We are living in the twenty-first century, and health is an essential aspect of our everyday life. Good health ensures happiness, a sound mind, and possible prevention from some diseases. Food and exercise both together contribute to keeping our bodies healthy and fit and our weight in check.
While exercising can be exhausting and healthy food can be bland, here’s this healthy and delicious greek salad recipe to please your taste buds while keeping your body in shape. And after all, greek salads are known for being healthy.
1. Traditional Greek Salad Recipe
A traditional greek salad, also called Horiatiki salad, among the other greek food, is a greek vinaigrette, made with olive oil, red wine vinegar, lime juice, juicy tomatoes, pitted kalamata olives, bell pepper, red onion, feta cheese. The traditional greek salad originated is from Greece and Cyprus and dates back to the 19th century.
The health benefits of this delicious traditional greek salad recipe are:
1. Greek salad does not contain any processed meat or meat products, which have been linked with cancer and heart diseases.
2. The leafy greens and vegetables in the salad contain antioxidants, vitamin A and C, potassium, and iron.
3. They are made with feta cheese instead of processed cheese, which is a rich source of sodium.
Greek Salad Recipe Ingredients
The ingredients for this traditional Greek salad recipe and their health benefits are :
1.1. Extra Virgin Olive Oil In The Greek Salad Recipe
Extra Virgin Olive Oil serves great for this greek salad dressing and adds a strong flavor, increasing the taste of the salad. It is also considered healthy because of the various health benefits offered by it.
Olive oil used in the Greek salad recipe offers protection from many diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, lung cancer, and diabetes, reduction in high blood pressure, improved blood cholesterol levels, acted up as an anti-inflammatory, and its assistance in weight loss.
1.2. Red Wine Vinegar In The Greek Salad Recipe
The tangy taste of red wine vinegar along with extra virgin olive oil makes the salad super delicious.
It is a staple in Mediterranean countries. The red wine vinegar also adds some health benefits like improving heart health, antitumor properties, and reduction of blood sugar. You can also use balsamic vinegar and apple cider vinegar as substitutes.
1.3. Crumbled Creamy Feta Cheese In The Greek Salad Recipe
Feta cheese is one of the most consumed cheeses in the world. It has a rich, tangy, peppery, and salty flavor; adding the same to the greek vinaigrette. Olives and feta go amazingly together. It is usually made from sheep’s milk and hence has a kind of buttery taste to it.
Feta Cheese also has various health benefits. It contains a number of nutrients like Zinc, Calcium, Phosphorus, B vitamin. It also helps with bone health, weight loss, gut health, and diabetes.
1.4. Pitted Kalamata Olives In The Greek Salad Recipe
Kalamata Olives are kind of sweety and fruity in taste, making them perfect to go with the greek salad recipe. You can use black olives as a substitute. Kalamata and black olives are considered to be the same but they’re not.
Kalamata olives are bigger than black olives and not as strongly flavored. Kalamata Olives provides vitamins A and E, antioxidants, promotes the health of the heart, and is low in carbohydrates.
1.5. Red Onion In The Greek Salad Recipe
Red Onions are an important part of the greek salad recipe, adding a subtle sweetness to the salad. They’re rich in vitamins like calcium, magnesium, potassium, folate, and certain vitamins like vitamin B6 and K. They can help fight chronic diseases.
1.6. Fresh Lemon Juice In The Greek Salad Recipe
The lip-smacking sourness of lime juice is a great addition to the classic greek salad. It is a good source of vitamin C, helps with hydration of the human body, digestion, skin problems, and prevents kidney stones.
1.7. Crisp Cucumbers In The Greek Salad Recipe
Cucumbers add a raw, crisp, and refreshing flavor to the classic greek salad recipe. The health benefits of cucumbers include the reduction in risk of chronic disease due to the antioxidants), help in hydration of the body, and also weight loss.
1.8. Cherry Tomatoes In The Greek Salad Recipe
Cherry Tomatoes are responsible for adding the sweet, juicy, and candy-like flavor to the greek salad. These juicy tomatoes are rich in Vitamin C, have nutrients like lycopene, which help with issues like inflammation and blood clots, Vitamin E, and potassium. It also reduces the chance of Prostate cancer and supports bone health.
1.9. Bell Peppers In The Greek Salad Recipe
The taste of bell peppers differs from bitter to sweet depending on the color, which you are really familiar with. The ripe, green bell pepper has kind of a bitter taste and the red and yellow ones taste sweet. The vitamins and antioxidants in them help in improving eyesight, prevention from chronic diseases, and weight loss.
