I am always looking out for good salad recipes. I love most salads but sometimes they can get a bit boring. My favourite salad of all time is my Asian Beef Salad but this one has to come a close second. Every single component compliments the others and the explosion of flavours and textures is absolutely fantastic! I would never have thought of adding oranges to a salad. I am not sure why as I have used mangos and strawberries before now and know that fruit is great in salads. The oranges are needed here to offset the spicy dressing, just as the creaminess of the avocado is needed to compliment the crunchy strong flavour of the red onion. I know I will be having this over and over again in the summer. The fact that there is no oil in it is an absolute bonus.
My Grandma used to tease us at Christmas by saying all we would be getting was an apple, an orange and a bag of nuts, just like she did as a child. I thought she was joking but, in reality, oranges were given as Christmas gifts in England in Queen Victorias day. I thought I would see what else I could find out about oranges.
- The orange is technically a hesperidum, a type of berry.
- It was the first fresh fruit to bear a trademark. In 1919 the California Fruit Growers Exchange burned ‘Sunkist’ on their oranges.
- Oranges have been growing in Southeast Asia and China for approximately 4,000 years. According to historians, the orange made its way to Africa and the Middle East within the next five centuries and eventually came to Europe during the Arab occupancy of Spain (about 700 to 1400 AD). Explorers brought them to the New World in the 15th and 16th centuries, and by the 1800s, Florida had a burgeoning orange industry.
- By the 1890s, oranges and orange juice grew in popularity when it was discovered that the fruit contained a wealth of Vitamin C. Doctors knew that Vitamin C would help stave off a very menacing disease of that time – scurvy.
- Valencia oranges are most common. They do not have many seeds, and they tend to provide an excellent quality and quantity of juice. They are a later-season orange, so they fill the market when the navel oranges are not longer producing.
- Navel oranges are best for eating out of hand. They have no seeds, and their easy-to-peel fruit is better for eating immediately than for juicing.
- Seville oranges are highly valued as the primary ingredient in marmalade. Originally from Spain, Seville oranges are also grown in Florida.
- Blood oranges, also called Moro oranges, are prized for their beautiful rich red flesh as well as for their mildly berry-infused flavor. Their intense color comes from anthocyanin, an antioxidant that provides many cancer-fighting and aging health benefits.
Well, here is the recipe, courtesy of the May edition of Delicious, slightly adapted. It has not been posted on their website but here is a link to their homepage so you can look it up later if you want to.
http://www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/
Spicy Prawn and orange salad Serves 2
- 250g bag raw prawns
- 1 little gem lettuce, leaves separated, washed and dried well
- 1 large orange or 2 medium-sized ones
- 1 ripe avocado stoned, peeled and sliced
- 1 small or half a medium red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp sweet chilli dipping sauce
- Juice of 1 lime
- Boil a small pan of water. When boiling, add the prawns, bring back to the boil and cook for 1 minute or until the prawns are pink and cooked through. Be careful not to overcook or they will go hard. Drain and allow to go cold.
- Divide the lettuce leaves on two plates so that they can hold the rest of the ingredients.
- Place the orange(s) on a cutting board and with a sharp knife, cut off the top, bottom and sides so that all the skin and pith has been removed. Slice the flesh and place on the top of the lettuce.
- Divide the avocado, red onion and cold prawns between the two plates.
- Mix the dipping sauce with the lime juice and drizzle over the salad. Serve immediately.
Tasty Advice 