How to Simplify Eating Vegetable Salads In Busy Routine?

Wellcure

Wellcure

08:35 AM | 09-10-2020

Yes, we all know salads are good for health. However well intentioned we may be, life happens and we find it difficult to keep up with our salad intake. In this article, we simplify the art of salad making and putting together simple yet tasty salads for everyday of the week. Read on to know more.

We hope you read our post on why raw food is important! If you are still feeling stuck, let’s get you started with veggie salads. Salads have that versatility to be a full-blown meal, the humility to stay as a side dish and the peppiness to be served as a snack! It is quick, easy and way healthier to prepare a salad than to cook a pot of food. But the truth is, no matter how good our intentions are to keep our diet healthier, in the constant tussle between the steamy pot and the colourful bowl of crunchy salad, the latter loses. If you have ever given a thought to it, you would realize that this failure has more to do with the pictures and ideas we invoke when we hear ‘salad’.

To most of us, salad is an accompaniment to the main meal and primarily contains kheera, tamatar, pyaaj. If you are asked to increase your salad intake, you wonder how much of the same stuff can you keep eating or you don’t find it tasty enough to eat enough or you find it difficult to organise as you are not used to it!!

The fact is like any other meal, salad too is an accommodating, sumptuous masterpiece of a meal provided we are ready to experiment and take it further beyond those pictures we have in our minds that discourage us. Building a habit becomes a cakewalk if we think outside the box. Here are some tricks and techniques that can help you simplify incorporating salad in your diet.

Stock up the staples for your SALAD BAR at home

This seems like a no-brainer but it can be a bit daunting to sort through the racing thoughts in mind in the nick of time. So better be prepared than perplexed. Let’s begin with the basics:

  1. Vegetables – Of course! Stock up your refrigerator with local, seasonal, colourful vegetables. We tend to overlook this fact but Mother Nature knows what’s best for us in a particular season! And that is evident in her nutritious platter of different vegetables as per the season. Like right now, in the Delhi winters, our favourites are carrot, radish, spinach and beetroot.
  2. Sprouts – Sprouts of green moong, moth bean, chickpeas etc make a great addition to salads and help bulk it up. Keep some sprouts handy in the refrigerator. Check out our article on sprouting.
  3. Seeds and Nuts – Roasted peanuts, flaxseeds, sesame, pumpkin seeds, watermelon seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, pistachios. The tiny nutty delights are loaded with nutrition and make the perfect blend in a salad. You can roast them in generous quantities and stock in your kitchen jars as these have a longer shelf life as compared to fresh fruits and veggies. Soaking them or sprouting them are also good options provided you have the time and have done some preplanning.
  4. Dips and Dressing – These are the zing factor of salad! Make dips and dressings over the weekend and stock in your refrigerator. Then all you need to do is add to your salads when you eat them. But don’t let this become a ‘task’. The super quick and easiest way is to make an instant dressing of lemon juice, honey, salt and a dash of black pepper. Keep your salad bar stocked with honey, lemon, fresh and dried herbs like coriander, mint, parsley, thyme, basil, oregano, red chilli flakes. They can be combined to make quick dressings.
  5. The tools - A knife - preferably serrated-the one with jagged edges, a peeler and at the most a grater! That is all the tools you need – no fancy spiralizer or slicers. Long cuts, short cuts, juliennes or diced - you can achieve any cuts with these tools.
  6. The basic techniques - Experiment with different techniques for chopping your vegetables for the salad. Dice them in cubes, slice them in circles, finely chop them, julienne them, grate them; peel it in long stripes- you are only limited by your imagination! Long shredded pieces of cabbage, long julienned pieces of carrot, green capsicum and beetroot. Picture this colourful combination wrapped around on a fork! That is what we are talking about! With a few humble tools and some creativity, you can make your platter of salad interesting and appealing.

What next?

Now that your salad bar is ready, all you need to do is mix and match. Do what is convenient for you; enjoying making your salad is as important as enjoying eating it. Follow your instinct!!

