Mexican style salad
Just in time for back to school, weeknight meals, packed lunches or anytime.
One of my September recipes. I like recipes that come together from ingredients in the fridge, or planned in advance to be time saving.
Mexican Salad
Pepper jelly. There are quite a few varieties of pepper jelly on the market. You can also make your own pepper jelly by following the directions for pepper jelly in a packet of Certo pectin. Obviously there is a difference in both taste and heat between individual brands, so use half the stated quantity of pepper jelly to start with and then add more to your individual taste. Even if you used exactly the same pepper jelly as I did, your taste could want more or less heat. Also realize that the vinaigrette tasted on a spoon will taste far hotter than once it is mixed with a salad. I normally taste test a vinaigrette by dipping a lettuce leaf. The sweetness of the jelly mellows the vinaigrette and makes a vinaigrette with a sweet spicy but mild kick. Just enough to realize the heat without your nose running and lips tingling madly.
Yes, that's Lobster salad from my local Market Basket grocery store. Chef opened fresh container of lobster salad and charged me same price as if I had bought 2 lobster rolls. $5.99 , delicious.
Vinaigrette:
2 tbsp (30ml) hot pepper jelly placed in small microwave safe bowl and melted in microwave 10-20 seconds. I like to clean, sterilize and reuse jam jars for these sauces as you can see what’s in them in the fridge. I buy Trappist Hot pepper jelly.
1 tsp (5 ml) honey
Zest of 1/4 lime.
2 tbsp (30 ml) fresh lime juice - about ½ to 1 lime. Half of a lime can produce only about 1+1/2 tablespoons of juice, you need to add more to total 2 tablespoons. The extra little bit of lime does make a difference in taste for me. (I have tried lemon juice but the lime added just the flavor I wanted)
½ teaspoon salt (or more or less to taste)
freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup oil (120 ml) . Since olive oil scandal I can only find evo which I find too strong. I use avocado oil and will never use canola oil. If you use olive oil it will solidify in the fridge and then melt at room temperature.
2 teaspoons (10ml) Koops Arizona heat mustard, labeled gf. "slightly sweet stone ground mustard and a little bite of the southwest". Regular grocery store. I really like it on a turkey/ham/swiss sandwich.
green of 2 green onions
about 2 tablespoons of fresh parsley and/or cilantro. My husband is one of those that hates cilantro so I can only sprinkle some on my salad.
Salad:
Deliberately leftover, 2 corn on the cob, roasted or bbq'd and niblets cut from cob.
Shredded romaine or other lettuce, enough for 4 people
Tomatoes, either large cut up, or small grape or cherry
1 ripe avocado, halved, depitted and cut into small dice
Mexican cheese of your choice, shredded or crumbled.
Salsa of your choice for heat
½ red pepper deseeded and cut into ½” dice - optional
½ c cooked chick peas - optional
fresh cilantro chopped - optional
Whatever other salad ingredients you personally like
Tortillas – I like the crunch of Tostitos, most are labeled gf, crushed a little
I got real lobster salad at the market – that was fabulous, but salad shrimp, cooked chicken, spicy sausage, pulled pork without sauce. Or an egg and it can be vegetarian.
1. Mix all vinaigrette ingredients together, lightly pulse with immersion blender to chop herbs and also thickens vinaigrette and leave for about 1 hour for flavors to blend together.
2. On individual plates or one large platter, attractively arrange lettuce and top with circles of tomatoes, avocado, red pepper and any other salad ingredients you think would be suitable. Top with crushed chips just before serving.
3. You can also leave cooked shrimp, chicken, in 1/4 c vinaigrette for an hour to absorb flavor. Then pour shrimp, chicken and vinaigrette on top of salad.Vinaigrette keeps in fridge for several days. If you used olive oil it will appear solidified, like melted butter chilled.
