The Time of Salads

Ho! 'Tis The Time of Salads!" wrote Laurence Sterne in Tristram Shandy. He was writing, of course, of summertime, when the hot sun makes appetites ready for cool, crisp refreshment. There's nothing more pleasing to the warm-weather eye and palate than tossed meals dressed for dinner, so take a tip and enhance both your reputation as a chef and your buffet table with maindish salads of flesh and fish.

Every interested disciple of the salad bowl should keep in mind the fact that a salad isn't really a salad until it's marinated. This doesn't mean you must marinate it for hours. For some salads the mixing time itself, or 10 or 20 minutes' standing time, is sufficient for a proper blending of flavors. Others, like the French white bean salad, require at least overnight marinating. In any case you must allow sufficient time for the wine vinegar, the chives, the Dijon mustard and all other ingredients in the bowl to blend, to cook without fire in a sense, until a liaison of flavors has occurred. When you bite into cold shrimp, you should instantly taste the sweet pepper, the lemon juice, the pungent celery salt and any other condiment that went into the bowl before the salad was mixed.

In leafy green salads this liaison is encouraged by olive oil and vinegar; for many of the more substantial salads it's often formed with mayonnaise. A good rule of thumb (continued on page 84)Time of Salads(continued from page 70) for the salad beginner is to seldom use mayonnaise as it comes from the jar. Spreading unmixed mayonnaise on toast is just right for a club sandwich. But for salads the mayonnaise should be softened so it both clings to the ingredients and flows among them. Dilute it with milk, cream or lemon juice, or any combination of these. Use from one to four tablespoons of diluent per cup of mayonnaise. Now and then you will mix mayonnaise with a watery food, like the mandarin orange slices in the shrimp salad recipe that will follow. In such instances, the food itself will provide its own diluendo, and no other thinning will be necessary. Freshly boiled potatoes in a salad, on the other hand, will not only blot up the mayonnaise but will actually make it thicker than it was when taken from the jar. Around the Rouen area in France, chefs make a potato salad by adding only sweet cream and vinegar to the hot sliced boiled potatoes. As the salad stands, the cream turns into a gentle, enticing cold sauce.

The kinds of individual dressings that you can make from a jar of prepared mayonnaise are practically unlimited. Such additions as capers, chopped tarragon, chopped hard-boiled egg, curry powder, sherry, sour cream, unsweetened whipped cream, chili sauce or chili powder, or even fruit juices or fruits, are only a few of the numberless variations.

Not many amateur chefs make their own mayonnaise these days. If, however, you are enamored of olive oil flavor, you may want to make your own, since the prepared product is processed from comparatively tasteless vegetable oils. Whipping up your own mayonnaise is really a snap if you own an electric blender. You merely drop into the well of the blending machine 1 egg, 1 teaspoon prepared mustard, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a dash cayenne pepper. Mix it at low speed for about 5 seconds. Then, at low speed again, slowly add 1 cup olive oil or other salad oil if you prefer. If you own the type of blender that's fitted with a filler cap, merely remove it and pour the oil through the opening. After the oil has been added, stir in 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 1 tablespoon wine vinegar, and the mayonnaise is ready. Again you can reach for your apothecary jars and add turmeric, dill weed or any spiking ingredient that pleases your fancy, remembering to add a little at a time to taste.

Even easier than mayonnaise is an old pastoral delight, sour cream dressing, especially good with a fish dish like fresh salmon salad. Combine 1 cup sour cream, 2 tablespoons wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon onion salt, 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 dashes Tabasco sauce. Stir it for a minute, and the dressing is ready.

When you make a salad, be conscious not only of flavors, but of textures as well. It's no accident that in one salad recipe after another you'll find diced celery listed as one of the ingredients, because of its tonic crispness. Crinkly lettuce with firm beefsteak tomatoes, hard water chestnuts teamed with tender shrimp, soft pimientos paired with lobster chunks -- all these are prime examples of delightful textural juxtaposition.

