Salad

The flavor of the spiced pickled fennel really pops with the sweet tomatoes.

Believe it or not, watermelon and feta make a great pairing. Toss in some hot chili peppers and cilantro and you have a salad to delight everyone who tries it. Buy seedless watermelon for this—you won't be disappointed when you try it!

The jalapeño's ribs and seeds are the spiciest parts; be careful not to rub your eyes after handling (or, wear gloves)!

Rinsing the cooked couscous stops the cooking and prevents it from sticking together as it cools.

Serving "green stuff" to kids can be a challenge. But a crunchy salad of bite-size vegetables holds plenty of appeal.

This versatile salad can be made a day ahead— just let it sit at room temp for an hour before serving.

"I like the fact that just three or four main ingredients can make a smashing result," says van Boven about this sweet and crunchy salad.

This salad can be made with raw fava beans, as long as they're especially fresh. But blanching them quickly makes them much easier to peel.

The next time you're serving a salad, add some herbs. Think of them as you would any other green; toss handfuls of dill, mint, basil, and more into peppery leaves like arugula, mizuna, or mustard greens, all of which are assertive enough to allow the herbal notes to shine without overpowering the dish. Top it all off with grilled steak, pork, or chicken, and you've got a perfect summer supper.

For this juicy, herbaceous salad, feel free to combine different varieties of cucumbers and tomatoes, which are at peak season around the same time.

Mild, crunchy green papaya is not the same as underripe papaya. Look for it at Asian or Mexican groceries.

Melitzanasalata This is similar to the well-known Lebanese eggplant puree called baba ghanouj but the addition of yogurt and green chilies gives it a pleasantly tangy spice. If you have a fireplace or an outdoor grill, roast the eggplant over live coals for a delectably smoky aroma. Select eggplants with smooth, shiny skins that are hefty for their size. Eggplant doesn't store well so be sure to use any you buy within a day or two; keep cool, but don't refrigerate—that only hastens deterioration. Fresh green poblano peppers are best in this recipe, but if you cannot find them, use jalapeños or serranos—as long as they are agreeably spicy but not fiery hot.

Pea shoots are the young, tender tips and vines of the snow pea or the sugar snap pea plant. Once your plants are established and producing an abundance of pods, clip off leaf and tendril sections about 4 inches (10 cm) long. If you don't have your own plants, look for these tender shoots at farmers' markets or Asian grocery stores. Sambal oelek is an Indonesian chile paste, and tart, citrusy makrut lime leaves are used in Southeast Asian cooking.

Spicy harissa, a hot pepper sauce, plays off sweet raisins perfectly. —Murphy

Although it's reason alone to keep a rotisserie chicken on hand, this salad would also be great with shrimp or sliced leftover pork chops.

Herbs in the dressing beg for herbs in the salad, too. We toss this vinaigrette with Bibb lettuce and lots of the tender green herbs— like mint, chervil, and parsley—that we grow in our window box.

This satisfying salad is great alongside broiled fish, roast chicken, or a simple steak. To turn it into a vegetarian meal, fold in sliced hard-boiled eggs.

Bloomfield loves making this salad with black mint, which you'll find in spring and summer at farmers' markets.