The Department of Salad Is Growing!

By which we mean our audience.

Sonora Salad, from Coyote Cafe: Foods from the Great Southwest; issue #26

THANKS TO SOME EXTREMELY FLATTERING write-ups recently— including the New York Times piece, one over in London, another down in Charleston (for which I’ll have a link later)—the DOS is growing as fast as late summer zucchini. We have so many new salad-eaters I’m going to have to make muffins out of some of you and leave a bushel of you on my neighbor’s porch in the middle of the night.

Just kidding. I’m never letting you go. I am, however, going to need a couple of weeks off, if I don’t want to become as frizzled as all those leeks in the fancy food magazines, which, by the way, are run by big staffs with people to write, people to make the food, and people to photograph it. I do it all—and I love every minute of it, because I’m completely obsessive about salad.

Quite frankly, it’s a little sick. So even though I’m taking a vacation, I’m not really leaving you. Over the next two weeks, I’ll dust off a few spring/summer recipes from the early days of DOS, or pop into your inbox with an insane dressing I’m sure to find in the vintage cookbooks I’m dragging along with me, or revisiting some of your favorite salads from our open threads —that sort of thing. You can count on it.

And as a thank you to longtime subscribers and a welcome gift to the rest of you, I’ve put together a full archive of all the newsletters (at least the ones with recipes) that we’ve published to date. I haven’t done one of these in almost a year. I asked the boys in the lab to do it, repeatedly, but they’re lazy and they’re also imaginary. Either way, we’ll all be back soon. In the meantime: Help yourself to some salad!

The DOS Archive: Links to All Our Issues, with Recipes, to Date.

Issue #118

Shrimp Salad Is a Friend

Dual-Acting Shrimp Salad (to eat alone or as a shrimp roll)

Issue #117

Escapism Made Easy. (Chicken salad, take me away!)

Insalata di Pollo ai Peperoni e Pinoli (AKA Chicken Salad with Peppers and Pine Nuts), from Cucina Rustica

Guamanian Chicken Salad with Coconut, from United Tastes of America

Issue #116

A Strawberry Solution

Strawberry and Parmigiano-Reggiano Salad with Balsamic Vinegar

Issue #115

A Failed Mother's Day Salad Experiment

Failed Frozen Fruit Salad

Simple but Perfect Romaine and Parmesan Salad with Lemon Shallot Dressing

Alubia Blanca and Radicchio Salad with Pecorino, from Emily’s Heirloom Bean Diaries, for Rancho Gordo

Garlic Sherry Vinaigrette

Issue #114

Can't Face Lettuce? Enter the Orzone™️

A Kitchen Sink Orzo Salad, with Lemon Garlic Dressing

Issue #113

A Seat-of-the-Pants Salad

White Bean, Tuna, Artichoke, and Olive Salad, with Anchovy Dressing

Issue #112

Refreshing Crudités for Supper. (And a lighter approach to dips!)

Emily’s Lemony Feta Dip

Sweet Lime Salt, from Saladish, by Ilene Rosen

Avocado Mint Dip, from Saladish, by Ilene Rosen

Cucumber Shallot Dip, from Saladish, by Ilene Rosen

Issue #111

The Simplest Chicken Salad?

Mariah Nunn’s Chicken Salad

Deviled Ham Salad (adapted from Martha Kello’s Recipe Collection)

Issue #110

Salads with Jazz Hands

An Ode to Moishe’s Falafel

Issue #109

The Legume That Never Lets You Down

Suzanne Goin’s Roasted Beet and Fried Chickpea Salad (adapted from Sunday Suppers at Lucques)

Chickpea Salad with Onions and Paprika (slada hummas)

Issue #108

For Your Surplus of Fresh Asparagus

Dr Cream of Asparagus Soup

Parmesan Crisps (AKA Frico)

Issue #107

Spring Has Sprung, The Grass Has Riz

A Springtime Asparagus Party Platter for 4 (or for 1 Person, 4 Times in a Row)

