Serves 6 to 8
SPEEDY
I’ve made something like this salad many times, and each time I was in a state of dramatic panic. Picture me, arms flailing, opening every cupboard and drawer, saying out loud to nobody: Why is there no food in my house? How did I let this happen? If I can’t keep food in my house, how am I going to ever run the state of Illinois? The hungry mind isn’t a rational mind.
It’s in this agitated state that I grab any tiny bits of food I can find: a handful of barely-hanging-on arugula, the last of a bag of farro, a corner of cheese, a lone 7-minute egg.
The result: a bowl of food that is usually surprisingly good.
This recipe is a formalization of that panicked cobbling together. It’s really just a blueprint, and though I’ve tried to think of everything that could be lurking in your fridge, there’s probably something there that I wouldn’t dream of (no judgment). Whatever those mystery foods are, there’s a good chance it will fit into this salad.
This will last a full five days in the fridge; the only problem is the greens, which will start to go limp if left in the salad for too long. So if you want to eat the salad over the course of a few days, add the greens just before serving (or the night before when you’re packing your lunch; the greens will be fine for half a day). You want about ½ cup (packed) greens per serving.
3 cups cooked farro or other hearty grain, such as quinoa, bulgur, or brown or red rice
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon Basic Vinaigrette (here)
2 cups thinly sliced crunchy vegetables, such as fennel, radish, celery, carrots, and/or red or white cabbage
¾ pint grape tomatoes, sliced in half (A whole pint makes the salad too tomato heavy, but any amount under that works, so if you have only a handful, toss them in.)
1 to 2 tablespoons chopped tender fresh herbs, such as flat-leaf parsley, mint, dill, fennel fronds, tarragon, and/or basil, plus more for garnish, if you have it
3 cups (packed) arugula or other somewhat hearty salad green, such as spinach, torn escarole, and/or torn radicchio
½ cup crumbled feta, or almost any other cheese—a soft goat cheese, thinly sliced Manchego, crumbled blue cheese, grated Gruyère
1 (7-ounce) jar tuna packed in olive oil, drained and crumbled into bite-size pieces (optional; alternatively, if you have leftover rotisserie chicken in your fridge, or some cooked salmon, or even some deli meats—tear it, slice it, throw it in)
2 or 3 Perfect 7-Minute Eggs (here), chopped (optional)
In the biggest bowl you have, toss the farro with 1 tablespoon of the vinaigrette. Add the crunchy vegetables, sliced tomatoes, herbs, the remaining ¼ cup of vinaigrette, and—if you’re serving the entire salad all at once—the greens, and toss. Add the cheese, tuna or other protein (if using), and eggs (if using), and toss again, a little more gently this time, so that the tuna and/or eggs retain their identity. Taste the salad and add more salt and/or vinaigrette if desired. Transfer the salad to a serving bowl and sprinkle any extra herbs on top—or pack into individual containers for the week’s lunches, with the greens stored separately, to be added the night before.