Simple meals for the season...
Executive chef, Paul Gayler, dishes up a stunning selection of mouth-watering salads for summertime.
CHICKPEA SALAD with feta-baked flatbread
Ingredients:
4 sheets Sardinian flatbread, broken into large pieces
50g feta cheese, crumbled
400g tinned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
200g cherry tomatoes
20 black olives, pitted
75g flat parsley leaves
1 tbspn pine kernels, toasted
2 bunches watercress
For the dressing:-
1 tbspn tahini (sesame seed paste)
1 garlic clove, crushed
100ml water
65ml low-fat natural yogurt
Juice of 1⁄2 lemon
Freshly ground black pepper
Method:
1 Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/ gas mark 6 and lay the flatbread on a large baking sheet.
2 Sprinkle over the crumbled feta and bake for 2–3 minutes till the cheese starts melting.
3 In a bowl, whisk all the ingredients for the dressing together and season with black pepper to taste.
4 Place the chickpeas, tomatoes, olives, parsley, pine kernels and watercress in another bowl, pour over the dressing and toss lightly together.
5 Layer the salad with the flatbread and serve.
PAPAYA SALAD with char-grilled tuna
Ingredients:
650g small tuna fillet, trimmed
2 tbspns tamarind paste
2 tbspns brown sugar
2 red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1 tbspn nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A little oil for grilling
1 lime, cut into wedges, to garnish
For the green papaya salad:-
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 red chillies, deseeded and chopped
1 tspn brown sugar
2 green papayas, peeled, deseeded and shredded
Juice of 2 limes
2 tbspns nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
100g French beans, cooked
2 tbspns roasted peanuts
10 red cherry tomatoes, halved
10 yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
Method:
1 Cut the tuna into 4 steaks across the fillet. In a bowl, combine the tamarind paste with the sugar, chillies, fish sauce and some salt and pepper. Pour this mixture over the tuna and set aside for 1 hour to allow the flavours to meld.
2 For the salad, roughly crush the garlic, chillies, sugar and a quarter of the shredded papaya in a mortar. Transfer to a bowl, add the lime juice and fish sauce and stir well. Add all the remaining ingredients, including the rest of the papaya, toss well and season to taste.
3 Heat a ridged grill pan until very hot and brush with a little oil. Season the tuna steaks again with salt and pepper and char-grill for 2 minutes on each side, keeping them rare. Remove from the grill and cut each steak into 4 slices.
4 Arrange a pile of salad on each serving plate, top with the seared tuna. Garnish with the lime wedges and serve.
SPICED PRAWN SALAD
Ingredients:
2 tbspns lime juice
1 tbspn nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
1 tspn sesame oil
2 tbspns soy sauce
1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
1⁄2 garlic clove, crushed
1 tspn castor sugar
1 avocado
400g fresh or frozen large tiger prawns, cooked
2 lemongrass sticks, very finely shredded
2 shallots, thinly sliced
2 tbspns finely shredded mint leaves
4 spring onions, halved and finely shredded lengthways
1 green papaya, peeled and finely shredded (optional)
100g watercress
Method:
1 In a bowl, mix together the lime juice, fish sauce, sesame oil and soy sauce, then add the chopped chilli. Add the garlic and sugar and mix well together.
2 Cut the avocado in half lengthways, remove the stone and halve again. Carefully peel off the outer skin and cut the flesh into long, thin slices. Add the prawns and avocado to the bowl.
3 Add the remaining ingredients and carefully toss the lot together. Dress on individual plates and serve immediately.
