Using vibrant fruits and vegetables with maximum freshness is a great way to eat well – and cheaply – all season long.
Summer has many charms – the sun stays late, there are many fireflies, and fruits and vegetables taste so good that it doesn’t take much effort to turn them into delicious, satisfying dishes. Fortunately, fresh produce hasn’t gone up in price as much as other ingredients this year and is now particularly flavorful.
We have given you separate formulas, just like ours recipes without a prescription, for 20 of our favorite combinations. Buy what looks and smells the most alluring (and costs the least), then play around with the suggestions below, using quantities that make the most sense for you and your taste. (And if you want exact recipe proportions and instructions, you can find the recipes on New York Times Cooking.)
The dishes below cover all salad bases: leaf sausages that are crispy and fresh; hearty mixes that can stand for a few hours or be made the day before; hearty pastas, grains, and beans that can bulk up — or make — a meal; fruit combinations that hit sweet and savory.
Go ahead and make these your own. Swap bitter lettuces for milder ones, use a variety of fruits instead of just one, go wild with the herbs or banish them (hey, cilantro!). Season – salt enhances flavors, tames bitterness and balances sweetness and acidity, while pepper adds a floral bite. Whatever you do, don’t worry about it. To be summer timeand cooking should be easy.
Eric Kim recreates the sweet and savory salad dressing served in many Japanese-American restaurants.
Mix a small carrot and a lump of fresh ginger with a good splash of olive oil, a few spoons of rice vinegar and season with sugar, soy sauce and onion powder. Dilute with a little water and mix with cold, crispy Little Gem leaves or romaine lettuce. Shower with coin.
Four simple ingredients feature in Ali Slagle’s guide to this classic salad.
Toss the perkiest baby arugula with olive oil and sprinkle the greens with just enough fresh lemon juice and salt to balance out the bite. Sprinkle pieces of Parmesan on top for the nutty, salty edge.
Eric embraces the bitterness of radicchio with a lemony garlic and anchovy dressing.
Pour the oil from a can of anchovies into a frying pan. Chop some of the anchovies and cook, along with breadcrumbs, until the crumbs are toasted. Next, chop the rest of the anchovies — save a few for garnish — and toss them with olive oil, grated garlic, mayonnaise, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle with radicchio and sprinkle with the anchovies and crumbs.
Sweet, salty, savory, spicy: this Vietnamese-inspired dinner salad from Yewande Komolafe hits all those notes.
Whisk together sugar, lime juice, water and fish sauce, adjust the amounts to the desired balance of sweet, sour and salty, and stir in some minced garlic and chili (a spicy one). Toss with shredded cabbage, cucumber, and bell pepper, and shredded cooked chicken. Fold in watercress or arugula and a handful of basil and mint. Top with store bought crispy fried shallots.
Melissa Clark’s riff on a classic Cobb is satisfying enough to be a full meal.
Combine crispy sliced romaine and cucumber, juicy cherry tomatoes, crispy bacon, hard-boiled (or jammy) eggs, avocado, crumbled blue cheese, and scallions. Toss at the table with a simple olive oil dressing with lemon zest and juice.
Sweet corn gets a boost from spicy chili, lime, and spices in this summer side from Genevieve Ko.
Mix lightly cooked corn kernels with halved cherry tomatoes, lime zest and juice, olive oil and a little chopped fresh hot chili (or lots of chili or none at all). Tear the basil and coriander leaves over everything and stir in.
Genevieve adds crunch to tender kale with a hint of sunflower seeds.
Massage thinly sliced kale leaves (any variety) with salt and lemon juice and grate until soft, then combine with chopped dates, diced fresh plums (or other stone fruit), sunflower seeds, and olive oil.
Pantry-held tuna tastes particularly fresh with Genevieve’s additions of celery and parsley.
Marinate a few sliced sweet and hot peppers briefly with a little vinegar. Add oil-packed tuna (with its oil), diced celery, and coarsely chopped parsley. Season with salt and pepper and serve, or refrigerate for up to two days.
