Pickled red onion orange salad with feta cheese, mint, and cilantro. Date night food it is not. But let's be honest. We've all been on dates we would have gladly traded for a salad. This would be that salad.

What is Red Onion Orange Salad?

In the summer, my body almost craves fresh fruits and vegetables. I wanted to create a salad that combined all those flavors my body craved, without taking a long time in the kitchen chopping and preparing. I loved the idea of pickled onions in a salad, but I'd never made them before.

But then I decided to just get in the kitchen and try it. What I have to do to create a recipe is to eat the dish (several times, for research you understand). Then I get into the kitchen and start to grab things off the shelf and it almost seems like a different part of my brain takes over at that time.

My hands know what to reach for, in a way my brain can't always verbalize. I seem to know instinctively what will work. I mean. Most of the times I do. Not always! But the more I cook, the easier this process becomes.

How do you make pickled onions?

I have realized that the process of quick-pickling vegetable is essentially the same. Vinegar, Salt, Sugar, and some kind of seasoning herb/spice. No really. That's really all pickled vegetables have in them. Where you get to play is the type of vinegar and the type of spice/seasoning.

There's something about the acidic, tart, vinegary, sweet taste that just fills your mouth with a variety of flavors all at once. I always thought it was really hard to make pickled onions.

I think I will try to make pickled beets, pickled ginger, and pickled carrots one of these days soon.

How do you make Red Onion Orange Salad?

Mix all the ingredients for the pickled onions together. Let them rest while you get everything else ready.
Peel and chop sweet oranges. Mix with salt.
Roughly crumble some feta cheese.
If you really want a dressing, start making this dressing that you used for the Avocado Grapefruit salad--because SURELY you've made that delicious salad already! But you don't really need a dressing.
When ready to plate, arrange oranges in the middle. Surround with pickled onions. Pour the vinegar from the onions across everything.
Place crumbled feta cheese on top.
Serve!

VARIATIONS ON THIS RED ONION ORANGE SALAD:

Kinds of vinegar: Apple cider, white vinegar, rice vinegar, chili vinegar
Oranges: blood oranges, starfruit, pomelo, grapefruit, tart Granny Smith apples
Cheese: blue cheese, stilton, gorgonzola, queso fresco
Additions: Nuts, baby spinach leaves

Other easy and delicious salads you may want to try

overhead shot of pickled red onion and orange salad on a white plate with feta cheese crumbles on top

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