Canal House Pecorino and Black Pepper Dressing

Herby Lemon Mayonnaise

Sauce Ravigote

Marcella Hazan’s Orange and Cucumber Salad

Issue #106

Some Salad-Adjacent Dips

Classic Skordalia, adapted from The Olive and the Caper, by Susanna Hoffman

Spicy Red Pepper-Feta Spread (Htipiti), adapted from Modern Greek Cooking, by Pano Karatassos

Eggplant and Yogurt Spread/Dip(Melitzanosalata), adapted from The Olive and the Caper, by Susanna Hoffman and Modern Greek Cooking, by Pano Karatassos

Issue #105

A Ukrainian Salad

Odesan Coleslaw, from Caroline Eden’s Black Sea

Ukrainian Beet Broth, or Borshch, from Mamushka, by Olia Hercules

Issue #104

Salad Snobbery?

Cucumber Salad with Soy and Ginger

Issue #103

More Quiche for Special Friends

Emily’s Beauty Soup

D.O.S. Tall Boy QL™️ (Department of Salad Tall Boy Quiche Lorraine)

Cathy Barrow’s Best Pie Crust

Issue #102

The Quiche That Got Away

Emily’s Quichère (Or, Quiche Lorraine with a Gougère-Style Crust That Looks Like a Crown)

Issue #101

A Vintage Salad Dressing

Vintage Olive Salad Dressing

Issue #100

Some Salad-Adjacent Dishes

The DOS’s Mushroom, Swiss Cheese, and Shallot Quiche

Cathy Barrow’s Best Pie Crust

Emily’s Potato and Leek Soup

Issue #99

Warm Mushroom Salad?

Crispy Mixed Mushroom Salad

Issue#98

Mushroom Salads!

Thyme Scented Farro and Wild Mushroom Salad with Fried Shallots

Bar Tartine’s Pickled Mushrooms

Issue #97

More Travel Through Salad

A Goi Tom Bar for Picky People

Nuoc Cham

Issue #96

Salad for the Jet Set

Soviet Mimosa Salad

Issue #95

A Rice Salad for Men at a Picnic

Rice Salad for the Picnic I’m Never Having (salami, chicken, tomatoes, mozzarella, etc.)

Issue #94

Rice Salad For Billionaires

Herby Rice Salad with Green Peas and Prosciutto

Issue #93

A Seriously Delicious Salad Dressing

Joyce Goldstein’s Sun-Dried Tomato Vinaigrette

Mozzarella and Arugula Salad

Issue #92

Salads Want To Be Sandwiches

Persian Feta Cheese and Herb Sandwich, from Back to Square One

Chicken Caesar Salad Sandwich, adapted from Back to Square One

Issue #91

A Salad for Whatever Neuroses May Afflict You

Sa and Lentil Salad with Soft Boiled Eggs and Herbs

Issue #90

An Escapist Salad

Bill Granger’s Pasta Salad with Peas, Broad Beans, & Ricotta, from Australian Food

Issue #89

Salady Survival Snacks

Smoked Trout Salad for Little Toasts or Crackers or Half a Bagel

Artichoke Salad/Spread for Little Toasts (or To Run Under the Broiler)

Issue #88

A Recap of Our Year in Salads. (Plus an easy little cucumber number to see you through!)

The Pale Green Salad

Issue #87

Anne Byrn's Mother’s Ambrosia, The DOS's Black-Eyed Pea Salad—Trading Places!

Bebe’s Christmas Ambrosia

Issue #86

Hey, Let's Exit This Salad-Stuffed Year with a Sweet Bang!

Susan Nunn Olson’s Divine Chocolate Peanut Butter Sheet Cake

Issue #85

A Salad from a Famous Southern Chef

Chef Bill Smith’s Celery Remoulade

Issue #84

A Tonic, Garlicky Wonder of a Salad (from a beloved figure in the Southern food landscape)

Chef Bill Smith’s Carrot Slaw

Issue #83

Some of Our Favorite Salads Are from Old Friends

Zuni Café Shredded Radicchio with Anchovy Vinaigrette, Bread Crumbs, and Sieved Egg

Issue #82

Salad from an Artist

John Donohue’s Quinoa Salad with Sweet Potato, Prosciutto, and Arugula 

Issue #81

Dream Salads from Readers. . .

