy, and already have their own taste. Therefore, they easily drown out the uniqueness and unique taste of oakliff.

Meanwhile, it should be noted that the vitamins, mineral salts and folic acid contained in it fill it with excellent characteristics. Therefore, it should be eaten more often as part of various dishes to cleanse and improve blood composition.

This gentle, refined plant will show all its best virtues in collaboration with the pulp of an avocado. And also one of the best flavor combinations will be its commonwealth with mushrooms, smoked salmon. You can also add croutons and croutons to it, including garlic, as well as a variety of nuts, and best of all, almonds, or almond petals.

And do not forget that it can be cooked as a side dish. It will be especially good with baked or fried fish, or liver. Original, tasty and healthy!

Chinese cabbage

Quite a popular variety, which is currently not a problem to buy in any store, or on the market almost all year round.

Most likely, "Beijing", as it is also called, does not particularly need to be introduced. Elongated juicy, slightly "crunchy" leaves are collected in oblong, not very dense heads of cabbage. At the same time, the leaves are quite easily separated from the inner "stalk".

Beijing cabbage is stored for a long time, and the advantage is that throughout the entire shelf life it does not lose its beneficial qualities and properties, as well as all its vitamins.

Ideal for low-calorie everyday meals on a strict diet.

It can be eaten both fresh and boiled, and even salted and pickled.

The feeling of spring freshness and juiciness allows you to cook great sandwiches with it, a huge amount, soups, and delicious side dishes.

When choosing a product in the store, pay attention to the color and size of the head. Both the taste of the future dish and its usefulness depend on this.

The color of a young head of cabbage is soft green with white streaks, or a slight shade, its length should not exceed 30 cm. If the leaves are withered or yellow, then the cabbage is stale on the shelves. And if the size exceeds the specified one, then the leaves may taste bitter, which is also not desirable. This suggests that he has outgrown, or overripe.

Romaine

Better known under the name of "Roman" lettuce, often sold in the store, which is always pleasing. Its peculiarity is that it does not belong to any of the known varieties. This is not a head and not a leaf representative, most likely it is something in between one and the other.

Romain is quite attractive in appearance, has elongated, rather dense, and at the same time juicy leaves. They, in turn, are connected thanks to a rather loose head of cabbage. At the same time, the closer they are to the center, the lighter their color becomes, and the more tender they become.

If we talk about taste, then it has, like many of those that we have already considered today, a slight nutty flavor. At the same time, it is distinguished by a certain spice, sweetness and astringency, which makes it quite recognizable among all its "relatives". It is rich in folic and ascorbic acid, which in general does not surprise us anymore.

Although it is quite self-sufficient in its taste and aromatic qualities and can be served with just yogurt dressing, it is still used in sandwiches, the famous McDonald's hamburgers and combined cold dishes.

And there are also many recipes in which romaine acts as the main ingredient in a delicious cream soup and vegetable saute. Surprisingly, in such dishes this product is insanely reminiscent of asparagus.

Radicchio

Italian representative, juicy purple-violet color, which is just one of the varieties of chicory.

To achieve such a bright color is obtained by eliminating sunlight and freezing - instead of chlorophyll, an antioxidant in the form of a purple pigment accumulates in greenery.

Radiccio is distinguished by the fact that its taste is quite spicy and at the same time bitter. Therefore, it is used in cold dishes, but in very small quantities. As a rule, these are mixed vegetable salads with the addition of leaves with a pleasant spicy aftertaste.

You can reduce bitterness in a fresh dish by adding mayonnaise, honey or fruit sauces. You can also achieve this by heat treatment: grilling or frying in olive oil combined with garlic, onion and thyme.

If you want to make an original serving of a snack dish, then radicchio leaves are quite suitable as a portioned plate.

Frisse (frise)

Curly variety of chicory in the form of narrow, stunning curly leaves light green at the edges and white-yellow in the center, with a slight spicy bitterness. It is worth noting the special juiciness of this variety, which can quench wild thirst on a summer day.

This is a very beautiful looking copy. Usually, when used in combination with other salad leaves, it is seasoned with garlic and thyme sprigs.

Ideal with meat, bacon, seafood, fruit, cheese and citrus.

Decorated with this beautiful carved ligature, any dish will look very festive and elegant.

