Sidekick Salad

... A side salad, with a kick! This dish was the child of two thoughts - something tart, to cut through the fattiness of something like fried chicken and something with a little nudge of spice, to complement a nice hunk of meat. Inadvertently, I also created something that is a great vegetarian/vegan snack. With more nuts and seeds, it could be a light lunch replacement. What's in it? Walnuts, spinach, apple, radish, coriander, fried okra, chilli, oregano, caramelised onions, all tied together with lime vinaigrette. Best of all, it's easy. Read on!

Ingredients (for two)

100g Walnuts, broken

1 Apple, finely sliced

4-5 Handfuls of shredded spinach

Around 5 stalks of coriander, stalks minced, leaves set aside for serving

Fresh Oregano Leaves to scatter

1 Teaspoon Dried Marjoram

2 Medium Radishes, cut into thin discs

1/2 Red capsicum, finely diced

1 White or Brown Onion, finely sliced

1 Jalapeño, finely sliced

3 Cloves of Garlic, peeled and minced

5 Okra Pods, roughly chopped

3 Tablespoons lime juice

6 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

Method

In a mixing bowl, mix the walnuts, apple, spinach, capsicum minced coriander stalks and radishes.

Coat a frying pan on a medium heat with olive oil. Gently saute the onions, garlic, marjoram, jalapeño and okra until the onions are soft and browning and the okra has a few dark bits

In a jar or other lidded vessel, mix lime juice and olive oil with a pinch or two of salt. Shake vigourously to mix.

Take the mixture in the frying pan from the heat and let it cool, so it's just warm. Mix with the ingredients in the salad bowl.

When it's time to serve, toss the ingredients in the lime vinaigrette, grind a bit of salt and pepper over top, then scatter the fresh oregano and coriander leaves over top.

Enjoy!