Lettuce Salad, Stolen as Accurately as Possible from Cape Cod’s Brewster Fish House

Issue #80

A Salad So Refreshing—It will make you forget how many rolls you ate

A Bracing Green Salad with Orange, Fennel, and Zesty Orange Shallot Vinaigrette

Issue #79

An Easy, Semi-Authentic Thanksgiving Salad

A Possible Pilgrim Salad

Issue #78

Chipotle Lime Turkey-Salad Sandwiches

Chipotle Lime Turkey-Salad Sandwiches

Issue #77

Another All-Dressing Issue

Russian Dressing, adapted (with less mayo and more cream, among other modern updates) from 282 Ways of Making a Salad, by Bebe Daniels and Jill Allgood, 1950)

True Creamy Lemon Dressing with Chives, adapted from Patricia Wells

The DOS Laboratory’s Roasted Winter Squash Platter with Parsley Salad with Creamy Walnut Vinaigrette

Issue #76

Prizes for Our Wood Spoon Drawing

North African Lemon Dressing, adapted from Craig Claiborne’s New York Times Cookbook, from 1961

Issue #75

Pickled Asparagus: Spears of Glory

Refrigerator Asparagus Pickles, Loosely and Ressly Adapted for the Fridge, from Chef Paul Virant

Emily’s Shrimp Louie with Pickled Asparagus

Issue #74

The AUTUMNAL Salad of Your Dreams

Roasted Root Vegetable Salad with Pickled Carrots, Aged Cheddar, and Apples, adapted from Chicago chef Paul Virant

Chef Paul Virant’s Pickled Carrots, adapted for the fridge

Issue #73

The Secret of French Dressing

The Frenchie, adapted from Brooklyn’s French Louie Restaurant

Issue #72

We're Ignoring Autumn Salads, for Now

Stay-at-Home Green Papaya Salad

Issue #71

Everyone Loves Quinoa Salad

Quinoa Salad with Manchego, Almonds, Olives, and a Smoky Vinaigrette

Issue #70

An Independent Voice for Southern Food

Seafood Salad from “Charleston’s Gullah Recipes,” by Darren Campbell

Issue #69

The French Salads We Promised You

PW’s Pear and Watercress Salad

PW’s Arugula and Parmesan Salad

Issue #68

You Say You Want a Quick, Satisfying Salad?

Patricia Wells’s Grated Beet Salad

Emily’s Wholly Unnecessary and Delicious Adaptation

Patricia Wells’s Barcelona Grilled Artichokes

Issue #67

French Salads

ChopChop Green Pear Salad

Issue #66

Force-Feed Your Children Salads? (Salads to Make with Kids)

ChopChop Salad

Creamy Crunchy Caesar Salad (no raw egg)

Issue #65

A Potato and Pickled Beet Salad

Pickled Beet and Potato Salad with Rich Anchovy Dressing

Issue #64

Potato Salad! I can't get that monster out of my mind.

Potato and Roasted Artichoke Salad with Herbed Parmesan Bread Crumbs and Lemon Garlic Dressing

The Lemon Dressing

Issue #63

The Many Lives of a Pot of Lentils

Salade de Lentilles, from Lulu’s Provencal Table, by Richard Olney

Another One of Emily’s Lentil Salads of Unknown Provenance

Issue #62

The Singular Comfort of Growing Salad

A Comforting Garden Salad from the Novelist Charlotte Mendelson, In Her Own Words

Issue #61

Living the Salad Life

Clean Out the Fridge Salad

Issue #60

Salads of the Stars

Gregory Peck’s Leaf Lettuce Salad, from 282 Ways of Making a Salad

Walter Pidgeon’s Delmonico Salad, from 282 Ways of Making a Salad

French Dressing

Issue #59

More Cantaloupe (It Still Isn't Enough)

Cantaloupe and Cucumber Salad with Herb-Lime-Chili Pepper Vinaigrette

Issue #58

Other People’s Salads

Melissa Clark’s Avocado Salad with Herbs and Capers

Alison Roman’s Cantaloupe with Arugula and Black Olives, from her book Dining In

Issue #57

A Luscious Green Bean Salad

Green Bean and Potato Salad with Walnut Pesto, Peppers, and Olives

Walnut Pesto, Adapted from the California Walnut Board

Issue #56

Green Beans + Hazelnuts

Green Bean and Hazelnut Salad

Burnt Onions

Issue #55

An Easy and Delicious Peach (or Blackberry) Treat

Buttermilk and Brown Sugar Poured Cobbler

Issue #54

A Peach Caprese. A Mixed Plum Salad.

