In terms of nutrition onboard a chartered sailing yacht or motor yacht, salad would certainly be much more than just a side dish, as most people consider it to be. Salad is most commonly defined as a dish prepared of raw vegetables, while fruit salad is mentioned more often when it comes to desserts.
However, both vegetable and fruit salads could be prepared in a million ways and require just a little bit of imagination and good will. Just like pasta and risotto, different kinds of salads are an inevitable part of an onboard menu since they are very easy to prepare and have high nutritional value.
Since most of the sailing trips take place during summertime, the consumption of salads (fruit or vegetable) brings multiple benefits. First of all, salads are most often refreshing and recover the energy since they contain a great deal of liquid and are a rich source of vitamins. Furthermore, vegetable salads are most often flavored with olive oil whose healthy nutrition facts should not be disregarded.
Different dressings are here to enrich our healthy and delicious meal and could range from simple olive oil and vinegar to sophisticated cream and yoghurt dressings. Usual salad vegetables, such as different kinds of lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, onions and cucumbers, can easily be enriched with tuna, cooked chicken or beef, cheese, mayonnaise etc. More daring chefs do not hesitate to add fruits like apples, pears, kiwi, mango, avocado, or nuts.
I do not believe in the classification into summer and winter season salads because all ingredients for a decent salad can be found fresh in markets and stores throughout the whole year. Additionally, I like to have a fine salad regardless of the period of the day, while some nutritionists and menu-makers suggest fruit salads as a morning meal or dessert while vegetable salads are to be served for lunch or dinner.
I feel that salad is an ideal meal onboard a chartered sailing yacht and I am willing to share with you some ideas, and I expect you to do the same.
I wish you a calm sea, a fine wind and a strong mast!