Chicory

So we got to the most basic "parent" of many salads. As you already understood, this is chicory, which has a slightly bitter, and at the same time tart, specific flavor.

The bitterness of chicory and all its many varieties is given by the intibin contained in the leaf veins, which actually performs a very important function for the whole organism as a whole. It helps to stimulate the process of digestion.

It can be eaten raw as part of combinations of greens and vegetables, as well as baked or stewed in olive oil, with broth or with white wine.

This is exactly “the same chicory” that many people use to replace natural or freeze-dried coffee.

Spinach

This is really the most popular variety of greens, useful for almost everyone - from young children and expectant mothers to the elderly.

Spinach leaves are rounded and sometimes oval. Up to 15 pieces can be collected in one outlet. Their color is bright saturated, and the structure can be either smooth or slightly wrinkled.

Pleasant in taste perception, slightly sweet plant is rich in a whole complex of vitamins, especially from the group of vitamins C and A, as well as iron and other trace elements and useful substances. It has quite a lot of protein, which is perfectly digestible, and spinach is considered the “king of vegetables” (here’s a salad for you).

It is such a kind of "panicle" that cleanses the entire gastrointestinal tract. If you observe exhaustion or a disease of the nervous system, anemia, gastritis, diabetes mellitus, think that it is time to include this particular plant in your diet.

For those who are on a strict diet and dream of losing weight, it is spinach that can become the most faithful food ally, because with its almost 92% water content, it has a “negative” calorie content - to assimilate it, the body spends much more energy than it receives while eating it.

And another very important fact is that, unlike other plants, boiled spinach does not lose vitamins in any way, which means it remains no less useful than raw spinach.

In cooking, this amazing plant is easy to find. Soups are cooked with it, and sauces are prepared with its use. Spinach is actively used in the preparation of scrambled eggs, casseroles, side dishes, and even.

It goes well with all types of meat, poultry, fish, cereals and dairy dishes. And also with grated spinach juice they tint cake layers, cook green pancakes with it. Or they prepare icing and various creams for baking with it of the same color.

Simple and delicious green salad without mayonnaise with pine nuts

And in winter and summer in one color - a Christmas tree? No! A delicious salad that is suitable for those who are losing weight, and for followers of a healthy diet, and even for a festive table!

Seeds of pine nuts or pistachios add a special charm to this dish.

Looks great and very tasty!

We will need:

• leaf lettuce - 1 bunch
• apple - 3 pcs
• pine nuts - 0.5 cups
• lemon - 0.5 pcs
• fresh dill - 0.5 bunch
• cilantro - 3/4 bunch
• ground black pepper and salt to taste

Cooking:

1. Rinse all fresh herbs thoroughly under running water, let it drain and then dry with paper towels.

If you do not like cilantro, then you can replace it with parsley, or basil.

After drying, cut the lettuce into wide strips, and chop the dill and cilantro with a knife as finely as possible.

2. Peel the apples, remove the core and cut into medium-sized cubes. Drizzle with lemon immediately to keep the pieces from browning.

3. Transfer all the prepared ingredients to a bowl, squeeze the remaining lemon juice there. Mix lightly with your hands so that it is evenly distributed, and only then salt and pepper to your liking.

Be careful with salt, for green salads you do not need to add a lot of it.

4. Pour pine nuts right on top of all this splendor. Although, if desired, you can mix them together with everything else. Here you can already act as you want, or as you like more.

The finished dish is best served chilled. Therefore, it should be put at least 20 - 30 minutes in the refrigerator. It will come in very handy for a hot summer day.

Serve with a slice of lemon.

If you did not find pine nuts, then you can easily replace them with peeled sunflower seeds, or pistachios.

Eat a cold dish with pleasure, enjoy the taste and be nourished with vitamins!

Delicate green salad with chicken breast

I really like this rather nutritious salad, which even picky men will be happy to eat. Many housewives know that they do not need “grass”, but only serve meat. But they definitely won’t refuse this, they will even ask for more supplements.

It can be cooked quite quickly, especially if there is pre-prepared poultry meat. In this case, either boiled or smoked breast is suitable.

And as a dressing, we will prepare a very tasty sauce of honey, soy sauce and vegetable oil. You can use both sunflower and olive oil.

