Watercress Salad

Add this Watercress salad recipe (Salad Cresson) to your dinner menu ASAP! It is dressed with a vegan Tahini dressing, and the salad is packed with fresh ingredients. Works well for meal prep and it is incredibly delicious.

This is a Haitian and Mediterranean fusion salad recipe. There is nothing better than a refreshing salad after a busy day. 

This watercress salad is a perfect vegetarian salad recipe that you can enjoy as a spring salad, but not to forget, this fresh and light salad tastes incredibly delicious on holidays as well.

With a hint of peppery bite and refreshing flavors to fill your mouth, this will sure help you ease your way into a healthy eating lifestyle. 

What Does Watercress Taste Like

Traditionally, Haitians love to serve salad cresson (watercress) with boiled plantains in the morning for breakfast. This is also served alongside Smoked Herring.

Watercress has a crunchy texture with a bright and fresh flavor. It has a slight peppery taste but works well when paired with fresh fruits. 

The watercress salad is one of the most refreshing spring salads, which is served as a side dish. The salad can also be enjoyed year-around. 

It is loaded with crispy veggies like radishes, chopped watercress, cucumbers, and chopped spinach.

In addition, it’s enhanced with the creaminess and richness of avocado while tahini sauce dressing brings out the most complex and diverse flavors. 

This is a perfect last-minute side dish as it’s a welcoming contrast to other heavy recipes on the table. 

This Haitian Salad recipe is extremely easy to prepare and is known for its peppery bite but the sweet fresh orange adds a balance of sweet and savory flavor. 

The chopped vegetables add a bit of crunch to the bite. It tastes and looks amazing when it is assembled but it’s recommended that you prepare it in advance and blanch the veggies to make sure it’s easier to put up – it will be ready within a few minutes. 

Ingredients Used To Make This Salad

The full recipe with the exact measurement is listed below in the recipe card. 

The watercress salad is a perfect side dish for holiday dinners and is an apt addition to lunch tables during the summer and spring seasons. 

For this reason, the salad is prepared with only specific ingredients. Feel free to change some of the ingredients to fit your needs. 

• Watercress – It has a delicate texture as well as a peppery bite but make sure the watercress is chopped to make sure it mixes up well 
• Radishes – The radish add crunch and crispness to the salad as well as the zesty and spicy flavor 
• Spinach – Spinach is a mellow addition to the salad and adds greenery to the salad. As far as the flavor is concerned, spinach adds a mildly sweet flavor 
• Cucumber – Cucumber is a perfect addition to spring salad and adds a slightly sweet undertone 
• Avocados – The avocados have a buttery and rich texture as well as a nutty flavor 
• Dry Berries – The dried berries not only add nutrients to the salad but the combination of savory and sweet notes 

Helpful Tips & Suggestions 

When it comes down to preparing the watercress salad, fortunately, preparing it is extremely convenient as you don’t need to cook anything. However, many people still end up ruining the salad because of improper use of vegetables and incorrect handling. 

When preparing your salad, here are a few tips and suggestions to help you along the way. 

• First, be sure that you only use the young watercress leaves. That’s because the mature leaves aren’t suitable for salads because the leaves become butter and extra spicy, which don’t taste well. In addition, the stems become tough when the plant matures. 

For this reason, make sure you opt for fresh watercress, or you can purchase the prewashed and sealed watercress leaves. In addition, if you’ve to use the watercress bunches, you need to cut away the tough stems 

• Secondly, you must not dress the salad unless you are ready to serve the salad. That’s because when you add the dressing, the watercress starts wilting, so make sure you add the dressing when you have to put the salad on the table 

Salad Serving Suggestions 

While the watercress salad (salad cresson) tastes amazing on its own, you can also serve it with a variety of meals.

That’s because the watercress salad is extremely refreshing and makes an incredible side for strong-flavored recipes and heavier recipes. 

For instance, you can serve it with air-fryer fried fish like this this air fryer porgy fish and parmesan-crusted chicken if you want to create a well-balanced meal.

In fact, if you are making beef burgers, the salad can be served along with French fries. 

The best thing about this salad is that you prepare the salad ahead of time, especially if you have to lay out the full table. However, only add the dressing when you are ready to serve the salad as it’s consumed fresh on the day. 

Storing Suggestions 

Again, be sure to only dress the salad when you are ready to serve it. Dressing the salad ahead of time will result in a soggy dish. 

So, make sure you only add the veggies and dressing as much as you can finish it. Though you can store leftover salad in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

It is best to serve and eat it the same day. The salad will start to lose its freshness the longer it sits. 

More Favorite Salad Recipes

Swedish Potato Salad 

Quinoa Avocado Salad 

Beet Root Salad

Haitian Salad Russe 

Kale Salad 

Salad Nicoise 

Israeli salad 

Caesar Salad 

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