Peach Caprese with Black Olive and Red Onion

Stone Fruit Jumble with Ginger-Lime Dressing

Issue #53

Let’s Love Iceberg More

Carolita Johnson’s Platonic Ideal Salad (in her own words)

Issue #52

A Classic French Salad (From a New Yorker Cartoonist)

Classic Salade de Chèvre Chaud (from Carolita Johnson, in her own words)

Issue #51

A Dressing Recipe with Mathematic Precision

Omar Khayyam’s Salad Dressing

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It takes two kinds of lettuce (🥬 + $$) to keep the Department of Salad alive. The best way to support us: punch the green button.

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Issue #50

Coming to You with a Delicious BLT (Salad)

BLT Salad with a Perfect Dressing and Basil Croutons

Issue #49

A Raw Corn Salad with Goat Cheese

Corn and Cucumber Salad, with Lime, Jalapeño, Goat Cheese

Issue #48

Something New to Do with Tomatoes!

Tomato and Dill Salad from the Cordon Bleu Cook Book (1947), by Dione Lucas (verbatim)

Issue #47

Russian Salad/Salade Russe/Ensalada Rusa

Beatriz Ainsztein’s Russian Salad, with a Lia Picard Twist

Issue #46

Two Juicy Steak Salads

Lia Picard’s Grilled Steak and Apricot Salad

Nunn Family Steak Panzanella

Issue #45

Peaches and Green

A Luxurious, Celebratory Green Salad with Peaches and Champagne Vinaigrette

Issue #44

Is Fruit Salad Necessary?

James Beard’s Rice Salad with Fruits

Emily’s Fruit Cocktail Without the Can But with Extra Cherries

Issue #43

A Swinging Seventies Watercress Dressing

Vail of Yore Watercress Dressing

Issue #42

A Tale of Two Kale Salads

Allison Robicelli’s Beautifully Plain Kale Salad, in Her Words

Chopped Kale, Dill, and Chickpea Salad with Smoked Trout, by Ed Smith

Issue #41

MoreSlaw/Salad/Relish Things

Refrigerator Pickle Chow Chow/Slaw

Flo’s Slaw for Barbecue Sandwiches

Issue #40

Is Slaw Salad?

Fennel Mango Slaw with Lime Dressing

Crisp, Refreshing Cabbage Salad with Juicy Shredded Chicken and Sesame-Lime Dressing

Issue #39

Crowd-Sourced Tuna Salad

The Curry Version

The Mediterranean Version

The Hippie Version

Issue #38

Another Terrific Salad from Diana Henry (With roasted fennel, tomato, and chickpeas)

Diana Henry’s Roasted Tomato, Fennel, and Chickpea Salad

Issue #37

Issue #36

Diana Henry is in the Salad Lab!

Diana Henry’s Salade Gavrochard

FIVE SALADY THINGS Diana Henry FINDS COMPLETELY IRRESISTIBLE

FIVE THINGS Diana Henry WANTS A SALAD TO BE

Issue #35

A Pressed Tofu Salad? A Watermelon Vinaigrette?

Mitchell Davis’s Take on Chinese Pressed Tofu Salad (in His Own Words)

Portia’s Watermelon Vinaigrette

Issue #34

A Splendid Spicy Cherry Salad, With Mitchell Davis

Israeli Cherry Salad

Issue #33

Your Broccoli Stems = Your New Best Friend

Tom Hirschfeld’s Broccoli Stem Salad

Issue #32

A Salad to Eat With Fried Chicken, with Tom Hirschfeld

Tom’s Kilt Sallet (aka Killed Salad)

Tom Hirschfeld’s Bossy But Perfect Rules for Frying Chicken, Plus His Recipe

Issue #31

Strawberry salads will never fail you!