We will need:

• chicken breast - 350 gr
• lettuce leaves - 1 bunch
• tomatoes - 2 pcs
• fresh cucumber - 1 pc.
• bell pepper - 1 pc.
• hard cheese - 100 gr
• soy sauce - Art. spoons
• honey - 1 tbsp. spoon
• soy sauce - 1 tbsp. spoon

Cooking:

1. Such a dish can be prepared from any kind of leaf lettuce, but it is especially tasty from Beijing cabbage, romaine or iceberg. They all have fairly dense fleshy leaves and will go great with all vegetables and chicken.

Leaves should be thoroughly washed under running water. Then let dry, or dry and tear them into small fragments with your hands, put them in a bowl, or better immediately on a dish.

In order for the leaves to retain their appearance longer and keep the juice out, they should be torn with your hands, and not cut with a knife.

2. Tomatoes, peppers and fresh cucumber cut into approximately the same pieces, in this form the finished dish will look more appetizing. Put the vegetables in sequence in a bowl to the greens.

3. Chicken breast can be cut into thin strips, or disassembled into fibers. It will also be good to shape them, as with chopped vegetables. Add it to the bowl with the rest of the ingredients.

4. Pour the right amount of vegetable oil and soy sauce into a separate bowl, add fragrant honey and mix all the ingredients into a single mixture.

Put the resulting sauce in our waiting salad and mix gently so as not to crush all the components, and at the same time saturate each of the pieces with taste.

As you know, soy sauce is quite salty, and therefore, if we add it to a dish, then additional salt is no longer required. Therefore, taste the dish, and if required, you can add a little salt if desired.

But personally, I already have enough salt, especially since we will also add cheese.

6 Yes, we still have cheese. It is very good if it is hard, like parmesan. It should be rubbed right over all the components. It will look very nice.

Although, if desired, you can still mix it again. In this case, the cheese will also be saturated with a delicious sauce, and will become even more fragrant and desirable.

Such a cold dish can also be prepared in individual salad bowls for the holiday. In this case, you can simply lay out all the ingredients in layers, and pour the prepared dressing on top.

It is in this form that you can taste a delicious cold dish somewhere in a restaurant.

Delicious iceberg-based salad with egg pancakes

There is nothing easier than picking a salad, crumbling onion feathers and boiled eggs and seasoning, better homemade, or sauce. And you can complicate the process a little, and get a very beautiful festive dish that will please the eye.

And what exactly to complicate? Yes, cook egg pancakes! And if the soul requires meat, then add boiled beef to the composition, or.

We will need:

• iceberg lettuce - 200 gr
• carrots - 1 pc (100 gr)
• dill - 0.5 bunch
• salt, pepper to taste

For pancakes:

• egg - 3 pcs
• milk - 50 ml
• salt - a pinch
• vegetable oil for greasing the pan

For refueling:

• sour cream - 100 gr
• mustard - 0.5 tsp
• garlic - 2 cloves

Cooking:

1. Since our main ingredient is very similar to the forks of ordinary cabbage, we can chop it accordingly, that is, medium-sized straws.

2. Wash and peel carrots. Then grate it with a Korean carrot grater. You will get a long thin straw.

Transfer it to a bowl with chopped leaves, mix with your hands and salt to taste. If you like spicy dishes, then you can add pepper, and if you don’t like it, then add it anyway, but a little. You will not feel it in the dish, but you will fully reveal the taste of all the ingredients.

3. Prepare our secret ingredient - egg pancakes. To do this, mix the eggs with milk, add a pinch of salt and mix the mass with a whisk. Beating until foam is not necessary, it is important that the mixture is homogeneous.

4. It is better to fry pancakes on a non-stick frying pan. In this case, you will need less oil and they will not turn out very greasy.

If there is no special frying pan, then you can use a regular one, just grease it more actively with sunflower oil so that nothing burns.

5. Put the finished pancakes on a flat plate and let them cool completely. Then roll each into a roll and chop into long thin strips.

6. Grind the dill, try to make it as small as possible. Mix greens with pancakes and vegetables.

7. Prepare dressing separately. To do this, in a small cup, mix sour cream with mustard. Using a press, squeeze the garlic into the mixture. Mix everything well into a homogeneous mass.

