# I don't get salad **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 2, 2013, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363 "2013-05-02T22:19:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/1 "2013-05-02T22:19:27Z")
I’m weird. I don’t understand the point of salad. I mean, the way I see it, salad consists of several different types of food (usually most of which I don’t like anyway), mixed together so I can’t avoid the foods I don’t like. Then a stinky-smelling goop called “dressing” is dumped all over it, for some reason. I don’t really understand why salad is so popular. It seems like everyone likes at least some kind of salad. Everyone except me. I am an extremely picky eater, though, so that’s probably the exact reason why I hate salad. (Wasn’t sure whether to put this in Cafe Society or The Pit - it seemed way too weak and lame for a pitting.) ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/2 "2013-05-02T22:34:13Z")
If you think salad dressing is a “stinky smelling goop,” you’re missing a great deal of the point. Salads are (to a degree) an excuse for the dressing! Just as chicken nuggets are an excuse for the dipping sauce. A good salad is a mixture of flavors, textures, colors, and sub-combinations. A few olives on top can change the entire experience of a salad. Ultimately, it’s about personal preferences. If you don’t like 'em, don’t eat 'em. I don’t get golf; I don’t get The Rolling Stones; I don’t get Nascar. So…I follow other things instead. We’re fortunate to live in a very diverse world, incredibly rich in aesthetic offerings. (I like salads the way I like pizza: toss in a little of everything!) ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/3 "2013-05-02T22:34:26Z")
I love Cobb Salad. It fills me up. I hate hate HATE purple cabbage or whatever it’s called. I always order it without that crap. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/4 "2013-05-02T22:35:52Z")
In a good salad, good vegetable + more good vegetables + reasonable amount of good dressing = something even better. If you don’t like any of the components it’s unlikely you’ll enjoy the whole thing. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/5 "2013-05-02T22:38:41Z")
Salad is not food. Salad is a promissory note. Salad says “Wait here and food will be along shortly.” No, but really, I like a nice hefty salad and I like dressings too, although a friend of mine only eats salad with cracked black pepper and a spritz of lemon juice. If you’ve got good vegetables, that’s as divine as any italian or french dressing. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/6 "2013-05-02T22:43:15Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > … > Ultimately, it’s about personal preferences. If you don’t like 'em, don’t eat 'em. … I don’t usually eat them. I occasionally get salad as the first course of a multi-course fancy dinner meal (kind of like what **Inner Stickler** said above), but I’m not at fancy dinners all that often, so it’s not too big of a deal. I don’t object to other people liking salad, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/7 "2013-05-02T22:43:22Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > I don’t really understand why salad is so popular. It seems like everyone likes at least some kind of salad. Everyone except me. What is your favorite green food? ---
**Author:** ![harmonicamoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/65b543/32.png) [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/8 "2013-05-02T22:50:09Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > I love Cobb Salad. Cobb salad is awesome! I eat it at every restaurant that has it on the menu. Cobb salad at Fridays is super! ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/9 "2013-05-02T22:52:12Z")
I, OTOH, Love salad. All types. I could happily live on salads (for a particularly loose definiton thereof). Tomorrow’s dinner, in fact, is slated to be a Chef’s Salad, with lettuce, tomato, bacon, cheese, ham, chicken, eggs, onions, pepper rings and a slug of home-made BBQ Ranch dressing. Delish! ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/10 "2013-05-02T23:13:20Z")
Salad is plant based nachos ---
**Author:** ![babygoat666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/2acd7d/32.png) [@babygoat666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/babygoat666)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/11 "2013-05-02T23:24:14Z")
This is pretty much exactly how I felt about salad until I was about 20. I saw other people eating iceberg lettuce with raw onions, tomatoes, olives, and other shit all slathered in ranch and thought, “no thank you.” When I discovered spinach and raspberry vinaigrette, and other non-disgusting combinations, I learned that I enjoy eating leafy greens more than pretty much any other vegetable so I make them a lot. If there is a lettuce/green you don’t mind eating, make your own salad and put things in it that you like. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/12 "2013-05-02T23:30:14Z")
