Salads

Salads are an extraordinarily broad and varied category of dishes consisting of chopped and mixed products dressed with a sauce or dressing. They can be both a light appetizer and a full-fledged dish in their own right.

The basis of salads is the most varied ingredients: fresh vegetables and greens, boiled or pickled vegetables, meat, fish, seafood, eggs, cheese, legumes, fruit. A key role is played by the dressing — from simple oil or vinaigrette to complex sauces based on mayonnaise or yogurt — which unites the components into a single whole. Salads are divided into light, vitamin-rich ones (mostly of raw vegetables) and hearty, nourishing ones (with the addition of protein products). Light, fresh, and healthful or, on the contrary, rich and festive, salads are an indispensable part of both the everyday and the festive table in cuisines around the world, and their variety is practically limitless.