Pour the contents into the prepared plate in such a way that the serving is neat. The finished dish can be slightly cooled in the refrigerator and then served.

Simple green salad for weight loss

There are many low calorie foods for weight loss. But personally, I recently fell in love with this particular recipe with light mayonnaise.

It is he who allows you to simultaneously “deceive” the stomach, and have a tasty meal, and most importantly, get enough of vegetables with a low calorie content.

We will need:

• leaf lettuce (any) - 1 bunch
• fresh cucumber - 2 pcs
• radish - 5 pcs
• dill, parsley and green onions - half a bunch each
• light low-calorie mayonnaise - 2 tbsp. spoons
• salt - to taste

Cooking:

1. Tear the washed and dried leaves with your hands into small fragments. If there is a mixture of different varieties, then it can also be fully used.

2. Not very finely chop the onion, dill and parsley. Here, too, you should not be limited, "herbs" can be replaced.

Those who love cilantro can add it, and if you have fresh basil, then it will not be superfluous either.

3. You can choose the method of grinding radishes and cucumbers yourself. Someone likes to grate them more, and someone prefers to just cut them into small strips.

And if you are a fan of tangible pieces, then cut the vegetables larger.

Arrange beautifully on a plate and serve.

Restaurant grade green leafy tuna salad recipe

Usually this dish is served in cafes and restaurants. It is pleasantly refreshing and creates a romantic mood.

And it's also very tasty. And everyone at home and guests loves him very much.

We will need:

• canned tuna - 100 gr
• romaine lettuce, batavia or butterhead - 5 leaves
• tomatoes - 300 gr
• Bulgarian pepper - 100 gr
• cucumber - 100 gr
• pine nuts - 50 gr
• garlic - 1 clove
• basil - 3 sprigs
• lemon juice - 2 tbsp. spoons
• olive oil - 2 tbsp. spoons
• sugar - 0.5 tsp
• salt, ground black pepper to taste

Cooking:

1. Drain the liquid from the canned food, remove the tuna and disassemble it into not very large fibers. It will be convenient to do this with a fork.

2. Try the skin of the cucumber, if it turns out to be rough and tough, then it is better to clean it first. It is better to cut the vegetable into medium cubes.

3. Chop the tomatoes in the same way. The size of the cubes can be the same. If you have cherry tomatoes in the refrigerator, then you just need to cut them into two halves. The "geometry" of the salad in this case will turn out to be more diverse.

4. Peel sweet bell peppers from seeds and partitions, and cut into cubes of the same size as cucumbers with tomatoes.

5. For such a salad, it will be great to add garlic. To do this, it must be crushed as finely as possible. This can be done with a regular knife, or a press.

6. Leave three to four leaves of basil for decoration, and cut the rest into smaller pieces. The aroma from it goes when cutting is simply divine!

7. There are several ways to serve this salad. One of them involves combining all the ingredients in one bowl. And the other is like the one in the photo below. Both methods are beautiful and effective.

If you choose the second option, then all components are mixed directly when laid out on plates.

8. If you choose the first option, then putting everything in a common bowl, you should add salt and sugar to it, and also do not forget about pepper. At least a little, but it should be added. Then mix.

9. Before serving, tear the chilled lettuce leaves into small pieces with your hands, send them to a common bowl. Pour in olive oil and fresh lemon juice, which is best squeezed out of a lemon.

Mix all this beauty very carefully to save each of the pieces.

10. Before serving, put on a large flat dish, or in a beautiful salad bowl. Sprinkle pine nuts on top and garnish with fresh fragrant basil leaves.

This is the beauty we ended up with. And look and enjoy, and eat delicious!

Green salad with arugula, avocado and shrimp

This salad will surely appeal to the beautiful half of humanity. It can be prepared both for the New Year's table or March 8, and for a romantic dinner.

The combination of greens with shrimp and fruits is just great, and is a real natural aphrodisiac.

We will need:

• shrimp - 400 gr
• avocado - 200 gr
• arugula - 100 gr
• watercress - 100 gr
• orange - 2 pcs
• lemon juice - 50 ml
• feather onion - 50 gr
• olive oil - 25 ml
• pepper, salt - to taste

Cooking:

1. Peel cleanly washed and dried oranges. Disassemble one into slices, which must be cleaned of the outer film, and put in a bowl.