The Strawberry Salad Variations

Church Cookbook Boiled Dressing

Old Fashioned Boiled Dressing, Adapted from Fanny Farmer

Issue #30

An Old-Fashioned Department Store Salad, With Gail Dosik

The Gail Dosik Chopped Maurice Salad

Issue #29

Tunisian Tuna and Carrot Salad, With Judy Walker

Tunisian Tuna and Carrot Salad, adapted from Jamila’s Cafe, New Orleans

Issue #28

A Spicy Shrimp Salad? With Judy Walker

Judy Walker’s Spicy New Orleans Shrimp (or Crawfish) Salad

Issue #27

Herbs Make Everything Better

Quick Pickled Fennel

Herb Salad with Pickled Fennel, Hard-cooked Egg, and Flatbread Crackers

Issue #26

A Showboat Salad Dazzles You: With Joe Gray

Sonora Salad, from Coyote Cafe: Foods from the Great Southwest

How to Roast Peppers for Salad

Issue #25

What Can a Crouton Be? More from Chandra Ram

Chandra Ram’s Apple, Prosciutto, and Radicchio Salad with Za’atar-Parmesan Squash Croutons and Sherry Vinaigrette

Issue #24

Croutons! On Salads! With Chandra Ram

Chandra Ram’s Mixed Greens with Everything Bagel Croutons and Ranch Dressing

Chandra Ram’s Tomato and Cucumber Salad with Turmeric Paneer Croutons

Issue #23

Tell Us About Your Tuna Fish (Salad, that is)

Standard Tuna Salad (The Mom Version)

Issue #22

The Tuna Salad Conversation

Tuna Salad for a Tuna Melt

Lemony Dill Tuna Salad

Issue #21

The Secrets of Salad: More from Portia Hendrick

Portia’s Happiness Salad (an instructive free-form beauty)

The Asparagus Mimosa (the classic)  

Issue #20

A Sparky Pineapple Salad from Our Favorite Hostess

Portia’s Nevisian Salad with a Twist

Portia’s Simple Greek(ish) Salad

A Simple Garlic Dressing

Issue #19

Bean Salads With Rancho Gordo’s Steve Sando

Arugula, Fennel, Royal Corona, and Shrimp Salad

Lentil and Carrot Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette 

Luxurious Heirloom Bean Dip 

Issue #18

NOODLE SALADS! 

DOS Cold Sesame Noodles

Vietnamese Rice Noodle Salad (or Bun) with Shrimp

A Very Good Pantry Item Pasta Salad

Shrimp Sandwiches on Toast with Spicy Mayo

Issue #17

GUEST: Kay Plunkett-Hogge, author of Baan: Recipes and Stories from My Thai Home

Nit Salad or Salade Vientiane (A Thai Take on the Nicoise) 

Shredded Carrot Salad with Raspberry Pickled Raisins and Pistachio

Creamy Cucumber Salad with Dill 

Issue #16

GUEST: Matt Crawford

Crawford Family Cold Beef Salad with Caper Vinaigrette

Uncle John’s Italian Salad

Red Cat Restaurant’s Zucchini with Toasted Almonds and Pecorino

Issue #15

GUEST: 

Alex Stacey, of French Family Food

Alex Stacey’s Salade Niçoise

Alex Stacey’s Dijon Mustard Vinaigrette

Alex Stacey’s Organic Courgette, Mozzarella, and Radicchio Salad

Convertible Pan Bagnat

Issue #14

GUEST: 

MiMi Aye, author of “Mandalay: Recipes and Tales from a Burmese Kitchen”

MiMi Aye’s Burmese Tofu Salad (Tohu Thoke)

Rozanne Gold’s Fried Lemon and Zucchini Salad

Dreamy Lemon Cream Shallot Dressing, adapted from Chef Suzanne Goin

Issue #13

Simple Little Chopped Salad (tomatoes, white beans or chickpeas, cucumber, basil/mint)

DOS Garlic Sherry Vinaigrette

Emily’s Cheddar and Chive Spoonbread for Supper

SALAD IDEA: shredded poached chicken, red cabbage, etc. with sesame ginger vinaigrette

Issue #12

GUEST: Lindsay-Jean Hard, author of “Cooking with Scraps: Turn Your Peels, Cores, Rinds, and Stems into Delicious Meals.”

