I am such a huge proponent of seaweed in theory–it’s so amazingly good for you, and it tastes good, too–but it’s about time I get going with having it around for real, not just on my plate when I order sushi.  Nori, the seaweed used often in sushi rolls, tastes amazing on salads, and it’s fun to prepare.  Anytime I can get office supplies involved in the kitchen–in this case, scissors–I’m happy.   Nori is crisp enough to be broken into pieces, but I like using scissors to shred it into little pieces or cut it into squares or strips.  One note about nori–though it is crisp, it will not stay so on a super-wet salad.  Therefore, I recommend adding nori to the top at the very end or even serving it separately if you are hoping for some crispy action.

This is a salad I made to “treat” the head cold I had.  Mizuna is a wonderful Japanese salad green that has a similar flavor to arugula–peppery, sharp, and sassy.  I think it tends to be slightly more delicate in structure, though– maybe it’s because I’ve only eaten young mizuna.  Anyway, it’s in the brassica family and is considered a mustard green.   Perfect green for a head cold! 

When you aren’t tossing your mizuna in a regular, refreshing salad during warm and healthy days, why not throw it into your Asian-inspired concoction that you made for dinner, and squirt a ton of hot pepper sauce over the top?  This will set you free.

The concoction above contains:

• Mizuna
• Egg drop soup (chicken broth, tamari sauce, with egg beaten into it)
• Quinoa (I didn’t have time to make rice)
• Chicken stir fry with peas & tons of garlic and onions
• Hot pepper sauce

My family ate the stir fry as I had intended them to, over the quinoa, with the soup on the side.  I, on the other hand, opted to pour them all together, mix in mizuna, and inundate the whole thing with hot sauce. 

It seemed to help on all levels.

Fried rice is magnificent in salad!  The fried egg, veggies, and rice add such a lovely savory depth and, you know, fried flavor.   Give it a try sometime!

Nope, didn’t make these.  The number of degrees on our daughter’s thermometer has an inverse relationship with the number of minutes we spend in the kitchen.  In other words, she had a fever today and we ordered takeout.  Man, I love Thai food.  And I love salads gift-wrapped a go-go.  More time to spend snuggling on the couch.

This is a double leftover salad.  I really liked it except for that squash!  Texture and size of the pieces were too odd with the pleasing crunch of the rest of the salad.  It was a fun idea, though, and pleasing to execute: scooping acorn squash out with a melon baller. I wonder what other salads I could do with that.  Hey, I feel the start of a new blog coming: 100 Dishes to Make With an Acorn Squash Ball.

Garden Salad with Chow Mein and Squash

Ingredients:

• Cold leftover chow mein noodles
• Acorn squash, scooped out with melon baller (though I don’t recommend this; just documenting honestly)
• Frisee
• Radishes
• Small amount of canola oil (peanut or sesame would be great, but maybe not with that squash, which I still don’t recommend)
• Small amount of rice wine vinegar
• Black sesame seeds

Toss everything but the black sesame seeds together, then sprinkle seeds over the top. Remove squash, then enjoy the rest.  Eat squash for dessert.

The alternate name for this specimen is The Chinese Takeout Grumpy-With-A-Head-Cold Salad

Kung Pao Salad

No dressing needed but the sauce from the Kung Pao.

Ingredients:

• Leftover Kung Pao chicken (warm or cold)
• Frisée
• Radishes, sliced
• Red onion, sliced
• Crunchy apples, sliced

Enjoy with a cup of hot & sour soup–and lots of water or tea. 

Wish I had fresh grated ginger, too. 

Benefits to a grumpy person with a cold: easy; spicy; crunchy, no dairy