Are you looking for an easy and delicious appetizer to start your meal?
then give this restaurant-quality greek salad a try!
plus I'll show you a quick method for pickling the onions to enhance the dishes flavor
unless you're a fan of raw onions one way to make the flavor
more interesting is to pickle the vegetables
the process only takes 15 minutes and makes a huge flavor impact
cut off both ends of a red onion
make sure to leave the root end intact so it doesn't fall apart when you cut it
make a shallow cut and then pull off the first layer so you can peel off the skin
make a small cut down the side and then
place that on the cutting board this way the onion's not going to roll around
cut into 1/8-inch thick slices
when you pull the layers apart you're going to have these nice circles, we need a 1/2 cup
the pickling solution is just two ingredients
in a small bowl, I'm going to add a 1/4 cup of red wine vinegar and 2 tablespoons of honey
you could also use granulated sugar or pure maple syrup if you prefer a more tangy flavor
you can omit the sweetener however I like the balance of flavors
add in a 1/2 cup of the sliced onions
do your best to submerge as many of the rings under the liquid as possible
as the vegetables marinate the sulfurous compounds are going to mellow out
due to the acids in the vinegar
I let this sit for about 15 minutes and I'll check in about halfway through and just stir it so that
all of the slices have contact with the liquid
I have these beautiful crisp romaine hearts I'm going to clean them before cutting
rinse the lettuce under cool running water shake to remove excess water and dry with clean towels
I've washed and dried the lettuce to remove any
dirt or contamination from the surface and between the leaves
find the largest leaf and have that facing up, cut into strips lengthwise
3/4-inch thick then turn over and cut 3/4-inch strips again
now cut into 3/4-inch thick pieces
I like the crispiness of this lighter colored bottom end so make sure you keep that in too
we need 8 cups
for this recipe I've got a classic combination of
mix-ins that I'm going to prepare that's going to add a nice contrast of flavors and textures
but the salad is really easy to customize if you want to switch things up
I have an English cucumber the skin is really thin so you don't have to peel it,
slice off the ends then cut it into 4 pieces
slice the cucumber in half lengthwise and then cut into quarters,
turn and line them up, slice into 1/4-inch thick pieces
the seeds are small so you don't have to scoop them out, we need 1 cup
grab some ripe juicy tomatoes
these are vine-ripened so I'm going to take them off the stem
you can use your favorite tomatoes like a Roma or Campari whatever's in season
slice them in half lengthwise then cut into 1/2-inch thick wedges
this is going to add a nice sweet juiciness to the salad, we need 1 cup
to cut the bell pepper trim off both ends cut in half lengthwise
then carefully remove the inside of the pepper and the seeds
this is gonna add a nice sweet and mild
peppery taste without the heat, cut into 3/4-inch thick strips
if you don't like bell peppers you can also use Pepperoncini's
line them up and cut into 3/4-inch dice, we need 3/4 cup
you can't have a Greek salad without some tangy and creamy feta cheese
cut these into little cubes about a 1/4-inch
thick that way they don't completely fall apart when we're mixing
turn and cut into 1/4-thick cubes I love the briny flavor of the cheese you need 4 ounces
to build the salad I have the 8 cups of lettuce
add 1 cup of the diced English cucumber, 1 cup of the tomato wedges,
3/4 quarter cups of bell pepper, add 1/2 cup of the drained pickled onions
add 1/2 cup of pitted kalamata olives,
and 4 ounces of the cubed feta cheese I'm going to save a few cubes to use as garnish for later
now set this aside to make the dressing
I'm going to start by zesting a lemon the skin has these aromatic citrus oils that are fat-soluble
so when you add them to the dressing
it's going to dissolve in the olive oil and add a lot of dimension
oh it smells really good already we need 1 teaspoon
to juice the lemon, cut it in half, place it inside of the juicer and give it a good squeeze
it's going to add a nice bright acidity to the vinaigrette we need 1 tablespoon
to add an earthy bite to the dressing mince some fresh garlic
cut off each end give the clove a smash this makes it easy to remove the skin
use the fanning motion to mince into really small pieces
wait to mince the garlic because the sulfurous allicin compounds
in the ingredient is going to build as it's being cut down
so the longer it sits the stronger the flavor will be
and we don't want it to be overpowering, we need 2 teaspoons
in a medium bowl, add 3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon of lemon zest,
1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon of honey
the honey and mustard are both
light emulsifiers so they're going to help the dressing stay suspended for longer
2 teaspoons of minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano, its gonna add a nice
herbaceous note, a 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, and a 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
just whisk this until everything is combined
to make a properly emulsified dressing
you're going to slowly add 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil while continuously whisking
take your time with this process you want the oil to form small droplets
so it's suspended in the liquid and over time will create a thickened consistency
we want the dressing to cling to all of the ingredients if you add the oil all in at one time
it's just going to coalesce together and create an oily layer on top
this oil and vinegar dressing is a semi-permanent mixture which means
it's not going to stay emulsified indefinitely
so make sure if you don't dress the salad right away whisk it up before you add it on top
this looks good it's clinging to the whisk which means it's going to grab onto the ingredients
drizzle on about half of the dressing I like to serve the rest on the side
for guests to add on later
gently toss to combine
if any of the heavier ingredients start to settle just bring them back to the top
you're looking for an even coating on the leaves and also on the mix and ingredients
you don't want the cheese to break down too much just a little bit
wow this looks really good
right before serving, I like to add a little bit more cheese on top
then sprinkle with a little bit of extra dried oregano
to make this a complete meal I would serve the salad with this roasted chicken recipe right here
it makes for a healthy pairing
i hope you enjoyed learning the science behind greek salad and if you did
please give it a big thumbs up it means a lot when you do
see you in the next video
maybe a little bit more cheese