Summer Sardine Salad

I feel a bit hypocritical writing about salad. If you’ve been a nutrition patient of mine for more than five minutes you know that I almost always recommend reducing cold and raw foods to support the digestive system. This wisdom has been passed down to me from many of my East Asian Medicine teachers and mentors ( I really hope none of them see this) and for the most part, its super useful advice. BUT I do think there is a time and a place for salad (summer) and there are countless ways to “warm” it up to support our guts ability to actually digest and assimilate the nutrients we’re consuming.

Listen, I’m not going to overcomplicate things with a recipe outlining specific amounts of ingredients for a salad. We’re encouraged to toss salads and that translates to me as “toss it together”. I do hope this post helps release you from the boredom of mixed greens with Italian dressing or raw spinach with ranch (my moms go to). The versatility is intended to get your creative wheels spinning. Don’t like olives? Use capers. Vegetarian? Substitute tempeh or almonds. Hate bitter greens? Use romaine. The combinations are endless. My hope is to allow you to increase the nutrient density, diversity of foods, digestibility and overall flavor of your salads this summer!

Ingredients:
1/2 tin of shelf stable sardines

Handful of Olives of Choice, halved
Toasted Pumpkin or sunflower seeds
Greens mix (i’ve been loving a mix of arugula and mustard greens)
1-2 scoops of hummus
1 small tomato chopped or sun-dried tomatoes
Olive oil and Vinegar or salad dressing of choice
1 TBS chopped dill
Optional: serve with toasted bread, side of broth or crackers

Note: We could almost call sardines a superfood due to their high levels of omega 3 fats and selenium. Sardines can also help regulate hormones, reduce cholesterol and support the health of your hair, skin and nails. Tinned fish with bones are also high in zinc, calcium and B12 which are common nutrient deficiencies globally.