Best Watercress Salad Recipes

WATERCRESS & ORANGE SALAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine watercress and oranges. In a small bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients. Drizzle over salad; toss to coat.

WATERCRESS, PEAR AND GORGONZOLA SALAD

Steps:

• Combine the onion, mustard, vinegar, honey, lemon juice and grapeseed oil in a food processor or blender. Purée until onion is very fine. Season with salt and pepper. Whisk in olive oil.
• Rinse and dry the watercress. In a large bowl, season watercress with salt and pepper and toss with the dressing. Arrange cheese and fruit on four salad plates and top with watercress.

WATERCRESS, AVOCADO AND ORANGE SALAD

Steps:

• Soak 1/4 thinly sliced red onion in cold water, about 10 minutes. Whisk 1/4 cup orange juice, the juice of 1 lime, 1 tablespoon honey, 2 teaspoons dijon mustard, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a bowl. Whisk in 3 tablespoons olive oil. Drain the onion; toss with 2 bunches watercress, 2 sliced avocados, 2 segmented oranges and the dressing. Top with chopped toasted hazelnuts.

AVOCADO AND WATERCRESS SALAD

Steps:

• Stir together vinegar, onion, apple, soy sauce, and sugar until sugar has dissolved, then stir in oil.
• Just before serving, toss watercress with enough dressing to coat. Quarter, pit, and peel avocado, then cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Gently toss with watercress.

WATERCRESS AND TOFU SALAD

Steps:

• Drain tofu on paper towels in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
• After tofu is drained, cut into 1" blocks.
• Heat pot of lightly salted water.
• Cut 2 inches off bottom of watercress and discard.
• Cut watercress into 3" pieces.
• When water comes to boil, add cut watercress and parboil for 30 seconds.
• Drain and cool in ice bath.
• Meanwhile, make Oriental Salad Dressing: Combine all other ingredients - soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, sesame oil, sugar, sesame seeds and blend.
• Arrange drained and cooled watercress on a platter with tofu, tomato, and fish.
• Drizzle with Oriental Salad Dressing at time of serving.

EASY TOFU SALAD WITH TUNA AND WATERCRESS

Steps:

• Layer the bean sprouts, tofu, tuna, watercress, tomatoes, and Japanese pickled radish in a 9x13-inch baking dish. Set aside. Place the onion in a bowl.
• Heat the garlic in the sesame oil in a skillet over medium heat until garlic is browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Remove garlic slices, then pour the hot oil over the onion. Stir in the soy sauce and pour dressing over the salad.

SIMPLE WATERCRESS SALAD

Steps:

• Combine vinegar, salt, and pepper in a salad bowl. Slowly whisk in oil. Add watercress and toss with vinaigrette to evenly coat. Serve immediately.

BEET SALAD WITH GOAT CHEESE, WATERCRESS AND SHALLOT THYME DRESSING

Steps:

• Cook beets in water to cover until tender, about 40 to 45 minutes. Drain the beets and set aside to cool.
• For the dressing, whisk together olive oil, shallot, half the lemon juice, the thyme, salt and pepper. Set aside.
• While the beets are cooling, wash the watercress and trim the thicker stems from the leaves. Spread the trimmed watercress out over some paper towels to dry.
• When the beets are cool enough to handle, use a paring knife to peel off the beets skins, they should come off very easily.
• Cut the beets into quarters lengthwise and then those pieces in half crosswise.
• Place the beets and watercress in separate bowls. Divide the dressing between the 2 bowls. Toss the watercress and beets until evenly coated with the dressing.
• Spread the watercress out on a serving platter to make a bed for the beets. Crumble the cold cheese into the beets and toss gently. Spread the beets over the bed of watercress and sprinkle with remaining lemon juice. Serve immediately.

CUCUMBER WATERCRESS SALAD

Steps:

• Combine cucumbers and watercress in a large bowl. Whisk the honey, vinegar, and water together. Pour over salad and toss well to combine. Season with dill and salt and toss salad again.

