Our Green Coral Salad is the easiest side dish that goes perfectly with just about anything! With pretty curls, a handful of ingredients and a simple vinaigrette you will love its delicious simplicity.
I put this salad together to make use of all the wonderful curly, coral lettuce that we had growing in the garden. I have kept things simple with just a handful of ingredients, that have all been quickly prepared using my handy mandoline v-slicer for a quick dinner side.
What is Coral Lettuce?
Coral Lettuce can come in either green and red, it is also referred to as Lollo Bianca/Bionda for the green and Lollo Rosso for the red. As you may have guessed by the name this lettuce variety originated in Italy and has curly green or red-purplish leaves that are tender with a slightly bitter taste.
It is a hydroponic lettuce variety that you will usually find at the supermarket or green grocer with the roots attached. I love them because they are just so decorative, colourful and the crimped leaves will trap the vinaigrette in their folds for a much tastier salad.
How to choose and store coral lettuce
Look for bright, crisp leaves that are not damaged or wilted. Check the base as well to ensure the roots are not rotted. As they can be quite delicate, you need to store coral lettuce carefully, it is best kept in a sealed plastic bag in the vegetable crisper on top of anything else.
You can prepare and use the whole lettuce in the one salad or you can also just cut off a few leaves at a time and use them as you need them in wraps or sandwiches.
Some serving suggestions
This is a simple and refreshing green salad that you can pair with everything. Great with pasta, grilled meats and poultry, fish and seafood. Try it with grilled whole fish, lasagna, a chicken traybake or with a simple fish stew.
Make it a Meal
Green coral salad can easily be transformed into the main event by simply adding some protein, such as:
- Grilled chicken tenders
- Seared steak
- Flaked salmon or smoked salmon
- Canned beans or chickpeas
- Fried haloumi cheese or crumbled feta
- Sliced avocado for healthy fats
- Add some toasted nuts, seeds or crispy bacon
You will need
How to make this salad
1PREPARE LETTUCE
To prepare cut off the roots, separate the leaves and wash gently in a colander under cold running water.
Then either gently pat dry or spin dry in a salad spinner and gently shred lettuce.
CUT OFF THE ROOT WASH LETTUCE SPIN OR PAT LETTUCE DRY SHRED LETTUCE
2THINLY SLICE VEG
Wash and trim your radishes and cucumbers, pat dry then thinly slice into rounds using a mandoline/v-slicer or with a a sharp knife.
Trim and remove the papery skin from your shallot and thinly slice.
THINLY SLICE CUCUMBERS WITH V-SLICER THINLY SLICE SHALLOTS THINLY SLICE RADISHES
3ASSEMBLE SALAD
Drain and rinse the capers, then in a large mixing bowl add all the salad ingredients, season with sea salt and cracked black pepper. Pour over the red wine vinegar and oil and toss well to combine.
Taste and adjust seasonings according to your liking, arrange in a salad bowl, then serve immediately once dressed.
ADD ALL INGREDIENTS TO BOWL SEASON & TOSS WELL ARRANGE IN A SALAD BOWL & SERVE
Can I make it ahead?
As with most green salads as soon as it is tossed with the vinaigrette you will need to eat it straight away. But, this salad can be prepared a few hours ahead of time and tossed together with the vinaigrette just before serving it.
- Prepare the salad and vinaigrette and keep them separately in the fridge until you are ready to assemble the salad.
- Then just before serving – season and toss the salad with the vinaigrette and serve immediately.
Some more green saLad recipes to try
Equipment
- Salad Spinner
- Mandoline or V-Slicer
Ingredients
- 150 grams coral lettuce (approximately 1 small head – 5.30z)
- 350 grams radishes (approximately 1 bunch – 12oz)
- 240 grams Lebanese or Persian cucumbers (approximately 2 small – 8.5oz)
- 1 small French shallot (approximately 25g – 0.88oz)
- ⅓ cup capers
- Sea salt and cracked black pepper
- 3 tbsps red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsps olive oil
Instructions
- To prepare cut off the roots, separate the leaves and wash gently in a colander under cold running water.
- Then either gently pat dry or spin dry in a salad spinner then carefully tear the leaves into bite sized pieces.
- Wash and trim your radishes and cucumbers, pat dry then thinly slice into rounds using a mandoline/v-slicer or with a sharp knife. Trim and remove the papery skin from your shallot and thinly slice.
- Drain and rinse the capers, then in a large mixing bowl add all the the salad ingredients, season with sea salt and cracked black pepper. Pour over the red wine vinegar and oil and toss well to combine.
- Taste and adjust seasonings according to your liking, arrange in a salad bowl and serve immediately once dressed.
Video
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.
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