Are Salads Only For People On Diets?

We went up to Manchester recently and had lunch out with some of my husband’s colleagues. It was a Sunday so everyone chose a roast but I just didn’t feel like a meat meal as we had eaten meat the night before and breakfast had been the usual hotel fayre. I chose a main course salad with scallops and bacon which sounded delicious and just what I wanted. What a disappointment! There were a few (I mean a few) salad leaves in the middle of the plate with a couple of slivers of bacon and the tiniest scallops I have ever seen. It was starter size even though it cost in the teens of pounds. I couldn’t believe that anyone would serve that as a main course salad. I expressed my disappointment to the waitress who did bring me some roast potatoes but I did look longingly at the plates of roast beef and vegetables as I eked out my meagre rations.

I’ve come to the conclusion that everyone thinks you are on a diet if you order salad – not that anyone on a diet shouldn’t eat a decent sized salad. We have a salad for lunch most days in summer but I make sure that my salads are filling by including masses of greens and everything else I can think of that can be piled on top, such as tomatoes, radish, celery, grated carrot, cucumber, red onion, peppers, cauliflower florets and green beans. I often include some tinned cannellini beans as they help to keep you full, plus some protein and an oil based salad dressing. They are a treat for the eyes as well as being filling, interesting and tasty but I think I’ll stick to making my own unless I know the restaurant.