Tempertature Change = Definition Change

Now I’m still not sure how to culinarily define a “salad.” How is egg salad, chicken salad, tuna salad and then a green salad all called salads? And then what makes cold pasta all of a sudden a salad? Because a pasta dish can have the same ingredients, but when it’s cold, it’s deemed a salad.  Here’s a perfectly good example, my Arugula Pesto Pasta Salad. As you can see, the ingredients: (arugula) pesto sauce, noodles, roasted red pepper and artichoke hearts would make an excellent hot pasta dish. But when it’s at a different temperature, it’s named differently. Weird, no? What is the common denominator to name something “___ salad” ?

Anyway, I’m not good at math, so I’ll just play by the rules here and call this pantry-esque concoction a “salad.”

Chickpea and Cucumber *Salad*

In a hot pan with oil, warm chickpeas until browned in spots. This will take longer than you think. Also, sprinkle salt and pepper on top. Toss often.

While that’s working, finely, finely dice red onion and then squeeze on some lemon to take the sting out (thanks, BS – see comment section.) Let that sit.

Slice cucumber crosswise and then cut each slice into quarters.

Mix together tahini sauce (tahini paste, oil, lemon, salt, pepper) and yogurt until combined. Add in a bit of water to thin out the sauce, and then season (salt and pepper; maybe next time cumin or curry powder?)

Combine all ingredients to make *salad.*  For a complete meal, you can add this mixture to fresh spinach leaves.