Lindsay-Jean Hard’s Wintery Take on a Cobb

A More Classic Cobb

Halls Chophouse Chop Salad

Issue #11

GUEST: Robyn Eckhardt, author of “ISTANBUL & BEYOND: Exploring the Diverse Cuisines of Turkey.” 

Robyn Eckhardt’s Kisir (Bulgur Salad) from “Istanbul and Beyond” 

Laura Elyse Garcia’s Grandmother Jane’s Chicken-Avocado-Rice Salad

Jennifer Perillo’s Summer Farro Salad

Issue #10

THE CITRUS ISSUE

Easy Orange Salad 

James Beard’s Moroccan Orange and Radish Salad (Shlada Dyal Fejjel ou Lichine) 

An Insanely Simple Orange and Fennel Salad with Smoked Trout 

Persimmon and Orange Salad with Walnuts

Issue #9

THE ALL DRESSING ISSUE

Japanese Ginger Carrot dressing

Department of Salad Basic Blue Cheese Dressing 

Department of Salad Blue Cheese Vinaigrette

Department of Salad Thousand Island Dressing

Aunt Mariah’s Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette

Issue #8

GUEST: Chadwick Boyd, food writer, columnist for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Hallmark Channel regular, etc.

Chadwick Boyd’s Shaved Celery Salad with Pimiento Buttermilk Dressing

Celery Salad with Lemon, Anchovy, Caper dressing

Basic Blue Cheese Waldorf 

Emily’s Pimiento cheese

Emily’s Cream Cheese and Olives

Issue #7

GUEST: Yukari Sakamoto,  journalist, sommelier, and Tokyo market guide 

Yukari Sakamoto’s Japanese Potato Salad (Potesara) ポテサラ

3 of Yakuri Sakamoto’s Favorite Japanese Salad Dressings

Lemony Roasted Red Pepper and Potato Salad

Warm Potato Salad with Hot Scallion Dressing

Rancho Gordo Cranberry Bean Platter with Roasted Red Pepper and Prosciutto 

My Garlic Sherry Vinaigrette

My Romesco Sauce

Issue #6

GUEST: Kevin Conley, writer, editor, terrific home cook, great guy

Bob’s Caesar Salad

Laurie Colwin’s Ambrosial Chicken Salad

Emily’s Chicken Salad

Issue #5

GUEST: Gabrielle Langholtz, food writer whose books include “United Tastes of America” and “America: The Cookbook”

Tamar Adler’s Spicy Sweet Potato Salad

Jonathan Waxman’s Brussels Sprouts Salad 

Convertible Greek Goddess Dip/Dressing

Bitter Greens with Bacon, Pecans, and Warm Balsamic Dressing

Issue #4

GUEST: Domenica Marchetti, Italian cookbook author and culinary tour guide

Domenica Marchetti’s Aunt Gilda’s Insalata di Riso

Sweet and Sour Winter Squash Preserved in Oil

Emily's Purloined Beet and Lentil Salad

My Usual Mustard Vinaigrette

A Green Salad with Grapefruit and Avocado

Issue #3

GUEST: Phyllis Grant, author of “Everything Is Under Control”

Phyllis Grant’s Fall Panzanella (as told by Phyllis Grant)

Emily’s Lemon Mint Mushroom Salad

An Ideal Egg Salad

Issue #2

GUEST: Mary Norris, author of “Between You and Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen” and “Greek to Me”

Greek Salad for 6

The Most Autumnal Goddam Salad You’ll Ever Eat (Barley, winter squash, apple, nuts—the works)

Lemony Apple Cider Vinaigrette with Dijon Mustard

Quick Pickled Red Onions

Beatrice’s Blender Mayo

Barn Ranch Dressing (for a Wedge)

Issue #1

GUEST: Mollie Katzen, artist and cookbook author, of “Moosewood Cookbook” fame

March Hare Salad 

Warm Quinoa, Spinach and Shiitake Mushroom Salad with Lemon

Eggplant and Tomato Salad with Tomato and Fresh Garlic