No man who ever had the right to hold a salad spoon has said anything more important than Sydney Smith in his famous recipe in rhyme for a salad dressing: "Let onion atoms lurk within the bowl,/And half suspected, animate the whole." To keep raw onion half suspected, however, isn't as easy as it sounds. Some fresh onions are much more volatile than others, and when the tear glands begin to flow too energetically, that's an indication to go easy. An onion that's grated will reach other foods in the bowl much more quickly than an onion that's diced or chopped. The most delicate member of the onion family is the thin green herb, the chive. Shallots, the small yellow bulbs that come in quart measures, have a lively yet delicate onion flavor, but must be chopped extremely fine before they can be used in salads; they're usually too small to grate. Scallions should be handled the same way. For those who can't tolerate onions in raw form, onion powder or onion salt may be substituted.

The proficient saladier knows how to turn emergencies into assets. When a recipe calls for two cups diced boiled chicken, and you have only one cup on hand, you won't be fainthearted about substituting cooked ham or tongue or sweetbread or chicken liver or even crab meat. And if you have only one and a half cups of chicken when a recipe calls for two, and you decide to add a half cup of walnuts or chestnuts or frozen pineapple chunks, you'll learn that additions of this type, properly prepared, will invariably be credited to your creative ingenuity rather than to a shortage in your icebox.

Here is a covey of salad-meal recipes, each planned for four portions and guaranteed to garner huzzahs from hungry guests.

[recipe_title]Seashore Salad à la Playboy[/recipe_title]

[recipe]Meat from 2 1-lb. boiled lobsters[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 lb. freshly cooked crab lump[/recipe]

[recipe]1 lb. medium-size shrimp boiled[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup French dressing[/recipe]

[recipe]1-1/2 cups diced celery[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper, celery salt[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 teaspoon paprika[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon horseradish[/recipe]

[recipe]Juice of 1 lemon[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons oyster cocktail sauce[/recipe]

[recipe]2 scallions, white part, finely chopped[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 head lettuce[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons capers in vinegar[/recipe]

[recipe]1 cup mayonnaise[/recipe]

[recipe]Lettuce leaves[/recipe]

Cut the lobster meat into 1/2-inch cubes. Examine crab lump, and carefully remove any shell or cartilage. Peel shrimp, and remove veins. In a salad bowl combine the lobster meat, crab lump, shrimp, French dressing, celery, two or three generous dashes each of salt, pepper and celery salt, paprika, horseradish, lemon juice, cocktail sauce, scallions and Worcestershire sauce. Mix thoroughly. Chill in the refrigerator at least one hour. Cut half a head of lettuce into fine shreds. Combine the salad with the lettuce shreds, capers and mayonnaise. Mix thoroughly. Line four dinner plates with lettuce leaves. Spoon salad on lettuce. Garnish salad, if desired, with wedges of hard-boiled egg or wedges of tomato or both.

[recipe_title]Corned Beef Salad[/recipe_title]

[recipe]3/4 lb. thinly sliced cooked corned beef[/recipe]

[recipe]4 medium-size boiled potatoes, peeled[/recipe]

[recipe]4 medium-size cooked or canned red beets[/recipe]

[recipe]1 medium-size dill pickle[/recipe]

[recipe]4 tablespoons salad oil[/recipe]

[recipe]4 tablespoons garlic-flavored wine vinegar[/recipe]

[recipe]2 teaspoons prepared mustard[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon finely chopped chives[/recipe]

[recipe]Freshly ground black pepper, salt[/recipe]

[recipe]2 hard-boiled eggs[/recipe]

[recipe]Lettuce leaves[/recipe]

Cut the corned beef into 1/2-inch squares. Cut the potatoes, red beets and dill pickle the same size. In a salad bowl combine the corned beef, potatoes, beets, dill pickle, salad oil, wine vinegar, mustard and chives. Hold the pepper mill over the bowl, and give the handle a half-dozen turns. Add salt very sparingly, since the corned beef is salty. Toss all ingredients thoroughly. Let the salad marinate in the refrigerator at least 4 to 5 hours. Line cold dinner plates with lettuce leaves. Spoon the salad onto the lettuce leaves. Garnish with wedges of hard-boiled egg.

