Ruth Langsford has unveiled the 'upside down salad' recipe that she enjoys at work as a healthier alternative to 'processed food'. The 64-year-old Loose Women panellist claimed her salad is far from being just 'leaves' and only requires nine main ingredients.
Posting on Instagram in September, Ruth provided an easy step-by-step guide on how to assemble this dish, while explaining how it's actually 'upside down'. "So, now I'm going to make what I call my 'upside down salad'," she said at the time.
"So, basically, I put everything in layers in one of these [glass tubs], which means that when I tip it out the lettuce is on the bottom and everything else that I want is in layers. Anyway, you get the gist.
"So, basically I put kitchen roll in the bottom [of the tub] because then any kind of juices from the tomatoes and cucumber soak a bit into that, so the whole salad doesn't get soggy. So, that's the gist and let me show you how I do it."
Ruth first kicked off her recipe by chopping up some small tomatoes, in shades of red, orange and green, followed by some red onion. Although she confessed the tomatoes were 'going a bit soft', this didn't seem to phase her as she mixed it together.
"Tuna on top of that," Ruth continued. "I like tuna in olive oil, maybe a bit more calorific, but I don't care because I love the taste. One hard boiled egg, you can put them the other way around, so that when you tip it up the yolks' pointing up at you. It doesn't really matter.
"Then some avocado, this is a bit brown, because I actually chopped it last night to use for something else and forgot it. It's been in the fridge, it's a bit brown, but it's fine because it will be covered in salad dressing.
"Black olives, if you like them, I love them. There's the cucumber - I scraped the seeds out because they are very wet and watery and will make that [salad] go soggy. Cucumber in, and then all I've got to do now is put the lettuce on."
Bringing her food tub up to the camera, Ruth showed off the different layers of her salad. As the final cherry on top, she added her favourite Brianna's Honey Mustard Dressing, ordered from Amazon, for some extra flavour.
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David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images)"There you go! That's tomorrow's upside down salad," she concluded, while adding in the video caption: "I take this to work most days….stops me grabbing unhealthy, processed food.
"Even when you make a healthy choice and buy a salad, in my experience, they’re mostly leaves!! This way you get a good, decent portion salad and you get to put all the things you like in it!"
Beyond its 'delicious' flavour, Ruth's salad contains an impressive number of 'superfoods'. Generally, this refers to items rich in nutrients and minerals which may boast a number of health benefits.
For instance, in 2014, the University of Bristol claimed that men who ate over 10 tomato portions per week had an 18% lower risk of developing prostate cancer. Nutritionist Helen Bell, at Help & Advice, also vouched for this in a conversation with the Mirror, while explaining that cooking them may bolster their protective effect.
She said: "There is evidence suggesting that tomatoes might lower prostate cancer risk, largely due to lycopene. This antioxidant is thought to reduce inflammation and prevent cancer cell growth. When I’ve looked into it, cooking tomatoes seems to increase lycopene availability, so enjoying them in sauces or soups might be particularly beneficial."
Scientists have similarly lauded avocados for their high omega-3 content, referring to the healthy fats critical for both cardiovascular and brain health throughout life.
Specialists at the US-based University of Rochester Medical Centre previously explain ed: "Omega-3s are a helpful and important form of fat. Your body needs it but can't make it. Your body needs 2 forms of omega fatty acids.
"These are omega-3 and omega-6. Omega-3 is the most important. Experts believe that omega-3s help prevent coronary heart disease (CHD) in healthy people. They also believe omega-3s can slow progress of the disease in those who already have it."
Full list of Ruth Langsford's salad ingredients:
- Black olives
- Red onion
- Lettuce
- Avocado
- Hard boiled eggs
- Cucumber
- Tuna in olive oil
- Tomatoes
Brianna's Honey Mustard Dressing
English (US) ·