Squeeze all the juice from the second orange fruit into a glass or deep cup.

2. Tear watercress along with arugula into small pieces and send to orange slices.

3. Boil the shrimp in advance until cooked in lightly salted water, put in a colander and let the excess liquid drain, and then send to the previous components of our creation.

4. Carefully remove the avocado pulp and cut into small slices or cubes. Pour into a bowl with the rest of the products.

5. Now it's the turn of the original dressing, in which there will be the most "highlight": combine orange juice with lemon, and then pour oil into them.

Whisk thoroughly until smooth and pour the citrus dressing into the prepared salad mixture. Now it remains only to mix all the ingredients with the sauce and let it cool a little in the refrigerator.

Then serve to the table, and enjoy the taste of freshness and seafood.

Salad "Tuscany" with red beans and arugula leaves

Red bean salad will turn out to be quite tender and satisfying, but not heavy on the stomach. Arugula will give a spicy note. The main thing is to add only leaves without bitter stems.

We will need:

• canned beans - 1 can
• feta cheese - 200 gr
• arugula - 120 gr
• red onion - 1 pc.
• garlic - 1 clove
• olive oil - 4 tbsp. spoons
• lemon - 0.5 pcs
• soy sauce - 1 tbsp. spoon
• ground black pepper to taste

Cooking:

1. Open a jar of beans and drain all the liquid, then rinse it with warm boiled water to wash off the cloudy sediment from the beans.

2. Tear the arugula with your hands, removing the stems. Chop the onion into thin half rings.

3. Cut the cheese into neat cubes about a centimeter thick.

4. Chop the garlic clove as thinly as possible with a knife or garlic press directly into the sauce bowl. Pour in oil and soy sauce. Pepper lightly. Squeeze in the juice from half a lemon. Whisk the dressing until smooth.

5. Combine all the chopped ingredients in a bowl, pour over the prepared dressing and mix.

So you can easily prepare a delicious cold dish that everyone who tries will surely appreciate.

So we figured out what types of green salads are, what they are combined with and what can be prepared from them so that it is both tasty and without prejudice to the waist.

As you can see, this is not just some kind of herb, but a plant that is useful for the body. Try to convince your "non-wants" to include this magnificent organic matter in your diet as often as possible, and soon they themselves will notice that they are becoming calmer and healthier.

Bon appetit and vitamin freshness on your table!

6 green salad recipes

6 green salad recipes

Spring has come! And, despite the first frosts, this fact cannot be dismissed! And this means that very soon it will be possible to start harvesting the first greens.

Vitamins in every plate

Without vitamins - nowhere! Of course, you can go to the pharmacy and buy synthetic vitamins, but this is hardly the best option. Where as the first greens are more useful.
Salads from dandelions and nettles, clover, sorrel, green onions, radish leaves and beets - you can list endlessly - not just very tasty. The first tender greenery is able to saturate the body tired after the winter with vitamins. And, if you fill such salads with lemon juice and olive oil, then the benefits of these green dishes can hardly be overestimated!

green salad recipes

clover leaf salad Products: 100g clover leaves, 100g green onions, 50g dill greens, 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice.
Cooking method
The salad is prepared simply: you need to thoroughly sort and wash the greens, finely chop, salt to taste, and then, already in a salad bowl, season with lemon juice and olive oil.

Nettle leaf salad, chard with garlic

Ingredients: 300g of young nettle leaves, 100g of chard leaves, 100g of garlic greens, 50g of dill, olive or vegetable salt and add to taste.
Cooking method
Sort nettle leaves, rinse well and blanch in boiling water for 3 minutes. Then the water must be drained, and the nettle and herbs finely chopped. Mix all salad ingredients and season with olive or other vegetable oil, then salt to taste.

Onion, dill and coriander salad
Products: 300g coriander (cilantro), 200g green onions, 100g dill, olive or other vegetable oil and salt - to taste.
Cooking method
sorted and washed greens should be finely chopped, salted and seasoned with olive or other vegetable oil.
Melissa salad with chicken Products: 100g lemon balm, 300g apples, 200g boiled chicken, mayonnaise - to taste.
Cooking method
Grind lemon balm leaves, chop apples into strips, finely chop the boiled chicken pulp. Mix everything, season with mayonnaise.

