Chop till you drop

After all that guiltless holiday binging, now’s the time to repent and start the new year with a fresh perspective. Why not turn a new leaf (literally now) via healthy greens such as the Chop’d creative salads at Rustan’s Supermarket’s San Antonio, Forbes Park branch?

But why eat a green salad? Why not?  Leafy greens are the most nutrient-packed foods around. They’re bursting with fiber, which lowers cholesterol and prevents constipation. Here’s more (or should we say less): Fiber makes you feel fuller so you eat lesser, and thus lose weight. Not only is it good for digestion, it also protects against heart disease and many types of cancer, what with its higher levels of antioxidants. Now, with just a bowl of greens giving you a nice boost of vitamins and minerals daily, who needs to pop a multivitamin pill every day?

At Chop’d Creative Salad, your salad days are only just beginning! Your only problem is choosing your salad. But then again, you can never eat too many greens, so go ahead and fill yourself up.

But before we do, we listen to some chop talk from our favorite chef/cook book author, the lovely and gracious Beth Romualdez.  First, Beth gives us a chopping list and introduces us to the mezzaluna, a half-moon-shaped chopping blade used for cutting up your greens (instead of just shredding them by hand) so you can enjoy them in the most chewable bite-size pieces. One of Chop’d kitchen staff expertly maneuvers the mezzaluna and hands over the counter some perfectly chopped greens. Beth then gets our attention riveted on a menu board that lists the kinds of salad available at Chop’d. Hold your breath now: French Nicoise, Mediterranean Deli Salad, Mexican Caesar, American Cobb, Texas Steak Salad, Buffalo Chicken, Gourmet-to-Go, Asian Crunch Salad, Santa Fe, California Salad, Vegetarian, Greek Salad.  

I’m really no salad person and I’m no vegetarian, too, but I particularly loved the Vegetarian Salad that’s chock full of broccoli florets, shredded carrots, raw walnuts, diced apples, dried cranberries, tomato bits, and my favorite edamame beans (which I tossed into my mouth like peanuts) with nicely chopped spinach and romaine lettuce. This salad is paired off with a dressing of balsamic vinaigrette or lemon-tahini vinaigrette.

At Chop’d Creative Salad, crunchtime means it’s time for the Asian Crunch Salad that delivers just the right crunch and punch with ingredients like grilled chicken, carrots, green onions, crispy noodles, toasted sesame seeds chop’d with spinach and romaine lettuce. For a well-dressed salad, you can choose from the Oriental dressing or ginger-miso dressing or carrot-ginger dressing.

Do you know the way to Santa Fe? I don’t, but I sure know where to get the best Santa Fe Salad in town.  But of course, at Chop’d Creative Salad! Here, the Santa Fe Salad festively combines black beans, Monterey Jack cheese, tomatoes, corn kernels, red bell peppers, fried onions, chop’d with romaine lettuce. You can partner this with a piquant dressing of chipotle-lime vinaigrette or chipotle-honey vinaigrette or Tex-Mex ranch dressing. Hot stuff!

If you want a meaty salad, go for the American Cobb Salad that’s got grilled chicken, bacon, hard-boiled egg, tomatoes, bleu cheese, avocado, chop’d with iceberg and romaine lettuce. You can drizzle this salad with a bleu cheese dressing or herb-mustard vinaigrette.

Oui, French Nicoise is definitely better eaten than pronounced. It’s an impeccable blend of boiled potatoes, green beans, kalamata olives, tomatoes, red onions, tuna flakes, hard-boiled egg, chop’d with romaine lettuce. Choose between a creamy French dressing and a dreamy lemon vinaigrette.

One other nice thing about Chop’d Creative Salad is that you can have your salad customized to your liking. Don’t like bell peppers? Want less meat and more carrots? Have it your way, go all the way, baby! Although there are dressing suggestions on the menu per salad, you can choose your own dressing,  which is served separately, so that the greens don’t wilt quickly, says Beth.

Each salad order weighs a light but filling 150 grams, good enough to share with a couple of friends.  And it won’t hurt to split the bill, too, as an order costs only P225 (for the Vegetarian and California Salad) and P245 for the rest of the salads. I think our group of five girls split seven salad orders, which we quickly devoured to the last bit of carrot and edamame bean. I swear the gorgeous Frances Yu, Rustan’s Supermarket VP, could have demolished a whole hefty salad serving. Now, we know how she keeps her enviably slim and trim figure.

Salad lovers will love the fact that Chop’d Creative Salad will soon open in other Rustan’s Supermarket branches.

We left the place feeling oh-so-light but right despite the fact that we chop’d till we almost dropped.