Not too long ago, however, I did dust off that neglected file and tried out a new salad that sounded wonderful on paper. The recipe (if one can legitimately term instructions for making salad a "recipe"), was from Taste of Home magazine and called for a mix of romaine and radicchio to be tossed with toasted almonds, tiny crunchy noodles, and green onions, then dressed with an Asian-inspired vinaigrette. The salad turned out to be fantastic, with the minor modification of adding extra seasoning to the dressing.
In the making of this dish, packages of dry ramen noodle soup serve as the source of both the noodles that end up in the salad and the spices that season the vinaigrette. To start, the little dried noodles are crushed into even smaller pieces, and then lightly browned in butter, along with slices of almonds.
Once cooled, the golden noodles and nuts are mixed with the salad greens, and some sliced scallions are thrown in. Just prior to serving, the salad is drizzled with a delicious Oriental-flavored dressing that is easily made by buzzing together a few simple ingredients in a blender.
This fresh and light salad, which I whipped up to go with cold jumbo shrimp, pasta salad, assorted cheeses and a chilled lemon cake for a special luncheon, is exceptionally well suited for warm weather dining. On the other hand, for those people (like me) who typically bypass the kitchen in summertime, the salad's ingredients are readily available year round and its flavor and texture are just bold enough to serve as a delicious accompaniment to nearly any meal, no matter what the season.
Oriental Ramen Salad (adapted from Taste of Home)
2 tablespoons butter
2 packages (3 ounces each) dry Oriental-flavor ramen noodle soup
1/2 cup sliced almonds
2/3 cup (5 ounces) evaporated milk
2/3 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
2 packages (10 ounces each) romaine-radicchio blend of salad greens
4 green onions, sliced diagonally
Crumble the ramen noodles contained in one of the soup packages, reserving the seasoning packet. (You will not need the noodles in the second soup package, but you will need the seasonings. Because the soup packs cost about thirty cents each, tossing out the extra noodles is not much of a waste.)
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Reduce heat slightly, add well crumbled ramen noodles and the sliced almonds, stirring constantly, until the noodles are golden. (This process will take about ten minutes, and really should not be rushed. Do not feel tempted to turn up the heat...the goal is to lightly toast the mixture, not burn it, and it will scorch easily if cooked on too high of a temperature and/or not stirred continuously.) Allow this mixture to cool to room temperature.
To make the dressing, place evaporated milk, oil, the dry seasonings from both packages of soup, vinegar and sugar in a blender, cover and blend until smooth. (If time allows, I would suggest whipping the dressing together, and then sticking it in the fridge to allow it to chill slightly before adding it to the salad. If it sits for awhile, you may have to give it another whirl, or stir, before applying it to the greens.)
In a large salad bowl, combine well chilled salad greens, noodle and nut mixture, and green onions. Just before serving, drizzle the salad with the blended dressing mixture, toss to coat well. Serve immediately.
(Note: The quantities called for in the recipe will result in a really, really large salad. Because I was making it for a group of just four persons, I mixed together the salad with only one bag of the greens, and then half the nut mixture, only two green onions and about half the dressing. I stashed the remaining ingredients (already prepared) in the refrigerator, and then tossed together a second salad for dinner a couple days later.)
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