Melissa salad with fruits

Products: 50 g of lemon balm, 200 g of peeled tangerine slices, 200 g of apples and pears, 200 g of petiole celery, juice of half a lemon.
Cooking method
Greens and fruits should be washed and dried well. Then finely chop the lemon balm and celery, and chop the apples and pears into medium-sized straws. Mix the ingredients prepared for the salad and season with lemon juice.

Salad of radish leaves and garlic

Products: 200g radish leaves, 100g garlic greens, olive or vegetable oil, salt - to taste.
Cooking method
Sort, wash and dry the herbs, chop them finely, salt to taste, mix and season with olive or other vegetable oil.
Bon appetit!
author Dubinina Tamara

post prepared

Photo: Veronika Synenko/Rusmediabank.ru

Eat something healthy, but so that it is tasty and does not want to eat for a long time! What is the problem? If your diet contains lettuce dishes, you will not only discover a world of new amazing taste sensations, forget about hunger, unhealthy snacks (sandwiches, chocolates, buns), but you will also get a “personal cosmetologist and nutritionist” who can improve your appearance and a figure without plastic surgery, super-expensive creams and other beauty novelties.

Some who are not familiar with green salad consider it a "boring" food that only diet freaks prefer. Well, what can be prepared from it? Unless to chew once, and then when there is no choice. Such thinking “smells” of the remnants of the past post-Soviet times, when they rarely cooked anything from lettuce leaves, and at the mention of “salad” they represented “herring under a fur coat” or “olivier”.

Today, the trend that has swept almost the whole world has revealed to us a lot of secrets, including culinary ones. And among the popular tasty and healthy foods, lettuce leaves appear in the forefront: they are inferior only in their beneficial qualities to spinach and broccoli. Green salads are in favor of most cuisines of the world: Italian, French, Greek, etc. Moreover, there are more than a hundred varieties of lettuce: iceberg, frieze, watercress, arugula, romaine, lettuce, radiccio, lolo rosso and many others.

Salad and five pros to include it in your diet

1. An excellent tool in the fight against excess weight: low-calorie (100/14 cal), stimulates intestinal motility, cleanses the body of toxins, normalizes the digestive tract and reduces appetite

2. The salad contains about 99 microelements and useful substances that are beneficial for human health: it contains folic acid and pectins that neutralize bad cholesterol, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, calcium, beta-carotene, vitamins C, A, K, PP, B1, B2. It has a high content of vitamin E.

3. In folk medicine, this green vegetable is known for its healing properties: it prevents anemia and osteoporosis. Due to the presence of antioxidants, vitamin C and beta-keratin, it enhances and protects against free radicals, thereby reducing the risk of cancer.

4. Beauticians regard lettuce, as well as spinach, parsley and other greens, as a super anti-aging skin remedy: its action occurs at the cellular level. Eating a daily serving of greens, you prolong your youth and prevent the appearance of wrinkles, dryness and flabbiness of the skin.

5. Lettuce is an excellent remedy for insomnia, as it improves the quality of sleep and relieves fatigue due to the content of a substance called lactucaria.

Salad is also delicious: the nuances of cooking

There are no particular difficulties in preparing salad dishes, but some nuances should be taken into account. For example, in order to remain strong and crispy, it is better to wash them with cold water and serve as soon as something has been prepared from them.

Lettuce is torn by hand, put whole or cut: although the latter option, according to culinary specialists, reduces the taste and useful qualities of the product. Another thing is to simply arbitrarily break the leaves with your hands.

Lettuce leaves are combined with almost all products (cheese, nuts, vegetables, fruits, crackers, eggs, seafood, etc.), so you have a great opportunity to show your imagination, and who knows, even create a masterpiece dish.

Bon appetit!

Prudencio Alvarez/Rusmediabank.ru

Lettuce prepared in Italian style with croutons

Ingredients:

4 medium sized tomatoes;
- 8 cherry tomatoes;
- lettuce leaves;
- 100 g of butter;
- vegetable oil (olive, linseed, corn) to taste;
- 1/2 teaspoon of dried garlic and salad dressing (you can also "hops-suneli");
- juice of half a lemon;
- half a bread loaf;
- , salt, ground black pepper to taste.