A quick tip: If you feel averse to eating raw veggies, always add a few cooked elements in your salad. For eg: chickpea, rajma, black chana, steamed potato, lobia, etc. As you get comfortable, keep increasing the proportion of raw veggies and keep reducing the cooked element.

Let's help you put it all together. Here is a format- a structure you can work with. A little forethought in preparing the menu, shopping and a wee bit of organizing and you are good to go. We will show you a one-week menu. That can give you a format to work and build your own salad menu for several weeks.

The Sunday Shopping List

Tomatoes, potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, capsicum, lettuce, cucumber, pomegranate, carrot, spinach, cherry tomatoes, zucchini, corn, mushrooms, radish, beetroot, garlic, lemon, honey, chilli flakes

Chickpeas, sesame seeds, gur/jaggery.

Roasted assorted nuts like almonds, sesame, peanuts etc.

The Monday mood

Steam potatoes. Cool them and dice them. Also, dice the tomatoes. Mix thinly sliced onions and lettuce. Blend honey, lemon juice and flakes together and dress it over the salad. Quick and easy!

Tonight do: soak the Chickpeas for tomorrow.

The Tuesday Tang

Steam the chickpeas. Mix chopped tomato, chopped onions, chopped cucumber and the tangy Imli chutney. A sumptuous filling salad for lunch!

The Wednesday Whooper

Today let’s grate some carrot and mix in some finely chopped spinach. Sprinkle a handful of roasted sesame. Blend some salt, lemon and jaggery together. Dress it over your salad.

A perfect bowl of nutrition!

The Thursday Theme

Today we will chop the spinach, the onions, and the tomatoes finely. We would add roasted and crushed peanuts to it. Blend lemon juice and jaggery. Enjoy this treat with gratitude!

The Friday Funda

Hey, it’s almost the weekend. Let’s have something special today. Peel and dice sweet potatoes, add chopped onions, diced zucchini and cherry tomatoes. Combine any roasted nuts. And now dress it with green chutney and imli chutney. Tasty and tangy delight!

The Saturday Signature

Take some steamed corn and mushroom. Add some diced capsicum (any colour). Add some chopped salad leaves. Dress this salad up with cashew dressing.

The Sunday Spirit

Sunday is so special; we have put together a salad that's special too. Kind of a trick and treat for your taste buds.

Chop lettuce into big pieces. Add carrot scrapes, cucumber slices, radish scrapes, cherry tomatoes cut in two halves, and some chopped roasted almonds. Blend cold pressed oil, crushed garlic, chilli flakes, lemon juice and a wee bit honey.

Dress up your salad. This is how sumptuousness feels like when it meets tangy.

Bonus Office tip!

If you plan to carry your salad to work, it may be handier to carry the dressing separately in a small bottle to prevent leakage mishaps from your lunch box!

Or you can opt to use a dry dressing. Check out this carrot salad with peanuts recipe from our recipes section.

Hope we got you well sorted on your way to adopting veggie salads into your meals. Make sure to chew your salad well and enjoy the different tastes and textures.

We would love to hear from you how you went about your weekly salad plan. Do share with us in the comments.

Title pic credit: Ben Libby via Pexels

Help Vote (19)
Comments (4)


Disclaimer: The health journeys, blogs, videos and all other content on Wellcure is for educational purposes only and is not to be considered a ‘medical advice’ ‘prescription’ or a ‘cure’ for diseases. Any specific changes by users, in medication, food & lifestyle, must be done under the guidance of licensed health practitioners. The views expressed by the users are their personal views and Wellcure claims no responsibility for them.


Daisy Johnson

03:12 PM | 11-10-2020

Wonderful article. Was looking for variations in salad. Thank you so much.

Reply
Priyanka Kaushik

07:37 PM | 24-05-2019

Thankew so much for this wonderful article wellcure

Reply
Swatantra

05:25 PM | 17-12-2018

Thanks for sharing this article, I loved the idea of Salad bar.

Reply
Asha Shivaram

03:49 PM | 17-12-2018

Nice ready reckoner for eating salads.

