Will I Ever Like Salad?

[nessie216]

Plodding along slowly here . . .

I am still battling with food (living in a caravan for another month) and whenever I look at what others are eating or recipes etc there is always salad

Problem is I have never liked salad

I think lettuce/green leaves taste like grass, I dislike raw tomatoes (remind me of licking stamps) and I don’t like cucumber - I can just about eat a tuna and cucumber sandwich (not that I’m eating them anymore!)

I will eat raw pepper, raw onion and celery

I am happy with cooked veg

Will I ever like salad? Any tips to try and get me to like them? Anyone following a low carb diet without salad?

 

[kitedoc]

? Olive oil ( NOT extra virgin) and vinegar as a dressing, using chopped up lettuce.? Grilled tomatoes with cheese and sprinkled with dried basil, or half tomatoes sprinkled with dries basil and upper surface covered with olive oil and cooked for ? 30 seconds in the microwave. Also what does Jamie Oliver advise?

 

[Guzzler]

Have you tried things like watercress, baby spinach leaves or cooked celeriac? Sometimes a slightly different dressing can add to a salad as long as it is low carb. I find plenty of salt makes a big difference, too.

Buttered cabbage is lovely and a Mediterranean roasted veg tray is simple to throw together. Good luck.

 

[Deleted Account]

Lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes are boring.
But carrot with a lemon and olive oil dressing (and maybe a few saltanas) or feta, beetroot and mint. Or aubergine, yoghurt and a few pomegranate seeds. Or broad beans, courgettes, walnuts and olive oil. Or watermelon and feta. Or tomatoes (left out of the fridge for a few hours), mozarella and basil, ...
There is so much more to salads than the traditional British salads.
Mediterranean countries (Greece, Lebanon, Israel, Italy, ...) have some great salad ideas.
Or just adds some herbs (parsley, mint, basil), seeds and nuts to liven up your dish.

 

[Circuspony]

We have some lovely black currant flavoured balsamic which brightens up even boring lettuce. Bought from a farmer's market but there are other nice ones if you hunt around.

 

[Indy51]

@nessie216 - you're not alone re preferring cooked veg to salad. I sometimes eat it if it comes with a meal at a restaurant, but I never make it at home these days. I don't really trust packet lettuces, etc and prefer the taste and texture of cooked better.

 

[Mr_Pot]

? Olive oil ( NOT extra virgin) and vinegar as a dressing, using chopped up lettuce.? Grilled tomatoes with cheese and sprinkled with dried basil, or half tomatoes sprinkled with dries basil and upper surface covered with olive oil and cooked for ? 30 seconds in the microwave. Also what does Jamie Oliver advise?

I thought that would be exactly the time to use extra virgin olive oil? I like Balsamic vinegar as well. Small vine ripened tomatoes like Piccolo or Vittoria are much nicer than the big tasteless one but more expensive of course.

 

[kitedoc]

I thought that would be exactly the time to use extra virgin olive oil? I like Balsamic vinegar as well. Small vine ripened tomatoes like Piccolo or Vittoria are much nicer than the big tasteless one but more expensive of course.

I thought that extra virgin might be too strong for a new-to-salad eater. Balsamic vinegar for sure !!

 

[Smallbrit]

I'm following a low carb diet generally without salad. I buy it with the best of intentions. And most of it ends up being eaten by the rabbits, who feast on a very impressive bowl of veggies that were meant to go with seafood or steak or something.

I eat lots of low carb veg, though - usually cooked or roasted or in an omelette. I do like tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, onions and balsamic vinegar all alternating slices and Instagram-perfect. But only if someone else prepares it for me and makes it look pretty...!

 

[ickihun]

Nope! Not a salad lover either. I have to have salad on my salad cream which isn't very low carb.

 

[LooperCat]

If you like balsamic, make sure you use the vinegar rather than the dressing, which is often full of sugar

 

[lovinglife]

Salad doesn't mean lettuce tomatoes and cucumber, the only salad I use lettuce in is Caesar Salad, it just means a mixture of cold or warmed vegetables with dressing, I love any cold above cooked above ground veg tossed in flavoured oils or mayo.

Tonight for instance I am having lamb leg steaks with a warm (NOT hot) salad of cooked green beans, asparagus, a few fresh peas, a chopped spring onion tossed in a rosemary and mint olive oil dressing on a bed of baby spinach leaves - be inventive as you like, also Google warm low carb salads and you will get loads of ideas

 

[Alison54321]

I love salad, especially mushrooms, mushrooms are lovely.

A salad can be whatever you want it to be. The only rules really are that it's supposed to have vegetables in it, and be cold. So just experiment until you find ingredients that you like. You can add things like peas, cooked, but cold, or anything really. It's your salad.

 

[rosco 2]

Me too! Salad is largely revolting. I was brought up in tropics, you just never ate salad as it was often the source of parasites. I make a vinaigrette using chopped garlic, olive oil, apple vinegar and some xylitol dissolved in boiling water. It’s pretty tasty and improves those uninteresting salads.

 

[NoCrbs4Me]

There's no need to eat salad if you don't want to.

 

[Ronnidog]

I do like salads of all descriptions as long as there's no coriander! I make a coleslaw with finely chopped sweetheart cabbage, spiralised carrots, spring onions, grated cheese and nuts. Mix mayo and dijon mustard together and toss in the salad.

 

[bulkbiker]

Plodding along slowly here . . .

I am still battling with food (living in a caravan for another month) and whenever I look at what others are eating or recipes etc there is always salad

Problem is I have never liked salad

I think lettuce/green leaves taste like grass, I dislike raw tomatoes (remind me of licking stamps) and I don’t like cucumber - I can just about eat a tuna and cucumber sandwich (not that I’m eating them anymore!)

I will eat raw pepper, raw onion and celery

I am happy with cooked veg

Will I ever like salad? Any tips to try and get me to like them? Anyone following a low carb diet without salad?

Sounds like you are an ideal candidate for zero carb... I used to have a few veg but have for the past month or so been only eating animal produce (with maybe the odd avocado). Seems great so far.

 

[Robbity]

Who says you have eat (or even like) lettuce, tomatoes or cucumbers?? And while they may be or have been the basic British salad there's plenty of other vegetables/salad leaves/herbs/nuts/fruit that can be eaten raw or lightly cooked instead - and not all tomatoes were created equal -while there are some watery tasteless varieties around, some can be really sweet and tasty!

But there's no need to eat salad in any form, there are plenty of other foods that you can buy and eat cold - e.g. meat, cheese, (canned) fish... if you're still worried about cooking in your caravan.

Robbity
(Edited to correct spelling error)

 

[suhasini]

Salad is a no-no for me too. I get tummy issues with raw veggies except for carrot and cucumber. If the idea is to take in a good quantity of veggies ,I always steam or saute them lightly in olive oil....carrots ,peas, sprouts,spinach.Spice them up with any herbs and salt and pepper. A dash of lime juice and you are done. Sometimes I add boiled chickpeas or any beans for the crunch. Tomatoes are supposed to be healthier cooked so chopping and sauting them in a bit of oil along with onions till they are soft makes them palatable

 

[becca59]

Sounds like you are an ideal candidate for zero carb... I used to have a few veg but have for the past month or so been only eating animal produce (with maybe the odd avocado). Seems great so far.

????? That may be good for your sugar levels but in my opinion not much else. Bowel cancer is the first to come to mind.