A blend of hearty nut butter and fragrant hoisin is irresistible when mixed with soft tofu and spicy summer beans in Genevieve’s Southeast Asian-inspired dish.
Cook the green beans in salted boiling water until soft but still crunchy. Mix the crunchy peanut butter with half the hoisin sauce, a generous splash of lime juice and a pinch of sugar and red pepper flakes, then dilute with some of the bean cooking water. Mix the dressing with the beans and cubes of extra firm tofu.
Melissa tops plump, perfectly cooked shrimp with lemon mayonnaise accented with tons of fresh herbs.
Simmer peeled shrimp with lemon slices until just opaque and drain. Whisk together the zest and juice of a lemon with mayonnaise and a little olive oil. Stir in the still warm shrimp (chopped or not), some diced celery, red onion, and a handful of chopped dill, parsley or cilantro (or all three).
Melissa’s dressing gives pasta, tomatoes, and cheese a garlicky flavor.
Cook pasta and drain. While still warm, toss with a red wine vinaigrette spiked with grated garlic and dried oregano. Add a plethora of halved small tomatoes, diced mozzarella, salami ribbons, sliced cucumber, and chopped red onion. Add a lot of chopped parsley and basil.
Raw zucchini gets a jolt of sour and spicy pepperoncini in Ali’s recipe.
Cook the lentils for about 10 minutes, then add orzo and simmer until both are tender. Toss with pickled pepperoncini slices, oil, and plenty of lemon juice. Stir in chopped zucchini, pistachios, sliced scallions, and as many tender fresh herbs as you like.
The light roasting of the millet in Yewande’s grain bowl brings out its beautiful notes.
Dry millet (or other small grain) until golden brown, simmer until soft and toss with olive oil. Whisk together lemon zest and juice, honey and oil and stir into the cooled millet, along with cucumber pieces, mint and sliced almonds, if you like. Top with avocado and more vinaigrette.
Eric seasons chickpeas with salted, nutty roasted seaweed and a sesame mayonnaise.
Whisk together mayonnaise, toasted sesame oil, rice vinegar and a pinch of sugar. Add finely chopped gim (Korean roasted salted seaweed; don’t use nori as it will soak up the moisture), chickpeas and a small handful of diced red onion.
Dried fruit and nuts add color and crunch to this Middle Eastern-inspired side dish from David Tanis.
Cook some short-grain rice like you would pasta, then toss it—drained and cooled—with olive oil whipped with tahini and lemon juice and zest. Add crushed currants, chopped almonds and pistachios, and as many spices as you like (parsley, mint, chives, and savory are good places to start).
Crispy celery and its fragrant, underused leaves are the protagonists in this picnic staple from Melissa.
Add a finely chopped shallot and a spoonful of Dijon to the cider vinegar, slowly whisk in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Stir in a colorful mix of beans, sliced celery and shallot, and chopped parsley and celery leaves.
A summer gift from Eric: aromatic tropical fruit, unhindered by peeling or peeling.
Combine chunks of ripe pineapple and mango with banana slices (slightly underripe so they don’t turn into gruel), or use whatever fruit you have on hand. Season with salt and spritz with lemon juice until it tastes brisk but not sour.
Ali gives Caprese an unexpected sweet and sour lift by swapping tomatoes for ripe stone fruit.
Cut stone fruits (nectarines, peaches, plums, cherries) and arrange on a platter. Squeeze the lemon juice over everything and sprinkle with sugar and flakes of salt. Let sit until the juices form, then tuck in pieces of fresh mozzarella and basil or mint (or both). Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with black pepper and more salt.
Millie Peartree uses mango to add a welcome sweetness to a standard barbecue side.
Thinly slice ripe but firm mangoes and mix them with shredded cabbage and carrots (go ahead and use bagged coleslaw), fresh cilantro, lime juice, and honey. Season with celery salt and black pepper. Cool and serve cold.