you are not a bad cook: an indian salad

I was watching Samin Nosrat’s new show, ‘Salt Fat Acid Heat’ this past weekend and I was immediately hooked. She is such a vision and if you haven’t seen the show, you should. She looks at food from both a scientific and artistic perspective, without being too technical to lose the aspiring home chef. Purely based on anecdotal evidence, I believe there is a grave misconception out there that cooking, especially good home cooking is based solely on art or natural gift. While I take that as a compliment when people say that to me, I'm always taken aback. In a way, it was that emotion which was the impetus to start Three Things. I wanted to share with whoever wanted to read, that cooking is as much about practice and learning ingredients and techniques, as it is about the ‘feeling’ of knowing certain flavours or elements go together. The recipes I make at home are a part of an evolving repertoire that I have no doubt, any of you could make at home, even with your creative twists.

Back to Samin. The first episode got me thinking about the recipes I make, and the importance of balancing those four major elements (Salt Fat Acid Heat) in cooking both within individuals dishes, or full meals. Certain items stuck out at me in my head as I went through said introspection. Whether it’s adding just the right amount of lemon juice to brighten a salad dressing or adding generous amounts of olive oil to allow tomatoes to beautifully burst for a pasta sauce, it’s important to understand the balance that is required to ensure a dish or meal is whole. I by no means claim to have this skill perfected, but I will say the more you cook and practice and experiment and read, the better you become at having that ‘instinct.’

There was one recipe that stood out to me loud and clear, one so simple it made me laugh when I realized the importance of it: a simple Indian Salad. Every Indian (North Indian) meal I have ever eaten, has been accompanied by a simple salad. It consists of a few vegetables, always with sliced onions. I have seen variations include cucumbers, radish, carrots, tomatoes or even celery. Critical to the salad is the generous amount of lime juice that it marinates in, ideally for a couple of hours before serving and then sprinkled with loads of salt. On its own, the salad is divine. So divine in fact, that years ago when I was a picky eater (shocking, I know), my parents claim it’s all I would eat at dinner (well the onions at least). But paired with a spicy or heavy dish, it’s is a refreshing palate cleanser, analogous to a pickle with a smoked meat sandwich. I cannot eat a meal at my parent's home without it. Doug even questions when I make chicken curry at home without whipping up the salad on the side. We have also started making it along with other meals. It pairs nicely with a spiced bbq chicken or on top of chili.

It dawned on me last Saturday, as I sipped my morning coffee on the couch and watched Samin, in all her glory, how the simplest things can make all the difference. Now go watch the show, and make the salad!

Indian Salad

This salad can of course be made at the time of eating, it’s just tastier if you let it marinate for a few hours. You don’t want to add the salt at first otherwise the vegetables would release too much water, which is not what you’re looking for.

Ingredients

1 red onion, thinly sliced
7-8 red radish, cut into thin coins
1/2 english cucumber, sliced and cut into quarters
2 tsp salt
Juice of one lime

Method

Put all vegetables in a bowl
Squeeze lime onto vegetables and toss
Ideally, marinate for 2-3 hours prior to serving to allow the flavours to release
Before serving, add salt and toss again. You can add more lime juice if needed.