Cooking with Karina: Lettuce-Less Salads

Karina Arnold is a rising junior at the University of Oklahoma who’s passionate about healthy cooking. She provides creative, healthy recipes and tips on clean eating.

It’s easy to equate healthy eating to strictly hearty salads or protein shakes when browsing the social media accounts of yogis, body builders and models. Although salads are an easy, delicious way to add fruits and vegetables into your diet, there are other tasty “salads” that don’t include even one leaf of lettuce or greens.

Especially in the summer, fish is a family favorite. After discovering this Salmon Avocado Salad was a success amongst my family’s picky eaters and broke college friends, I continued to try new spreads, proving that not all salads are grown from the garden.

This Tuna Toast is a perfect post-workout lunch or brunch with friends. The healthy fats in the avocado complement the protein-rich tuna. Including a homemade pico de gallo or spices will add tangy flavor. With a cook time of about five minutes, this recipe can be served over toast or crackers while enjoying a mimosa with friends.

Crab Salad Sandwich (Photo: Karina Arnold)

In sync with my pescatarian palate, I made this Crab Salad Sandwich. Sweet tzatziki and savory crab add flavor and nutritional value. The protein from the Greek Yogurt Tzatziki and hearty fats from crab will make a scrumptious spread for your bread. Add spices like dill, basil or rosemary to complement your dough, whether it be sourdough, wheat, white, sesame or gluten-free.

Like most salads, these fish salads are best enjoyed fresh. If preparing for a large group, I recommend refrigerating no longer than 24 hours in a glass, saran-wrap sealed bowl. Add fresh herbs and lemon juice to freshen the mix before serving. In addition, these recipes have short cook-times, thus prepping too far ahead is not necessary.

Incorporating cleaner, healthier cuisine into your diet does not have to always involve salads (at least, with lettuce) or juice cleanses. Experiment with these salads this summer! Have a chicken, turkey or tuna salad recipe you would like to share? Comment below!