Salad with lots of Mixed Greens
- ½ head Curly-leaf Lettuce
- ½ bunch Peppergrass*
- ½ bunch Dock**
- 2 Tomatoes, diced
- 3 Cucumbers, diced
- ½ bunch Flat-Leaf Parsley, chopped
- ½ bunch Fresh Dill, chopped
- 1 c. Canned Corn, drained
- 1/3 c. Olive Oil
- ½ – 1 tsp. Salt
- 1 Lemon, juiced (or 1/3 c. Lemon Juice)
* Tere otu in Turkish or Peppergrass in English, also known as Poor Man’s Pepper, Pepperwort, or Virginia Pepperweed, is an annual plant that grows throughout Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Central & South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. It prefers dry, sunny locations. In Turkey, this is commonly sold at the weekly Pazar (market). In my mother’s garden in the U.S. this commonly grows as a weed that she always picked and threw out. However, this edible plant has a snappy, pepper-like flavor and contains protein, iron, vitamin A and vitamin C. Refer to the photo below the recipe directions to see what it looks like. Though this salad can be made with a variety of mixed greens and doesn’t need this one specifically, it adds a lot of flavor and nutrition to this salad if you are able to include it.
** Edible wild dock plants were popular during the Great Depression because of their tart, lemon flavor and abundant availability for free. Dock are perennial plants often found in neglected, disturbed ground like open fields and along roadsides. Docks are often one of the first greens to emerge each Spring. Curly dock and broad-leaf dock are the most common edible kinds of dock plants in the U.S. and Europe. In Turkish the name for this plant is kuzukulağı which literally translated means “lamb’s ear.” The shape of the dock leaf when held upside down does in fact look just like the ear on a lamb. The sour flavor of the dock adds a wonderful zest to this salad. However, if you are unable to find dock feel free to add your own mixture of greens. You can find a picture of dock below the recipe directions.
- Wash, rinse and drain all lettuce greens very well. Chop leaves and toss in a large bowl.
- Add prepared Tomato, Cucumber, Parsley, Dill and Corn. Toss to mix well.
- Pour Olive Oil and Lemon on top. Sprinkle on Salt. Toss to mix.
- Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until needed.
Note: I just made and served this easy salad to a group of 6 ladies in my home 2 days ago. It looked very gorgeous in a large glass bowl on the table and everyone raved about it. I feared I made way too much form the large size, but it was all cleaned up over lunch! Although it’s a super easy recipe to put together it did take a long time to clean all the greens so make sure you allow enough time to prepare this salad, or do it ahead of time.
Tere otu or Peppergrass Leaves (below)
Kuzukulağı or Dock Leaves (below)
Prepared Salad, ready to serve!
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