Chef's Garden Salad

Source: Chef Markus Glocker 

Ingredients:

For the Salad  

• variety of greens  
• kale 
• small piece of cauliflower  
• 1 cucumber  

For the Balsamic Vinaigrette  

• 3 tbsp balsamic  
• 6 tbsp olive oil  
• 1tbsp water  
• 1 glove garlic  
• 1 slice ginger  
• 1 sprig of thyme  
• salt to taste
• black pepper to taste  
• 1/2 tsp honey  

For the Crispy Buckwheat  

• 1 tsp buckwheat groats  
• 350-400ml grapeseed oil (frying)  

Directions:  

• Clean and portion the lettuce in bite size pieces. Dice cucumber and cauliflower, then  refrigerate.  
• Warm balsamic vinegar and olive oil in a pan, infuse with ginger, garlic, thyme and honey.  Set aside for about 15 minutes to cool down before plating.  
• Heat up grapeseed oil to 360F and quickly fry the buckwheat in a tea egg or a small strainer to keep the oil clean. Flash-fry the kale in the same oil to tenderize the leaves. This adds more texture and color to the dish.  
• Arrange lettuce, kale, cucumber and cauliflower on a flat plate, drizzle with balsamic  vinaigrette, season with salt to taste, finish with crispy buckwheat and freshly cracked pepper.  Make sure you don’t over dress the lettuce to preserve texture and freshness while eating