1.10. Fresh Ground Black Pepper In The Greek Salad
Black Pepper adds some spice and enhances the flavor of the greek salad recipe. The black pepper is also rich in antioxidants and helps in improving cholesterol levels. Black pepper balances out the overall nutrients in the salad.
1.11. Dried Oregano In The Greek Salad Recipe
The earthy flavor of dried oregano goes well with the greek salad. You can also add fresh oregano if you have trouble finding dried oregano.
Tips
Make sure to remember these tips while making your delicious salad.
1. You can use olive oil instead of extra virgin oil.
2. You can also use any other cheese instead of feta cheese even though the flavor may not stay be the same.
3. Black Olives can be used instead of Kalamata olives, the pits should still be removed.
4. Soak the slices of red onion in cold water for ten to fifteen minutes if you’re sensitive to them. You can also skip adding onions if you want.
5. You can also use grape or other kinds of ripe tomatoes if you can’t find cherry tomatoes.
6. Use any color bell pepper for this recipe, be it yellow or green bell pepper.
Time Taken
This salad recipe is the easiest and healthiest recipe for everyday meals. This traditional Greek salad recipe takes 15 minutes to make. Packed with the richness of nutrients the recipe can be ready within minutes.
Serves
This delicious greek salad is served alongside some grilled chicken and crusty bread. Being a side dish, this salad goes well with every dish it’s served alongside. Complete with vegetables as well as healthy ingredients, the salad completes and complements other dishes.
2.Homemade Greek Salad Dressing
The directions to make this homemade greek salad dressing are:
1. Take another bowl.
2. Add your 5 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil to the bowl.
3. Add the red wine vinegar, oregano, salt, and pepper to it.
4. Whisk them all together.
Now you can add the dressing to the greek salad and complete the recipe.
2.1 Directions
Not to keep you waiting, here’s this classic greek salad recipe:
1. Take a small bowl.
2. Next, take up a red onion. Slice the red onion thin, after peeling it. Add the finely sliced red onion to the bowl.
3. Chop the kalamata olives into halves, making sure to remove the hard stone inside.
4. Add the olives into the sliced onions.
5. Chop the cherry tomatoes into wedges and add them to the mix.
6. Cut the bell peppers into thin slices.
7. Peel the cucumbers and cut them into bite-sized half circles.
8. Add them all to the bowl.
9. Crumble the creamy feta cheese over the vegetables in the bowl.
10. Mix all of the ingredients in the bowl together.
3. Modern Greek Salad Recipe
If you’re bored while making something as easy as a greek salad, would like to get adventurous, and have some free time to spare, here’s this modern greek salad recipe to fit your mood.
3.1 Modern Greek Salad Recipe Ingredients
1. 1 lemon cut into half wedges and seed removed
2. 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3. Half sliced cherry or grape tomatoes
4. Half cup Vidalia onion
5. Half cup pitted Kalamata Olives
6. a quarter cup of feta cheese
7. Two zucchini
8. Lettuce
9. Salt
10. A quarter cup of red wine vinegar
11. half tsp of dried oregano
12. half tsp of dried thyme
13. Freshly grounded black pepper
Time Taken
This modern greek salad recipe takes 30 minutes to prepare. Since this greek salad recipe involves baking the ingredients, the recipe takes half an hour to be ready. With this change in formula, this salad has a new taste to offer as well.
Serves
This salad serves six people, along with some grilled chicken and crusty bread.
3.2 Directions
The directions for this modern greek salad recipe are:
1. Preheat the oven to 190.5°C or 375°F before we add our ingredients to the oven.
2. Taking a medium-sized bowl, add the lemon wedges with salt and a teaspoon of olive oil.
3. Spread them on the end of the baking tray.
4. Add the sliced tomatoes, a tablespoon of olive oil with salt.
5. Spread it down on the rest of the baking tray.
6. Bake for twenty minutes.
You will know it’s done when the tomatoes start to shrink and the lemon wedge starts turning golden brown.
7. Let it cool after removing it from the oven.
8. Take one zucchini and peel it. Then cut into thin, almost transparent slices, making sure to leave the core with the seeds.
