Chef Ally
Arugula with Shaved Pecorino and Lemon
Peppery arugula leaves tossed in nothing but fresh lemon and good olive oil, showered with curls of aged pecorino. A salad that proves the best cooking is knowing when to get out of the way.
Culinary Explorer
A cooking platform built around craft, culture, and the stories behind what we eat.
Garden Lettuces with Shallot Vinaigrette
Created by
The simplest salad in the French tradition: tender market lettuces, washed and dried with care, dressed moments before serving in a vinaigrette where good shallot meets good oil and they become something greater together.
Salads
French
Weeknight
Dinner Party
15 min
Active Time
0 min cook•15 min total
Yield4 servings
This is the salad I eat more than any other. When the lettuces are right, truly right, picked that morning and still holding onto their aliveness, they need almost nothing. A simple vinaigrette. Your hands to toss them. A bowl large enough to give the leaves room to move.
I learned this in France, watching women at the market squeeze heads of lettuce to judge their hearts, then dress them at home with the kind of attention Americans reserve for complicated things. The French know that simplicity requires the best ingredients. There is nowhere to hide.
The shallot vinaigrette is classic for good reason. Shallots have a sweetness that raw onion lacks, and when you let them sit in good vinegar, they soften into something almost floral. A touch of Dijon helps the oil and acid come together. That is all. Let things taste of what they are.
Every meal is a meaningful choice. When you buy lettuces from a farmer who planted them, watered them, and cut them for market, you are keeping that farm alive. The salad tastes better for the connection. It always does.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
mixed tender lettuces
Quantity
8 ounces (about 8 loosely packed cups)
small shallot
Quantity
1
minced (about 2 tablespoons)
red wine vinegar
Quantity
1 tablespoon
Dijon mustard
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
fine sea salt
Quantity
1/4 teaspoon, plus more to taste
extra-virgin olive oil
Quantity
3 tablespoons
black pepper
Quantity
to taste
freshly cracked
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| mixed tender lettuces | 8 ounces (about 8 loosely packed cups) |
| small shallotminced (about 2 tablespoons) | 1 |
| red wine vinegar | 1 tablespoon |
| Dijon mustard | 1/2 teaspoon |
| fine sea salt | 1/4 teaspoon, plus more to taste |
| extra-virgin olive oil | 3 tablespoons |
| black pepperfreshly cracked | to taste |
Equipment Needed
- •Large salad spinner
- •Small mixing bowl for vinaigrette
- •Large wide salad bowl
- •Small whisk or fork
Instructions
- 1
Select your lettuces
Start at the market. Look for lettuces that were picked this morning. The leaves should be perky, not tired. They should feel alive in your hands. A mix of textures makes the salad interesting: butter lettuce for silkiness, oak leaf for body, a few leaves of frisée or young arugula for gentle bite. Avoid anything browning at the edges or limp at the stem.
Ask the farmer when the greens were cut. If they hesitate, find another farmer. The ones who know their harvest time are the ones worth buying from. - 2
Wash and dry the greens
Fill a large bowl with very cold water. Submerge the lettuces and swish gently. Lift them out and let the grit settle, then repeat until no sand remains at the bottom. Dry the leaves thoroughly in a salad spinner, working in batches. Wet greens dilute the vinaigrette and will not hold it. Spread the leaves on a clean kitchen towel if needed to absorb any remaining moisture.
Cold water crisps tired greens. If your lettuces have traveled far, let them sit in the ice bath for ten minutes before spinning. - 3
Macerate the shallot
Place the minced shallot in a small bowl with the red wine vinegar and salt. Let it sit for at least ten minutes, longer if you have time. The acid softens the raw bite and turns the shallot sweet and mild. This step is not optional. Raw shallot straight into vinaigrette tastes harsh. Macerated shallot tastes like itself, only gentler.
- 4
Build the vinaigrette
Whisk the Dijon mustard into the shallot and vinegar mixture. The mustard emulsifies, helping the oil and acid come together. Drizzle in the olive oil slowly, whisking constantly, until the vinaigrette looks creamy and unified. Taste it. Add more salt if it needs it. The dressing should be bright enough to wake up the greens but not so sharp it overwhelms them.
Your oil matters here. Use something you would happily dip bread into. Grassy and peppery oils suit these delicate greens. - 5
Dress the salad at the last moment
Place the dry lettuces in your largest bowl. You need room to toss without bruising. Drizzle about two-thirds of the vinaigrette over the leaves. Use your hands to gently lift and turn the greens, coating each leaf lightly. Add more dressing only if needed. The leaves should glisten, not swim. Season with a few grinds of black pepper. Taste a leaf. Adjust. Serve immediately on individual plates or a wide platter.
Chef Tips
- •The best salad lettuces are the tender varieties: butter, Bibb, Little Gem, oak leaf, lolla rossa. Look for heads that feel heavy for their size with no browning at the cut stem.
- •Red wine vinegar is traditional, but a good sherry vinegar or champagne vinegar works beautifully. Avoid balsamic here. Its sweetness competes with the shallot.
- •Dress this salad at the very last moment. Vinaigrette wilts tender greens within minutes. If you must wait, keep the washed greens wrapped in a damp towel in the refrigerator and the vinaigrette at room temperature, then combine as guests sit down.
- •In winter, when market lettuces are harder to find, seek out greenhouse-grown varieties from local growers. They will not have summer's exuberance, but honest lettuces exist year-round if you look.
- •Your hands are the best tools for tossing salad. They are gentler than tongs and give you immediate feedback on how the leaves are coating.
Advance Preparation
- •Lettuces can be washed, dried, and stored wrapped loosely in a clean kitchen towel inside a plastic bag for up to 8 hours. They will crisp further in the refrigerator.
- •The vinaigrette can be made up to 4 hours ahead and left at room temperature. The shallot will continue to soften and sweeten. Whisk again before using.
- •Never dress this salad ahead of time. The moment oil meets leaf, the clock starts. Serve within two minutes of tossing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 75g)
Calories
100 calories
Total Fat
10 g
Saturated Fat
1 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
8 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
170 mg
Total Carbohydrates
3 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
1 g
Protein
1 g
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