Reply

Related Post

What Is The Best Salt For Your Family's Healt...

Do you know how much salt you are consuming? Pickle, papads, baked ite...

Do You 'Really' Need Dairy?

Most of us have grown up consuming dairy in some form or the other bel...

Food Combinations For Weight Loss & Better He...

Ever felt bloated and uncomfortable after a meal? Wonder why you are g...

Best Natural Foods For A Plant-based Diet

Nature has already provided foods intended to keep us in perfect healt...

This is Why You Should Eat Raw For Better Hea...

Raw food is food cooked by the Sun and not by us! Eating fruits, veggi...

Fruits

Which is the most important food you can eat when you are sick? Lookin...

Do You Need To Eat Oil To Get Oil?

Are refined oils like sunflower, rice bran oils etc actually as health...

Do You Know White Sugar Is Not A Natural Food...

Our body needs sugar to fuel us but the processed white sugar food fou...

Are You Over-eating Grains?

Are you having grains three times a day – Breakfast, lunch and d...

Are You Eating Water Or Drinking It?

Water constituents 70% of our body. Having a diet high in water conten...

Do You Love Non-veg Food?

There is a lot of confusion about non vegetarian food ; whether it is ...

Do You Know The Why & How Of Sprouting?

Sprouts are alive, whole, living foods. Easy to digest and bursting wi...

White sugar – A quick roundup through FAQs

Everyone takes sugar in their tea, milk, biscuits, dessert, sweets, ch...

Jaggery – A quick roundup through FAQs

Jaggery is commonly recommended as a healthy alternative to white suga...

Curious about millets? - Here's why you shoul...

Are you wondering what all the recent buzz about millets is about? Or ...

Healthy and Fun Snacking

Snacking is a very emotional habit of our living and eating. When we s...

Choose The Best Salt For Your Family's Health

Sendha namak, sea salt, kala namak, kosher salt, low sodium salt and m...

How To Buy The Best Fruits & Vegetables for Y...

I began shopping for fruits and veggies for the house only a few years...

How to Simplify Eating Vegetable Salads In Bu...

Yes, we all know salads are good for health. However well intentioned ...

Your guide to buying and storing greens

Greens are bursting with nutrition. Add greens to your everyday regime...

How To Add A Variety Leafy Greens To Your Die...

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, you know they are wonderful for your...

The Nutty Dilemma - How to Eat Nuts to Get Th...

Are you nuts about nuts? Love munching on them but not sure if they ca...

4 Ways To Make Your Child Love Green Vegetabl...

Does your child turn up his nose at the sight of greens? Are mealtimes...

How To Select Fruits, Vegetables & Grains For...

Though there is a lot of food produce available to us at many places a...

This is How Much Fruit Your Kids' Breakfast S...

As per the circadian rhythm of the body, having fruits till noon time ...

How Aesthetics of Food Impact Our Eating Habi...

A transition of any kind is not easy and when it comes to changing you...

How To Get The Best From Pulses, Beans & Legu...

Pulses and beans form a significant portion of plant-based nutrition. ...

Chop, steam, cook oil free – Learn 3 kitche...

Whether you are looking to save some money, or improve your overall he...

'Green your life' program - Coming soon!! (25...

Join our 'Green your life' program - Let us help you add more ...

Introduction to greens - Green your life prog...

Introduction to greens The edible leaves of various plants like spi...

Your guide to buying, storing and preparing g...

Your guide to buying, storing and preparing greens The trick to yum...

How To Make Healthy “Fat” Choices?

For decades, “fat” was the most shunned word in the dietar...

Microgreens - Add these wonderful little vegg...

What are microgreens? Microgreens, tiny versions of leafy vegetable...

Processed foods – Are they our natural food...

We all know that processed foods are not good for us. However, still, ...

Raisins - Nature's Powerhouse of Nutrients & ...

If we were to think of a food which is nature"s storehouse of energy, ...

Salt can be addictive

USE LESS SALT; BE KIND TO YOURSELF. What does excess salt do? ...

Roots: Our Saviour From Ancient Times

Roots have been part of our ancient diet since a very long time; they ...

