Reinforcement Salad, a typical Neapolitan dish served on Christmas Eve.

A rich side dish that I prepare very willingly throughout the entire winter period because I find that the intense flavor of pickled vegetables and the ‘papaccelle’ is an excellent accompaniment for meats, especially pork, thanks to the vinegar’s ability to cleanse the palate and aid digestion.

There are many variations; here is mine.
A rich, playful, and very colorful dish.
It’s a side dish based on boiled cauliflower dressed with green olives, pickles, sweet papacelle, and finally anchovy fillets in oil. Add salt, oil, and vinegar to finish.

The salad indeed accompanies all lunches and dinners of the Christmas period, starting from Christmas Eve, a fish-based meal that the cabbage salad helps make more substantial.

A fairly widespread tradition is to consume fried cod, accompanied by reinforcement salad.

An excellent way to get even children to eat cauliflower, who sometimes are not inclined towards this vegetable.
The reinforcement salad is the dish that manages to bring a bit of freshness to the palate after a demanding first or second course.

The preparation of the reinforcement salad is rather easy; the only thing you need to pay attention to is the cooking of the cauliflower, which should not be overcooked as it would risk breaking down too much compared to the other decidedly crunchier ingredients.

So, make sure to follow the cooking times we will indicate in the step-by-step.

A recipe with strong and spicy flavors that can be customized to your liking!

Difficulty: Very Easy
Cost: Very Affordable
Preparation time: 20 Minutes
Portions: 6/8
Cooking methods: Boiling, Steaming
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: Autumn, Winter

107.14 Kcal

calories per serving

Info Close

Energy 107.14 (Kcal)
Carbohydrates 7.24 (g) of which sugars 2.84 (g)
Proteins 3.66 (g)
Fat 7.85 (g) of which saturated 1.15 (g)of which unsaturated 2.41 (g)
Fibers 3.39 (g)
Sodium 837.30 (mg)

Indicative values for a portion of 5 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA^* and FoodData Central^** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.

^* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ^** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov

Ingredients for the salad

1 cauliflower
2.82 oz black olives
8 fillets anchovies in oil
2.82 oz green olives
to taste salted capers
3.53 oz pickled vegetables (mixed)
to taste extra virgin olive oil
2 peppers (papacelle)
to taste artichokes in oil
to taste vinegar
salt

Tools

Pot
Steamer
Salad Bowl
Knife
Cutting Board

Steps for the salad

Clean the cauliflower, separate the florets, and boil them in salted water.

Alternatively, place the cauliflower in a basket with a lid and steam them for up to 8-10 minutes.

Depending on how much cauliflower is in the basket and the size of the pieces.
Place them in a bowl and dress them with a drizzle of oil and a few drops of vinegar.
If they were steamed, also add a pinch of fine salt. Mix gently.
Pit the olives.
Now mix everything well and, if desired, add papaccelle cut into pieces.
Drain the capers, pickles, and rinse them under fresh running water.
Add the anchovy fillets and roughly chop them.
Place all the ingredients in a baking dish, dress with extra virgin olive oil, and mix well.
Let it rest overnight to allow the flavors to blend, and perhaps prepare it the day before you want to serve it.
Serve the reinforcement salad at room temperature.
Enjoy your meal.

Advice

You can store the reinforcement salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week, so this is a convenient recipe: prepare it in advance so it’s one less thing to think about on Christmas lunch day.

If you enjoyed this recipe, click lots of stars, thank you so much.

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