Bittergourd (Ampalaya) & Tomato Salad

Ampalaya (Bittergourd) Salad, a refreshing Filipino salad perfect with fried fish or meat.

The salad is very simple to make and is a perfect accompaniment for dry, fried food, such as fish or pork chops. Because of the vinegar, it eventually turns into pickles, so you can store it in your ref for a prolonged period of time and just grab it when you have your next fried dish.

Barley Salad with Cucumber, Carrot and Coriander

I am writing this blog post on a train from Cordoba to Barcelona. I have been in Spain for vacation for the last ten days and it has been amazing, from a historical, gastronomical and personal standpoint! The Philippines (where I grew up) was colonized by Spain for 333 years, so you can imagine that our culture--from the food, language, certain behaviors and even our names---are heavily influenced by Spanish culture.

It was great to finally try the authentic versions of some Spanish influenced Filipino dishes like lechon (roast suckling pig, which the Spaniards call Cochinillo), Callos Madrileña (tripe and chorizo stewed in tomatoes), chorizo (sausage), churros con chocolate (Spanish doughnuts with chocolate), and many, many others. Our versions of these dishes are very close, if not identical to the originals, and that was very refreshing to see.

However, what we noticed is that Spanish cuisine lacks vegetables (aside from the occasional potato and eggplant); and we missed vegetables and fruit so much!

So for this week's blog post, I'm posting a salad made from barley, cucumber and carrots. Oh vegetables, I missed you so much!

Now a little bit about this salad. I first encountered this healthy salad in a party with some Japanese friends. It's very simple and refreshing. Barley is a healthy, whole grain that is high in protein, and packed with nutrients and antioxidants. Read more about barley and its health benefits here.

Barley Salad with Cucumber, Carrot and Coriander

The salad is very simple to make. In fact, the first time we tried to replicate it at home, my teenaged son made it by himself. It's great with roasted, grilled or fried food, especially dry dishes.

Green Apple and Carrot Salad with Japanese Mayo & Wasabi Dressing

This salad is healthy, totally raw and refreshing, which makes it an excellent source of fiber.  It has a Japanese twist because of the Japanese mayonnaise, nori (seaweed) and wasabi.

Carrot & Cucumber Sesame Salad

This is a cold, raw salad of carrot and cucumber, sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds, in a dressing of lemon, honey and sesame oil. Simple to do, very refreshing and perfect with dry, grilled or fried food. It's very healthy too, because it's completely raw and fresh!