here are a lot of different types of salads out there. Most of these salads can be categorized into three different subgroups: tossed, composed, and bound. Here’s everything you need to know about these salad types, including how to identify and make each one:
Tossed Salad
This is probably what you think of when you think “salad.” Tossed salads are made by tossing ingredients (and usually dressing) in a haphazard way, so that they end up evenly mixed.
Types of tossed salads you may be familiar with are:
Caesar Salad
Romaine lettuce, croutons, and Parmesan tossed with a dressing featuring lemon juice, olive oil, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Italian restaurateur Caesar Cardini is credited with inventing the salad in the 1920s. In its early days, Caesar salads were tossed at the table by the chef.
Leafy Green Salad
“Green salad” is a general term that can refer to any tossed salad made with greens, such as iceberg lettuce, arugula, and spinach. Many basic salads are made with mixed greens, which you can buy at the grocery store. Bags of mixed greens usually include romaine, Swiss chard, arugula, and more.
Greek Salad
A Greek salad consists of tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, feta, and onions. It’s lightly dressed with olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano. Greek salads can be served with or without lettuce — when there’s no lettuce, it’s sometimes called “horiatiki.”
Fattoush
Fattoush is a Levantine salad composed of mixed greens and toasted or fried khubz, or flatbread. It often includes vegetables (like tomatoes and onions) and herbs and spices (like sumac, a Middle Eastern spice with a sour taste).