10-Minute Mediterranean Chopped Salad

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A crisp, casual Italian-American house salad built the way restaurants do it: cucumbers get a quick salting so they stay crunchy instead of flooding the bowl, and the dressing is a deliberately sharp red wine vinaigrette with oregano and a little Dijon to grip the greens. Olives, feta and red onion do the heavy lifting — no cooking required.

Ingredients

• 1 English cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, for the cucumbers
• 1/2 small red onion, very thinly sliced
• 8 cup chopped romaine hearts and/or crisp mixed greens (about 2 romaine hearts)
• 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 3/4 cup pitted Kalamata olives, halved
• 1/2 yellow or red bell pepper, diced
• 4 ounce block feta in brine, crumbled or cubed
• 2 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 6 pepperoncini, sliced (optional)

• 3 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 small garlic clove, grated or finely minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled between your fingers
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Instructions

1. Toss the sliced cucumber with 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt in a colander set over a bowl or in the sink. Let it drain while you prep everything else, at least 8 minutes. This is the step that keeps the finished salad from turning watery.
2. Put the thinly sliced red onion in a small bowl with 1 tablespoon of the red wine vinegar and a pinch of salt. Let it sit 8 to 10 minutes to soften its bite; you'll add the onion and its vinegar to the dressing later.
3. Make the vinaigrette: in a jar, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, the Dijon, grated garlic, crumbled dried oregano, honey, 1/4 teaspoon salt and the black pepper. Seal and shake 10 seconds to dissolve the salt, then add the olive oil and shake hard for 20 seconds until creamy and emulsified. Taste on a lettuce leaf — it should taste bracingly sharp, since the greens and feta will mellow it.
4. Chop the romaine into 1-inch ribbons and spin or pat it very dry. Wet greens dilute the dressing as surely as wet cucumbers do. Pile the greens into a wide serving bowl.
5. Squeeze the drained cucumbers gently in a clean kitchen towel or press with paper towels to blot off surface moisture. Do not rinse — the residual salt is part of the seasoning.
6. Add the cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, bell pepper, parsley, pepperoncini if using, and the drained onions to the bowl. Pour in the vinaigrette along with the onion's soaking vinegar.
7. Toss thoroughly with two large spoons or your hands for a full 30 seconds so every leaf is coated. Scatter the feta over the top and give one or two gentle folds so the cheese stays in recognizable pieces.
8. Taste and adjust with a pinch of salt or an extra splash of vinegar, then serve immediately in chilled bowls.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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