EASY TOFU AND WATERCRESS SALAD

Steps:

• Cut watercress into 1 1/2-inch lengths. Combine with tofu, bean sprouts, grape tomatoes, tuna, and green onion in a large bowl.
• Mix shoyu, olive oil, sugar, sesame seeds, ginger, and garlic together in a bowl. Drizzle dressing over salad (a little goes a long way) and toss before serving.

SMOKED SALMON & WATERCRESS SALAD WITH RED ONION-CAPER VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Mix lemon juice, vinegar, mustard and a big pinch of salt and pepper to taste in a 1-quart Pyrex measuring cup. Add capers and onion; toss to coat. Slowly add oil, pushing onion aside and beating with a small whisk or fork to form a thick dressing.
• Mix watercress and half the salmon in a large bowl. When ready to serve, pour dressing over watercress and salmon; toss to coat. Arrange on salad plates, garnishing each with remaining smoked salmon.

WATERCRESS AND ENDIVE SALAD WITH PEARS AND ROQUEFORT

Steps:

• Peel, core and thinly slice the pear. Cut the slices in half so they're not too long. Toss with the lime juice.
• Combine the pears, pecans, watercress, endive, blue cheese and tarragon in a large bowl. Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper, olive oil and walnut oil. Toss with the salad, and serve.

GRILLED POTATO SALAD WITH WATERCRESS, GREEN ONIONS, AND BLUE CHEESE VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Combine vinegar, shallot, and mustard in medium bowl. Gradually whisk in oil. Mix in cheese. Season vinaigrette to taste with salt and pepper.
• Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until almost tender, about 16 minutes. Drain; cool completely. Cut potatoes into 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Brush rounds on both sides with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Arrange watercress on platter. Grill potatoes until golden and cooked through, about 3 minutes per side.
• Mound warm potatoes atop watercress; sprinkle with green onions. Spoon vinaigrette over potatoes.

CUBAN AVOCADO, WATERCRESS, AND PINEAPPLE SALAD (ENSALADA DE AGUACATE, BERRO, Y PIñA)

Steps:

• Preparing the Watercress
• Place the watercress in a colander and rinse under cold running water to remove any grit or sand. Discard any yellowing leaves and remove the tough stems; for this salad, you want only the leaves and tender stems. Pat dry with paper towels and refrigerate while you prepare the rest of the salad.
• Broiling the Pineapple
• Preheat the broiler. Place the pineapple slices on a baking pan and sprinkle the sugar evenly on top of them. Broil about 4 inches from the heat source, turning once, for 10 minutes on each side, until lightly golden brown. Let cool, then cut into 1-inch cubes. Set aside.
• Preparing the Dressing
• Place the garlic, olive oil, vinegar or lime juice, cumin, salt, and pepper in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Taste for seasoning. Set aside.
• Peeling the Avocado
• Cut the avocado(s) lengthwise in half around the pit and remove the pit. Place the avocado halves cut side down on the work surface and slice lengthwise into 1-inch-wide wedges. Peel each segment by hand or with a paring knife, and cut into 1-inch cubes.
• Assembling the Salad
• Place the watercress in a medium bowl and toss with half the dressing. Arrange on a large platter.
• Add the pineapple and avocado to the same bowl and toss with the rest of the dressing. Mound the pineapple and avocado over the bed of watercress. Garnish with the slivers of red onion and serve immediately.

RED LEAF LETTUCE, WATERCRESS, AND CUCUMBER SALAD WITH BUTTERMILK DRESSING

Steps:

• Make dressing:
• Whisk together all dressing ingredients in a small bowl with salt and pepper to taste.
• Make salad:
• Soak onion in 1 cup cold water 10 minutes, then drain well in a sieve.
• Toss lettuce, watercress, and cucumber together in a bowl and divide among 6 plates. Spoon dressing over, then sprinkle salads with onion.

