Rice Krispies as croutons, anyone?

IF YOU'RE LIKE most people, you don’t eat salads because you want to. You eat them because you have to.

And that’s particularly awful because most salads don’t even really try. The limp-leaved Caesar with dry-as-dust croutons. The depressingly ubiquitous mixed green salad with tomatoes that look (and taste) more like pink potatoes. And let’s not forget the grilled protein salad, in which you make do with a reduced portion of the thing you actually want (thick, juicy slices of steak), squatting sadly atop a wet bed of greens.

It doesn’t have to be this way, and in fact, more and more it isn’t the way, thanks to a new cast of chefs who are not just making better, more interesting, and more creative salads, but rethinking the very notion of what a salad can and should be.

Take Garrett Benedict, the chef at G-Love, in Portland, who freely admits that the genesis for his Crunchmaster Crisp salad is a steak: “pan-seared and caramelized and a little smoky.” The Crunchmaster’s centerpiece is cabbage, which is perfectly suited, he says, to take the char from searing. And, as with a meat-forward dish, every element on the plate (hondashi vinaigrette, toasted hazelnuts, fried onions, and, yes, Rice Krispies) either enhances, or plays against, this innate steak-iness

Benedict isn’t the only chef lavishing salad with the techniques previously trained on meats and pastas. Greg Vernick, the James Beard Award-winning chef of Vernick Food and Drink is slow-roasting the mushrooms in the glowing depths of a wood-burning oven, a la a hearth-cooked pizza or lamb shank. Marc Vetri, chef of Pizzeria Vetri in Philadelphia, PA, is redefining what it means to “dress” a salad, deploying basil pesto to coat greens in garlicky goodness.

All these chefs agree: We’re in the middle of a salad revolution. To find the best salads that have emerged from this trend, we scoured restaurant menus across the country and asked chefs for their recipes. Then we tested the recipes at home to make sure they were actually doable (some were better suited for a restaurant kitchen) and totally delicious.

As discover after making the recipes that follow, there’s one great beneficiary of the modern salad renaissance: You.

Yes, the paper-thin squash, salty cheese, and tangy lemon dressing make this salad incredible. But don’t discount the pistachios, which do way more for texture (not to mention heart-healthy fats) than croutons ever could.

—Recipe by Michael Paley, chef/owner of Amaraat Paraiso in Miami

What You'll Need: 5 oz. container little gem lettuce or spring mix 1⁄2 small red onion, very thinly sliced and soaked in ice water 1⁄2 lb summer squash, very thinly sliced 1 cup pistachios, toasted and shelled 1⁄3 cup lemon dressing (see below) 1⁄2 cup shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

How to Make It: In a salad bowl, toss the lettuce, onion, squash, pistachios, dressing, and salt and pepper to taste. Divide the salad among 4 plates and top each with some of the cheese and olive oil. Makes 4 salads

In a blender or food processor, whir till smooth the zest from 1 lemon, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 small minced garlic clove, 1 1⁄2 tsp Dijon, 1⁄2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, and 1⁄4 cup plain Greek yogurt. Season with salt and pepper.

Adding char to sturdy greens brings out their natural sweetness while adding a subtle smokiness. Balance those flavors with something tart (like the apple in this recipe), something crunchy (a triple threat of frizzled onions, toasted nuts, and puffed rice), and something fresh (picked herbs) and you have a main-course-worthy meal.

—Recipe by Garrett Benedict, chef/owner of G Love in Portland, Oregon

What You'll Need: 1 head savoy cabbage, cut into 8 wedges (root/stem intact) 2 Tbsp canola oil 1⁄4 cup fried onions 1⁄4 cup Rice Krispies 2 Tbsp hazelnuts, toasted and crushed 6 Tbsp sesame vinaigrette (see below) 1 Honeycrsip apple, diced Mint and cilantro leaves, for garnish

1. In a large cast-iron pan over medium high, heat 1 Tbsp oil. Add 3 cabbage wedges and sear until dark brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Using tongs, flip each wedge; repeat. Transfer to a plate and sprinkle with salt. Repeat the process with the remaining oil and 3 more cabbage wedges. Set aside. Cut the last 2 raw wedges into 1⁄4-inch strips. Set aside.

