Last year, we put together a how-to on how to build a satisfying salad. The key to making restaurant worthy salads, that you don’t have to pay $25 dollars for, comes down to different textures and having variety. A little salt, crunch, acid, fat, raw and roasted veggies. All good.

Here’s our formula:

Protein: Here we use chicken, but any animal protein, steak, chicken, shrimp, salmon, tuna, or even bacon work. Eggs are always a good addition. Vegetarian? Adding a legume like chickpeas or white beans, or a tofu can be a good stand in. Marinate those items in a dressing or roast them for some texture.

Fat: Avocado, a soft goat cheese, briny olives, a creamy dressing, all are amazing, but at least one is crucial. Two is premium goodness.

Something Sweet: This is optional, but seasonal fruit is often a welcomed addition to break up the savory. Dried works too, but I like to soak them in a little water first, so they aren’t so dense and chewy.

Acid: Season your greens. Lemon and salt will liven up your greens and make them palatable. I like mixing acids, like lemon juice and balsamic.

Soft Roasted Veg + Raw Veg: This helps with both texture and health, we’re eating giant salads for nutrition too.

Crunch: A must! Toasted nuts, some crushed crackers or tortilla chips, croutons, all of it.

P.S. if you have the time to quick pickle anything - onions, radishes, shallots etc., it makes them extra vibrant. Use our pickled onion method (link pickled onions here) or even just shave them thin, rinse and toss them in a little salt and vinegar before adding to a salad if you don’t have time for the whole pickling deal. Raw onions in a salad are gnarly, please at least rinse and dress them to tone down that punch.

Here, we call for a quick marinade for the chicken but if you have leftover chicken from recipe one, cube that up or shed it, toss it in some of the balsamic vin, and proceed!