Cooking:

We cut the fresh loaf into cubes and lay them out on a baking sheet (do not grease with oil). Put the butter in a small saucepan and put it on the fire to melt it. Let cool slightly, add garlic powder and pepper. Mix well with a spoon and pour over the bread slices with the resulting sauce: make sure that they are well saturated. Then we send everything to the oven and bake the croutons at a temperature of 180 degrees for about 10 minutes. When you see that the bread slices have acquired a golden crust, then our croutons are ready.

While the croutons are cooling, we are engaged in tomatoes - cut them into small slices, and cherry tomatoes - in half. Place the vegetables in a salad bowl. We tear lettuce leaves with our hands and send them to the tomatoes. Now it's up to the cheese - we also cut it into cubes or three on a coarse grater and add it to the rest of the ingredients along with the croutons. Lightly pepper, salt, pour vegetable oil and lemon juice. Mix and serve.

French salad leaves

Ingredients:

One egg;
- juice of half a lemon;
- 3 tbsp. spoons of sour cream;
- a bunch of lettuce leaves.

Cooking:

Hard boil a chicken egg, cool, peel and rub on a coarse grater. Tear lettuce leaves. Mix all ingredients, pour over sour cream and lemon juice. Salt to taste.

Vitamin salad "Butier" with lettuce from Madonna

Ingredients:

stalk of celery;
- 2 tomatoes;
- 3 pcs. multi-colored bell pepper;
- 1 cucumber;
- 2 artichokes;
- vegetable oil to taste;
- olives and black olives;
- almond;
- greenery;
- a bunch of lettuce;
- salt, pepper - to taste.

Cooking:

Peel all vegetables and cut into slices. Place in a salad bowl, add finely chopped greens, olives, black olives. Salt, sprinkle with lemon juice. Mix. Then take a flat dish, put lettuce leaves on it and pour the vegetable mixture on them. You can decorate with radishes cut in the form of roses and curly parsley. Sprinkle chopped almonds on top.

salad rolls

Ingredients:

Lettuce leaves (Iceberg is ideal, as it is plastic and soft);
- a jar of pitted olives;
- 150 g fat-free cottage cheese;
- 1 tbsp. a spoonful of kefir;
- salt, herbs - to taste.

Cooking:

Chop parsley and dill, and mix with cottage cheese, finely chopped olives and kefir. Mix until a homogeneous mass is obtained. Spread lettuce leaves with cottage cheese mixture and roll up. Great breakfast and snack for the office.

Step 1: prepare the ingredients.

Put the parsley, dill and green onions in a colander and rinse thoroughly with water, after which the ingredients should be shaken or wiped with disposable paper towels to get rid of moisture. Just wash the lettuce leaves in your hands under running water. And then dry them the same way.
Place the ingredients prepared in this way on a cutting board, remove all withered, withered and yellowed leaves.
Separate parsley and dill from inedible and thick stems, chop the rest very finely.
Cut off the white part of the green onion feathers. Chop everything else with a knife.
Lay lettuce leaves on top of each other on a cutting board, press with the palm of your hand and chop into thin strips.

Step 2: prepare the green salad.

Place all chopped, chopped and chopped greens in a salad bowl. Season with salt and stir until the ingredients release a small amount of juice. Then dress the vitamin-rich salad with olive oil. Attention: salad dressing is important not only for taste, but also in order to ensure better absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins contained in the main ingredients.

Step 3: serve green salad.

Serve green salad immediately after cooking, not letting it stand and thereby lose half of its juiciness and taste. Believe me, this dish will become on your table not only an addition or a side dish to the main dishes, but a real storehouse of vitamins and a great mood for you, your family and guests.
Bon appetit!

If your salad has to stand for a while before serving, it's best not to dress it or salt it, otherwise it will wither and lose its juiciness.

To make a green salad more appetizing and satisfying, add an egg or soft cheese to it.

This salad can be not only an excellent side dish, but also a filling for pancakes.

Those who cannot imagine a good salad without heavy sour cream or mayonnaise can use whatever salad dressing they prefer.