07 Sep The secret of a French Green Salad – with Eschalot and Vinaigrette

Did you know one of the difficult words to wrap your head around when arriving in France is the word lettuce, in French it’s salade? If you want to talk about a mixed salad you are most likely referring to the term salade composé.

The simplest of salads is a Green salad salade verte with eschalot and a delicious vinaigrette.

To make things a little simpler when referring to eschalot these can also be called French shallot or French Eschalot, it’s the type of onion below.

French families usually have their own home style vinaigrette. It takes about five minutes, is full of flavour and results in such a tangy, vibrant dressing clinging to the lettuce leaves -if you remember this simple step. Don’t pour your dressing onto the salad until just before you eat it.

Try this on your next picnic, it’s perfect for when Rhône Girl works up an appetite on the vineyards. You’ll simply need a container for the salad and a jar for the vinaigrette (try a washed old glass mustard or jam jar with a tight lid).

And some healthy chaps on the vineyard – probably with a cigarette between their teeth would say to me he who eats lettuce is never sick “Qui mange salade j’amais malade” . I wonder if the doctor agrees.

Green Salad with Eschalot and Vinaigrette – Salade Verte à la française

Serves 2

Total time 7 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• Lettuce (1 lettuce)

• Eschalot  (1/2 of shallot)

Mustard vinaigrette – Vinaigrette à la moutarde:

• Olive oil (3 tbsp)

• Apple cider vinegar (1 tbsp)

• Dijon Mustard (1/3 tsp)

• Salt (pinch)

• Pepper (for seasoning)

METHOD

1. Wash and pat dry the lettuce with a paper towel
2. Peel away the skin of the eschalot then cut the eschalot in half. Wrap half and store in the fridge for a future salad. Take the remaining half and dicing it into small pieces
3. Take a salad container and put the lettuce inside, leave the lid off
4. Spread the eschalot over the lettuce leaves then turn the lettuce and eschalot together easily done with your hands
5. Seal the container – part 1 is ready.
6. Take a washed used jar and add the olive oil, apple cider vinegar and Dijon Mustard, crack pepper and add a pinch of salt for seasoning
7. Agitate the mustard with a spoon, mixing with the other ingredients
8. Close the lid and shake the jar for 10 seconds
9. If you find the consistency too thick, add a few drops of water, too runny, try adding a dash more of mustard .
10. Now you are ready to take your salad with your vinaigrette somewhere beautiful to enjoy

And as they say in France Bon Appétit ?

Rhône Girl