EGG SALAD SANDWICH WITH AVOCADO AND WATERCRESS

Steps:

• Cook the eggs 10 minutes in a saucepan of simmering water to cover. Drain, cool under cold running water, and peel. Roughly mash the eggs in a bowl with the mayonnaise, mustard, and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.
• Spread 4 slices of toast with mayonnaise, if you like. Arrange about 1/4 of the avocado slices on each. Spread each with 1/4 of the egg salad and arrange watercress sprigs on top. Top each sandwich with another slice of toast and serve.

ROASTED BEET, ENDIVE, ORANGE, AND WATERCRESS SALAD WITH KIMBERLY WILLIAMS-PAISLEY

Steps:

• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place beets onto a sheet of parchment paper-lined foil; drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Wrap to enclose. Roast until tender, 45 to 55 minutes. Allow beets to cool.
• Rub cooled beets with paper towels to remove skins. Reserve half a peeled beet, cutting the rest into 3/4-inch pieces; set aside.
• Using a paring knife, remove peel, pith, and outer membranes from oranges. Working over a medium bowl to catch juices, carefully cut out each segment between membranes. Squeeze membrane to extract juice; discard. Set aside 1/4 cup juice, reserving the rest for another use.
• In a blender jar, combine reserved half beet, reserved orange juice, red-wine vinegar, salt, and pepper; puree until smooth. With blender on, add canola oil, and process until combined. Stir in 2 tablespoons parsley.
• Place lettuce, endive, watercress, chopped beets, oranges, and remaining parsley on a large platter. Just before serving, add vinaigrette; toss to combine. Garnish with ricotta salata, and serve.

WATERCRESS SALAD

Steps:

• In a bowl, whisk together juice, sugar and oil. Toss well with nuts and greens. Season and check.

CRISPY CHICKEN FINGERS WITH SWEET AND SOUR BLOOD ORANGE SAUCE, BLOOD ORANGE WATERCRESS SALAD

Steps:

• Blood Orange Granita, for serving, recipe follows
• For the blood orange rub: Place chicken pieces in a large dish and add the garlic powder, pepper, ground fennel, olive oil and blood orange zest. Coat the chicken with the rub and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
• For the crispy chicken fingers: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Fill a large pot one-third full with the vegetable oil and heat to 350 degrees F. Line a baking tray with a cooling rack.
• Place the flour, whisked eggs and panko into individual dishes. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour, followed by the eggs and then the panko breadcrumbs. Place the breaded chicken on the prepared baking tray. In batches, place the chicken strips in the oil and fry until crispy and golden. Place on a baking tray and keep warm in the oven. Repeat the process with the remaining chicken.
• For the sweet and sour blood orange sauce: Heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the red onions and sweat until tender and translucent. Mix the honey, red wine vinegar and 1/2 cup water in a bowl. Add to the saute pan and stir. Add the blood orange zest, blood orange pieces and cinnamon stick. Season with salt and pepper, stir and cook until the mixture has reduced by half.
• Strain the mixture through a sieve into a new pot over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and then remove from the heat. Continue to cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Place the pot back over medium heat, add the cornstarch mixture and bring to a simmer to cook the cornstarch out, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the basil.
• For the blood orange watercress salad: Segment the blood oranges over a sieve and bowl to ensure all the juices are reserved; set the segments aside. Place the olive oil, red wine vinegar and shallots in the blood orange juice. Season with salt and pepper and stir. Place the watercress and iceberg lettuce on a serving plate. Spoon the blood orange dressing over the greens. Garnish with the blood orange segments and crushed rice crackers.
• Serve the salad alongside the crispy chicken fingers with the sweet and sour blood orange dipping sauce.

WATERCRESS AND ENDIVE SALAD

Steps:

• Cut off the tough stems of the watercress and discard.
• Cut off the end of the endive and cut the head into bite-size pieces.
• Rinse watercress and endive and drain or spin dry. Put in a salad bowl.
• Put the lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Using a wire whisk, beat in the oil. Pour the dressing over the salad greens and toss.