[recipe_title]Italian Mixed Salad[/recipe_title]

[recipe]2 quarts salad greens[/recipe]

[recipe]1 sweet green pepper, thinly sliced[/recipe]

[recipe]4 whole roasted sweet red peppers from jar, thinly sliced[/recipe]

[recipe]2 small hot green peppers, thinly sliced[/recipe]

[recipe]2 2-oz. jars artichoke hearts in oil, drained[/recipe]

[recipe]2 3-1/4-oz. jars cocktail mushrooms, drained[/recipe]

[recipe]12 large stuffed green olives[/recipe]

[recipe]6 large black olives[/recipe]

[recipe]2 large tomatoes cut into wedges[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup capers in salt[/recipe]

[recipe]1 cup diced celery[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup olive oil[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons red wine vinegar[/recipe]

[recipe]2 2-oz. cans boneless and skinless sardines[/recipe]

The salad greens may consist of any available assortment such as lettuce, romaine, chicory, endive and watercress, cut or torn into medium-size pieces, washed and dried until not a droplet of water shows. Use one of those special wire salad baskets, paper towels or clean cloth towels for drying the greens. In a large salad bowl combine all the ingredients (ice cold) except the sardines. Toss slowly but thoroughly until well blended. The capers in salt will usually obviate the necessity for additional salt. Since the artichoke hearts, roasted peppers and mushrooms are marinated as they come from the jar, no further marinating is required for this salad. Spoon the salad onto the serving plates. Place the sardines on top of each portion.

[recipe_title]Mandarin Shrimp Salad[/recipe_title]

[recipe]2 lb. shrimp boiled[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup mayonnaise[/recipe]

[recipe]1/3 cup heavy cream whipped[/recipe]

[recipe]5-1/4-oz. can water chestnuts, drained[/recipe]

[recipe]11-oz. can mandarin orange segments, drained[/recipe]

[recipe]2 dashes Tabasco sauce[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, white pepper[/recipe]

[recipe]Lettuce leaves[/recipe]

[recipe]1 bunch watercress[/recipe]

[recipe]2-oz. jar pimiento strips, drained[/recipe]

Remove shells and veins from shrimp. Slice the water chestnuts as thin as possible. Fold the whipped cream into the mayonnaise. In a salad bowl combine the shrimp, mayonnaise mixture, water chestnuts, orange segments and Tabasco sauce. Add salt and white pepper to taste. Let the salad marinate a half hour in the refrigerator before serving. Line cold dinner plates with lettuce leaves. Spoon the salad onto the lettuce. Place 2 large sprigs of watercress on each portion of salad at opposite sides of serving plates. Place the pimiento strips on top of salad just before serving.

[recipe_title]Scallop Salad[/recipe_title]

[recipe]1 lb. sea scallops[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon dill weed[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon grated onion[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons salad oil[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons lemon juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 cup diced celery, including leaves[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup sour cream[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup mayonnaise[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper, celery salt[/recipe]

[recipe]Lettuce leaves[/recipe]

[recipe]8 large stuffed olives[/recipe]

Wash scallops well. Drop scallops into boiling salted water and simmer for 4 minutes. Drain scallops and cut them into slices about l/2 inch thick. (Bay scallops may be substituted for sea scallops, when in season. They should be boiled 2 minutes, and left whole.) Put the sliced scallops in a salad bowl. Add the dill weed, grated onion, salad oil and lemon juice. Add two or three generous dashes each of salt, pepper and celery salt. Let the scallops chill in the refrigerator one hour. Add the celery, sour cream and mayonnaise. Mix well. Correct seasoning as needed. Spoon the salad onto lettuce leaves. Cut stuffed olives in half crosswise. Arrange the olives, cut side up, on top of each portion of salad.

You'll find these meals will lead to gustatorial applause. And the delighted reactions of your more delectable guests will help make your summer days salad days in more ways than one.