9. Take another serving bowl and add the zucchini slices, Vidalia onions, lettuce, along with some crumbled feta cheese.
10. Top it with some olives, roasted tomatoes, and roasted lemon.
11. Add some more olives and feta cheese.
Modern Greek Salad Dressing
Directions for making the modern homemade greek salad dressing are:
1. Mash vinegar, thyme, oregano, along with some feta cheese, with a fork.
2. Add olive oil and whisk it together.
3. Continue to mash until smooth. Add water if you want a thin texture to the mix.
4. Season with salt and black pepper.
5. Pour the dressing over the greek salad.
6. Mix everything and serve.
4. Cobb Salad Recipe
Cobb salad is an American salad, usually made with avocado, blue cheese, tomatoes, bacon, chicken, lettuce, and some hard-boiled eggs. All the ingredients of this recipe go well together. Made with greek salad dressing, this salad is also worth a try.
Ingredients
Ingredients for this cobb-salad recipe are:
1. One Avocado
Avocado is originated from south-central Mexico and adds creaminess to the salad. It looks like a green berry with a large seed inside and contains vitamins C, E, riboflavin, magnesium, and potassium. It helps with indigestion, fighting against cancer, and decreases the risk of depression.
2. Half Cup Blue Cheese
Blue Cheese is made with the molds of Penicillium. Its origin dates back to the 7th century in the Roquefort village in France. It contains nutrients and calcium, spermidine which helps with the reduction in risk of heart diseases, osteoporosis and prevents obesity when taken in moderation.
3. One Cup Of Tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes were originated from Ecuador around eighty thousand years ago. They are rich in Vitamin C, providing nutrients like lycopene, which help with issues like inflammation and blood clots, Vitamin E, and potassium. It has also been found to reduce the chances of Prostate cancer and supports bone health.
4. Four Strips Of Bacon
The crispy bacon was originated in China in 1500 B.C. It contains vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B12, selenium, phosphorus, iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc, and animal protein.
5. One Boneless Chicken Breast
Chicken contains amino acids, high animal protein, Vitamin B12, Choline, Iron, Tryptophan, Zinc, and Copper. It helps with our heart, obesity, and our mood.
6. Lettuce
This leafy vegetable is originated from the Mediterranean area. It contains Vitamins A, K, Calcium, Potassium, Vitamin C, and folate. It strengthens bone strength, helps with hydration of the body, vision, and sleep.
7. Two Hard-Boiled Eggs
This fantastic salad consists of many nutrients like Vitamin A, B12, B5, Phosphorus, and Selenium. They are low in calories, helps with increasing the vision of the eye and promote the brain’s health.
8. Chopped chives
Chives are a Eurasian plant that goes well with salads. It consists of nutrients like Sulfur, Vitamin K, Vitamin A, choline, folate, folic acid, which helps with cancer, osteoporosis, and memory
9. Salt and black pepper.
Time Taken
This dish will take thirty minutes of your precious time.
Serves
This dish typically serves three persons, along with some grilled chicken, but you can adjust it accordingly.
4.2 Directions
The directions for this cobb salad recipe are:
1. Hard boil the two eggs.
2. Cook your bacon.
3. Season your chicken breast with salt and pepper and cook it.
4. Take a salad bowl.
5. Add the lettuce along with some sliced tomatoes to the bowl.
6. Peel and slice your avocado, adding it to the bowl.
7. Add the bacon, chicken, and your hard-boiled eggs after they are cooked.
8. Add the greek salad dressing we prepared some time ago and toss all the ingredients.
There’s your cobb salad. Make sure to enjoy it.
5. Arugula Salad
Arugula or rocket salad originates from the coastal Meditteranean and is super easy to make.
5.1 Ingredients
The ingredients for this arugula salad recipe are:
1. Argula
2. Carrots
3. Cherry or Roma Tomatoes
4. Parmesan Cheese
5. Sunflower seeds or toasted nuts
6. Lemon Juice
7. Balsamic Vinegar
8. Olive Oil
9. Salt
5.2 Directions
The directions for this fantastic arugula salad are:
1. Take a bowl and add arugula into it.
2. Along with the arugula, add carrots and cherry tomatoes.
3. Mix them all.
4. Now, to make the salad dressing, mix the lime juice, vinegar, olive oil, and salt.
5. Drizzle dressing over the salad.
6. Top with some sunflower seeds and parmesan cheese.
7. Toss it all together.
Here’s your arugula salad.
Other greek salad ingredients you can use are romaine lettuce, red onions, fresh veggies green bell peppers for your perfect fresh salad.
Closing Thought
Invented by Greek physician Hippocrates in ancient Greece, this salad recipe is now prepared all over the world in different styles. Having a high nutritional value, the formula is a trendy household dish. With the easiest preparation methods and fantastic taste, the salad has outshined itself even with slight changes in the recipe.
