Salad days (+recipes)

Sesame soba noodles. Photo / Michael Craig

Spring into health with crispy vegetables.

Although it still seems to rain a lot, I love spring so much. Those crisp sunny days and the hint of warmer weather fill me with optimism. It's time to put away the slow cooker, wean yourself off soups, spring-clean your diet, and re-embrace salads.

Salad no longer just means iceberg lettuce with some chopped tomato and grated carrot. In fact, that kind of salad is best left in the 80s where it belongs. I'm not a big fan of random raw tomato thrown into salads at the best of times, and often dressings don't match the salad either. I love eating dinner out of a bowl and most of these salads lend themselves to that. And if you're only cooking for a couple of people, there should be leftovers.

A mixture of raw and cooked ingredients works well, and texture plays a big part. Adding seeds or nuts can make all the difference. Likewise, I've used lots of fresh herbs. Spring is a great time to get your herb garden back up and running, as fresh herbs can make a meal go from good to great.

Not all salads need a dressing, but you can have lots of fun with different kinds. It's a good time to try new ingredients and play around with new-season produce.

I've also had a bit of fun with my favourite kitchen staples. I use chilli flakes nearly as much as I use salt and pepper. If you use a little, it enhances flavour with a little heat and can transform vegetables, especially roasted ones. Another favourite is sumac, a tangy Middle Eastern spice that's deep red in colour. It's great with creamy mayonnaise in the kumara salad recipe - it's a simple combination and one I could eat all day. I've also tried to use ingredients you might already have - a tin of white beans or lentils, or a jar of tahini or natural yoghurt. Often you'll think you don't have anything for dinner but the bones of a salad are lurking there somewhere.

These salads make great lunches to take to work and are all simple to prepare. They can be complete meals on their own but if you add a steak or a chicken breast or some stir fried lamb or a piece of crispy-skinned salmon, you will have fabulous dinners all round.

Recipes

Try out Delaney Mes' delicious recipes at bite.co.nz - links below

• Spicy soba noodle salad
• Charred broccoli with lemon and chilli ricotta
• Cauliflower and lentil salad
• Sweet potato salad
• Simple smoked fish salad and lemon and herb