My go to salad is basically a Chicken Greek salad, hold the olives. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/13 "2013-05-02T23:31:58Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > I’m weird. I don’t understand the point of salad. They’re (usually) both cheap and healthy, although there are definitely exceptions. > [@](#): > > I mean, the way I see it, salad consists of several different types of food ( **usually most of which I don’t like anyway** ), mixed together so I can’t avoid the foods I don’t like. Then a stinky-smelling goop called “dressing” is dumped all over it, for some reason. (Bolding mine.) Well, that’s your problem, then. Of course you’re not going to like a salad made up primarily of ingredients that you don’t like. There are some vegetables that I really dislike, such as olives, so I don’t make/order salads with olives. > [@](#): > > I don’t really understand why salad is so popular. It seems like everyone likes at least some kind of salad. Everyone except me. Other people are presumably eating salads made up of ingredients that they like, or at least find tolerable. If you don’t like any form of leafy greens or raw vegetables at all then you’re probably out of luck when it comes to salads, but if there’s any kind you do like then you could have a salad made of that. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/14 "2013-05-02T23:37:55Z")
I was never a huge fan of salads. Then I discovered 2 tricks that completely changed my attitude: 1. Ranch dressing. Whatever dressing usually comes with the salad, I just ask for ranch instead. Of course it doesn’t have to be ranch, just find the dressing that _you_ like. Once I realized that I couldn’t stand vinaigrette, my salad experience improved dramatically. 2. Bacon. There is no salad that cannot be improved by sprinkling bits of bacon on top. Now I look forward to the occasional salad, as long I order it with ranch and bacon. ---
**Author:** ![PatriotGrrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9dc877/32.png) [@PatriotGrrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotGrrrl)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/15 "2013-05-02T23:43:20Z")
You know, a lot of people like salad but are not fans of thick flavorful dressing. At any decent restaurant you can ask for “oil and vinegar” and they will bring you a little bottle of vinegar and a little bottle of oil, which you can apply in your desired proportions. If this is not available, “vinaigrette” dressings come the closest. At home, I make my own dressing from red wine vinegar, olive oil, and various spices (sometimes the ones sold in packets as “dressing mix”). ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/16 "2013-05-02T23:45:09Z")
It’s not that you don’t get salad, it’s that you don’t get _friends_ with salad. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/17 "2013-05-02T23:57:42Z")
Being a picky eater is your problem, here. A person who likes salad likes (a) the dressing, (b) possibly some of the vegetables in it, and © doesn’t mind the rest of the vegetables in it. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/18 "2013-05-02T23:59:53Z")
I like some vegetables, such as lettuce, carrots, celery, and cauliflower. Hmm, would that work as a salad? I’m not really a fan of cooked vegetables, though I don’t imagine those are used much in salads. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/19 "2013-05-03T00:06:18Z")
Here you go: [Celery, Carrot, Lettuce, Cauliflower Salad](http://rawgirlinmumbai.blogspot.com/2011/02/celery-carrot-lettuce-cauliflower-salad.html) ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363/20 "2013-05-03T00:09:56Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > I like some vegetables, such as lettuce, carrots, celery, and cauliflower. Hmm, would that work as a salad? That’s a perfectly cromulent salad. Find a dressing you don’t considered goopy, and Bob’s yer uncle. > [@](#): > > I’m not really a fan of cooked vegetables, though I don’t imagine those are used much in salads. Not usually, but sometimes a quick [blanching](http://www.foodnetwork.com/search/delegate.do?Nr=Record%20Type:Result&N=4294961235&fnSearchString=blanching) in boiling water improves the taste and color of broccoli, asparagus, green beans and some other hard green vegetables; would also be good for cauliflower. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-get-salad/657363.md?page=2)