Puff salads - general principles and methods of cooking
Puff salads are very popular, they are prepared on weekdays and for the holiday table. For their preparation use a variety of products; meat and fish are very well combined in such salads with vegetables, mushrooms, etc., and the more imagination the hostess manifests, the more original and delicious dishes she gets.
The disadvantage of layered salads is that they are very heavy food, because each layer is coated with mayonnaise, sour cream or another sauce. But such a salad can be considered a full-fledged dinner or lunch: I ate a portion - and was filled for several hours. And then, you can always fill the salad with low-calorie mayonnaise or choose another dressing for it.
The main principles of making a good puff salad is the compatibility of the products and the use of the optimal amount of mayonnaise or other dressing to coat the layers. Taking advantage of our advice, you can not only cook delicious and hearty dishes, but also create your own signature recipes that will allow you to pamper your loved ones and earn a reputation as an excellent chef.
Puff salads - food preparation
Meat and fish, intended for the preparation of puff salad, boil in salted water until fully cooked. Vegetables are also boiled in salted water (if, after cooking, immediately immersed in cold water and hold it for about 10 minutes, then removing the skin from them will be much easier).
In general, boiled vegetables before using them in a puff salad should be necessarily cooled, otherwise it will lose its taste and quickly deteriorate.
Components for layered salads decided to cut as small as possible, or rub on a grater.
If the onion is present in the puff salad, it is better to pickle it, ideally in lemon juice, then it will be more delicate in flavor and fragrant.
Puff salads - the best recipes
Recipe 1: Layered salad with champignons
Very light and tasty salad, which will surely please the supporters of a healthy diet. Apples perfectly set off the taste of champignons, and sour cream dressing harmoniously connects all the components of the salad into one whole. Ingredients:
2 tomatoes;
300 gr. champignons;
200 gr. sour cream;
1 apple;
50 gr. apple juice;
to taste salt and pepper.
Cooking Method:
1. Cut the champignons into thin slices and fry in vegetable oil.
2. Slice boiled eggs, apple and tomatoes into thin slices.
3. Prepare the dressing by mixing sour cream with butter, apple juice, salt and pepper. Then lay out all the components of the salad in layers, the sequence of which can be chosen at its discretion. Each layer is filled with dressing. Then repeat all layers in the selected order.
Recipe 2: Chicken and Prune Layered Salad
Very original salad, which has a bright taste, thanks to prunes, giving it a slightly sweetish note, and in combination with a pickled cucumber - piquancy. Chicken meat and nuts make this dish very satisfying, and its excellent appearance and excellent taste make it a welcome guest even on a festive table.
Ingredients:
100 gr. prunes;
200 gr. boiled chicken meat
1 fresh cucumber,
1 cup of pickled mushrooms,
1 onion,
250 gr. mayonnaise,
50 gr. walnuts,
3 eggs,
parsley;
to taste the salt.
Cooking Method:
1. Steam the prunes, remove the bones from it and grind. Chicken meat cut into small cubes. Drain from pickle mushrooms, lightly fry them in vegetable oil.
2. Finely chop the onion and pass. Boil and peel the eggs, cut them into small cubes. Nuts grind. Clean the cucumber skin and very finely chop.
3. Lay out the salad in layers, each with mayonnaise, in the following sequence: 1 - chicken meat, 2 - mushrooms, 3 - browned onions, 4 - nuts, 5 - prunes, 6 - eggs. Then repeat all the layers in the same order. Sprinkle the salad with finely chopped cucumbers.
Recipe 3: Puff salad with liver
For the holiday table, this salad is probably rustic, but as a daily dish, thanks to its liver, it is very healthy, and when combined with cheese, cucumbers and dill, it is also tasty.
Ingredients:
300 gr. beef liver: 100 gr. hard cheese;
1 pickled cucumber;
1 onion;
2 eggs;
2 tbsp. l margarine;
2 tbsp. l mayonnaise,
a small bunch of dill,
to taste the salt.
Cooking Method:
1. Boil the liver in salted water, cut it into strips.
2. Grate the cheese, cut the onion into half rings and fry in margarine until it becomes golden.
3. Cut the cucumber into thin straws. Boil and peel the eggs, cut them into slices. My greens and dried, finely chopped.
4. Put the prepared components in layers in a salad bowl: 1 - liver, 2 - cheese, 3 - onion, 4 - cucumber. We coat each of the layers with mayonnaise, then repeat them in the same order. Sprinkle the top layer with greens and decorate with slices of eggs.
Recipe 4: Chicken salad with chicken, mushrooms and nuts
This is a very tasty and nourishing salad, in which all the components are harmoniously combined. Due to their diversity, it has a very rich and original taste and good appearance, therefore it is appropriate on weekdays and for a festive feast.
Ingredients:
350 gr. mayonnaise;
4 carrots;
3 potatoes;
100 gr. champignons;
4 eggs;
100 gr. cheese;
300 gr. chicken fillet;
a handful of walnuts;
to taste the salt.
Cooking Method:
1. Boil chicken meat, carrots, potatoes, eggs and mushrooms.
2. Grate carrots, eggs, potatoes and cheese.
3. Boiled chicken meat and mushrooms finely cut, chop nuts.
4. Put the prepared products in a salad bowl in layers, richly lubricating each with mayonnaise: 1 - potatoes, 2 - carrots, 3 - eggs, 4 - meat, 5 - cheese, 6 - mushrooms, 7 - nuts. Then repeat all the layers in the same order.
To make the salad tastier, we leave it overnight in the refrigerator for soaking.
Recipe 5: Chicken salad with chicken, pineapple and cheese
This is a very beautiful and tasty layered salad, for the preparation of which we need chicken meat, mushrooms, pineapples and cheese. It looks very impressive even on a festive table and has a bright taste that your guests and home guests will definitely appreciate, and thanks to the pineapples it turns out very juicy.
Ingredients:
2 chicken fillets;
250 gr. champignons;
100 gr. walnuts;
3 eggs; 300 gr. canned pineapples;
100 gr. hard cheese;
1 carrot;
1 onion;
100 gr. mayonnaise;
green onions for decoration;
to taste the salt.
Cooking Method:
1. Boil the chicken fillet in salted water, then finely chop it.
2. Cut the mushrooms into thin slices and, after salting, fry with onions in vegetable oil.
3. Boil and clean, finely cut the eggs. Grate the cheese, grind the carrots in the same way. Pineapples cut into cubes, chop nuts (not too shallow).
4. In the salad bowl lay out the prepared products in layers, promazyvaya each mayonnaise: 1 - chicken, 2 - cheese, 3 - mushrooms with onions, 4 - carrots, 5 - eggs, 6 - pineapple, 7 - nuts. Then we repeat all the layers in the same order, top we decorate with finely chopped green onions.
To make the salad tastier, cool it in the fridge for a few hours.
Puff salads - useful tips from experienced chefs
When cooking layered salads, it is very important to ensure that each layer is well impregnated with dressing. After this, it is best to let the salad stand for a couple of hours at room temperature after cooking, and then put it in the refrigerator and stand there for a while, because most of the cooled layered salads “sound” much tastier.
In many recipes for flaky (and not only) salads, prunes are present. If you want it to be just a spicy supplement, then you should cut it smaller and put it in a salad in a small amount, otherwise the taste of large pieces will interrupt the taste of other components of the salad.
If possible, you should not use low-calorie mayonnaise for a puff salad, it will not affect the taste of the salad in the best way, and you won't win much in calories.
