Some salads

I'm still feeling a bit overwhelmed by Tetsuya, but I suppose life must go on. We've had lamb steaks marinaded in lemon, garlic and herbs. I made a bean salad. That was Tuesday. On Wednesday I ate low fat hotdogs with lots of sauerkraut. And I marinaded some chicken fillets and made a chickpea salad today.

Recipe 1: Mixed Bean Salad
200g fresh green beans
1 400g tin of mixed beans
2 large shallots
6 large sundried tomato halves (optional)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
Steam green beans until just tender; refresh in cold water immediately. Drain and rinse canned beans. Mix both lots of beans, chopped shallots and chopped sundried tomatoes in a serving bowl. Mix oil, vinegar and salt in a small jar and shake well. Pour over salad, and mix well.

Notes: I like my salad dressings very acidic; a higher proportion of oil is more traditional. That pack of sundried tomatoes I bought before Xmas is still making appearances. I think it goes rather well with the tinned beans.


Recipe 2: Caramelised Chickpea and Orange Salad
1 400g tin of chickpeas
1 medium onion
1 large orange
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon plus a teaspoon of white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
Slice onion in medium coarse half rings. Blanch with boiling water, drain and sprinkle over vinegar and sumac. Leave for at least an hour to rest. Rinse and drain chickpeas; peel and slice orange, and mix in a heat resistant bowl. Heat sugar, water, salt, vinegar and chilli in a small saucepan until sugar is dissolved, then boil until caramelised to a golden brown. Tip caramel over chickpea and orange mix, and stir well. Add onion. Leave for an hour or so before serving to let the caramel toffee dissolve into the vinegar.

Notes: I wish I'd had a large bunch of continental parsley to mix with this. I had to be content with serving it on a bed of lettuce.