Eat RAW food to HEAL!

Are we DESIGNED to eat raw LIVING FOOD? I mean, think about it, cou...

They are tiny, sometimes even smaller than a fingernail, but they pack...

Seeds - Interesting Ways to Add them to Your ...

In Part 1 of our blog on seeds, you learnt about what are seeds, the d...

आहार

Vegetable Juices - A New Way to have Raw Vege...

Recently, juicing has gained increased attention. For many of us, it m...

Boost your health with this season of citrus ...

Oranges, lemon, grapes! It is the time of the year where we get to eat...

30 Ways to Revamp Your Evening Snacks

In this article, we discuss the healthy alternatives that you can choo...

Eating raw in the winter giving you the chill...

So you spent the summer eating a high raw diet and feel pretty good &n...

All about Tea

In most households, drinking tea first thing in the morning and later ...

The basic rhythm of our glands

Hormones, yes hormones we always blame on it. That one thing which tak...

To Gluten or Not?

The number of gluten-free products is steadily increasing in the marke...

Water – Alkalize and increase its vibration...

We all consume water but without paying a conscious attention to the p...

De-JUNK the kids (Online group program, 29th ...

What kids eat today determines their tomorrow Learn to make health...

Summer is different this year, isn"t it? We all are staying at home, w...

Healthy Vegan Indian Cooking Course (E-learni...

Did you know that humans are closest to frugivores? Our natural diet i...

Is Your Cookware Toxic?

We choose our food carefully to stay healthy but do we give equal atte...

3 GOOD REASONS TO QUIT MILK & DAIRY

Despite so much scientific evidence and globally acknowledged changes ...

Mono-Fruit Breakfast | The Healthiest Way to ...

Eating one fruit for breakfast, is a perfect way to start your day. Do...

COCONUT - THE WONDER FOOD

Call it a nut, or a fruit, coconut is one of the most versatile fruits...

Ways To Prevent Obesity & Diabetes In Kids

India is home to about 97,700 children with type 1 diabetes mellitu...

Fibromyalgia - Fibromyalgia cure

FIBROMYALGIA If you are someone feeling body pain all the time yet ...

How to cure Psoriasis naturally?

Psoriasis – everyone says that it is uncurable. But I believe na...

Cure Diabetes Naturally

It is said that once you have diabetes it is for a lifetime, but Diabe...

This is Why Plant-Based Proteins Are a Health...

Have you been skeptical about switching to a plant-based diet for the ...

7 Reasons Why You Shouldn't Eat Eggs

Universally, eggs are one of the world"s most consumed breakfast items...

Do's and Don'ts of Healthy Karva Chauth Fasti...

The much-awaited, much celebrated day is almost here. Every year many ...

Organic Fruits & Veggies Tokri is back! Doors...

100% Organic Foods Available At The Price Of Non-Organic Foods Heal...

Free Masterclass - Healthy Cooking with Nutri...

Learn All About Millets And How To Use Them In Daily Cooking Fee: I...

Free Masterclass! Vegan & Gluten-free Baking ...

Make Your Baking Healthier & Tastier No Gluten | No Dairy | No Ref...

The Best Thing You Can Do For EARTH & YOUR HE...

There"s only one place to be - our dear Earth. And there"s only one tr...

Do you need curd for probioctics?

Curd has long been a staple in the Indian diet. Whether it is used as ...

Is Fish Good For Health?

India is blessed with an extensive shoreline. Seafood has been a part ...

Untold Truths About A2 Milk That You Must Kno...

There's a lot of talk around A2 milk nowadays. Are these facts or ...

Best Foods To Boost Your Brain Power & Memory

Our Brain is what makes us human. We are the most evolved species on t...

Cook With Plant-based Chef Priya Vijan | Mast...

Priya Vijan, the only Plant-based & Vegan chef in MasterChef India 202...

Free Download! Navratri Falahari Millet Recip...

🎉 ₹199/- FREE DOWNLOAD! Use Code WELLCURE100 Celebrate Na...