Chicory Love

Well today I was in need of a salad, which wasn't boring green on green or your everyday garden salad. I think a lot of people do get very bored of the same old lettuce, cucumber, tomato etc. I like to jazz up a salad, still simple and not a lot of prepping involved but keep it interesting. After you have a few of these next ingredients in your arsenal your simple salad will never be the same!

The Pop Art Salad

The base of the salad is chicory or witloof, a personal favourite of mine, it is very versatile and can be used in many dishes, utilising its mildly bitter taste; no doubt you will see it on here again. I added sliced yellow bell peppers; however any pepper could be used such as banana peppers. I used chilli infused red onion, now this is a personal preference as I am a chilli fan, normal red onion or shallot would fit in perfectly also. Along with this I used (roquito) chilli pepper pearls. The hot and sweet flavour is a perfect contrast to the bitterness of the chicory. I topped the salad with grilled chicken, to get my protien fix, that had been rubbed with a spice tikka mix:

6 teaspoons coriander

6 teaspoons cumin

6 teaspoons garlic powder

6 teaspoons paprika

4 teaspoons garam masala

3 teaspoons ginger ground

3 teaspoons dried mint

2 teaspoons chilli powder.

Alternatively you can by a readymade mix or buy pre-cooked and flavoured chicken, however the first two options are for the best in my eyes. For a vegetarian option, you could substitute chicken for grilled halloumi, which also gives a lot of protein to the dish. I also added olives to my salad. This along with the roquito pearls gave more moisture to the salad, lessening the need for a dressing, possibly just giving a squeeze of lemon instead.

Give it a try or try your own version and let us know how it goes!

#Chicory #Salad #Nutrition #Health #roquito