2. In a small bowl, combine the fried onions, Rice Krispies, and hazelnuts. Set aside.

3. Arrange on each plate 2 charred cabbage wedges, fanning out the leaves. Drizzle each wedge with 2 Tbsp of the vinaigrette and scatter with some of the raw cabbage, apple, and onion mix. Garnish with mint and cilantro. Makes 3 salads

In a blender, puree 2 Tbsp tahini, 2 Tbsp mirin, and 2 tsp Hondashi granules. Add 1⁄4 cup rice wine vinegar and 1 1⁄2 Tbsp soy sauce and blend on low, slowly pouring in 2 Tbsp sesame oil till emulsified.

However you feel about arugula, there’s so much to love about this salad—roasted potatoes, creamy olives, cheese. But it’s the basil pesto that’s the unsung star, tying all those amazing flavors together.

—Recipe by John Sidoti, executive chef of Pizzeria Vetri in Philadelphia

5 large fingerling potatoes 1 sprig rosemary 1 clove garlic, crushed, plus 1 clove 5 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus 3⁄4 cup 1⁄4 cup pine nuts 1⁄4 grated Parmesan, plus 2 Tbsp shaved 1⁄3 cup basil leaves 1 Tbsp red wine vinegar 1 1⁄2 cups argula 8 Taggiasca or Castelvetrano olives

1. Preheat a charcoal grill so that the coals are white and ashy. In a small bowl, toss the potatoes, rosemary, crushed garlic clove, and 2 Tbsp olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. On a wide sheet of aluminum foil, empty the contents of the bowl and make a loose package with the foil. Roast directly on the coals till tender, 30 to 45 minutes. Remove potatoes, let cool, and slice on the bias.

2. In a food processor, pulse the garlic clove and pine nuts till a coarse paste forms. Add the 1⁄4 cup grated Parmesan and the basil. Pulse, adding the 3⁄4 cup olive oil in a thin stream till thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill in the fridge.

3. In a lidded jar, add the red wine vinegar and remaining 3 Tbsp olive oil. Shake well to emulsify. Season to taste withs alt and pepper. Set aside.

4. In a large bowl, add 1 Tbsp of the basil pesto, plus the red wine vinegar, arugula, potatoes, and olives. Toss lightly. Divide the salad among serving plates and top with shaved Parmesan and more salt and pepper to taste. Makes 2 salads

Earthy mushrooms, slow-roasted in the oven, turn smoky and crisp-edged. Match them with a sweet-corn dressing and crunchy endive and this fungi-focused salad will make you forget grilled chicken over iceberg.

—Recipe by Greg Vernick, chef/owner of Vernick Food & Drink in Philadelphia

2 ears sweet corn, cleaned 6 oz maitake mushrooms, broken into smaller clusters 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling 1 head Belgian endive, end trimmed, leaves separated 6 Tbsp corn-miso dressing (see below), plus more for serving 20 leaves fresh tarragon

1. In a large, dry cast-iron pan over medium high, add the corn. Cook, turning occasionally, until charred on all sides, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat, allow to cool, and slice off the kernels. Reserve 1 cup of the kernels for the dressing.

2. Preheat your oven to 475°F. Ona sheet pan, toss the mushrooms with the 2 Tbsp olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper. Roast until the mushrooms begin to caramelize and lightly char, 6 to 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

3. In a large bowl, add the endive, mushrooms, a big pinch eachof salt and pepper, and 2 Tbsp of the dressing. Toss gently.

4. Spread some dressing on a serving plate, arrange the mushroom mixture on top, and garnish with some of the remaining charred corn and the tarragon, plus a swirl of extra-virgin olive oil. Repeat twice. Makes 3 salads

In a small pan over medium heat, brown 4 Tbsp butter. Add to a blender with 1 small shallot (thinly sliced), the zest from 1 lemon, 1 cup of reserved grilled corn kernels, 2 Tbsp fresh ginger(peeled and thinly sliced), 1 Tbsp room-temp water, 1⁄2 cup white miso paste, 1⁄2 cup rice wine vine-gar, 2 tsp honey, 1⁄2 tsp ground turmeric, 1 tsp salt, 8 tarragon leaves, and a pinch of cayenne. Puree till smooth.

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