Cook This: 3 salad recipes from Linger, including a festive, salty-sweet centrepiece

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Our cookbook of the week is Linger by Hetty Lui McKinnon.

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Jump to the recipes: soba with roasted Brussels sprouts, mushrooms and maple-soy sauce caramel, roasted grapes and feta with grains and kale, and broccoli and tempeh with salsa macha.

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Cookbooks don’t often come together in real time, surrounded by friends — but for her sixth title, Linger, Hetty Lui McKinnon did things differently.

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The Chinese Australian cook and food writer created the book’s more than 100 recipes instinctively, based on what was in season, what she felt like cooking and what she was craving at the time. “My cravings are probably the biggest incentive in terms of determining what I cook and when.”

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The idea of documenting a year of gatherings came to McKinnon at the end of 2022. After the isolation of the pandemic, she wanted to combat some of the loneliness that had set in.

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“I thought, ‘What am I missing about what I used to love about food?’ And what I’ve always known is sharing food with other people. When I moved to New York (in 2015), I made many, many of my friends that I still have now through inviting them to my house on a cold winter’s day to have a salad,” says McKinnon, laughing. “It was like the icebreaker. And I thought, ‘That’s actually what I want to do for the next year. I want to recapture that feeling of togetherness.’”

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A few weeks later, in January 2023, she invited friends over for a loosely themed Lunar New Year lunch. McKinnon soon realized that friendship wasn’t something only she had been missing. Other people were yearning for connection. As the year unfolded, so did the 12 chapters, each corresponding to a gathering centred around a spread of salads.

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She photographed all the dishes before her guests arrived for lunch, capturing not just the food but the moment, as the light in her Brooklyn apartment shifted month to month.

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Instead of the typical solo effort, writing Linger was a collaborative and communal experience. Feedback was instant. “They were immediately trying, telling me what they liked. Sometimes I would tweak the recipes, but most of the time, they stayed very true to what I served at the lunches.”

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For McKinnon, “It was always salads.” Her self-published cookbook debut, Community (2013), was based on her salad-delivery business, Arthur Street Kitchen, which she founded in her hometown of Sydney, Australia, in 2011. She attributes where she is today — having written six cookbooks, including the James Beard Award- and IACP-winning Tenderheart (2023) — to having started in salads.

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“Salad is the dish that taught me how to cook. It taught me about flavour. It taught me about how to layer flavours, layer ingredients. It taught me about the importance of texture. And all of those components, I think, are equally important in cooking in general.”

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Making food for her community became a way for McKinnon to explore how her mother’s Cantonese cooking shapes her tastes. “Salads allowed me to bring that side of me into culinary form. So, whilst not every salad I cook is Asian- or Chinese-inspired, there are those elements in there.”

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Salads are egalitarian, McKinnon underscores. You can tailor them to the seasons or the eater, swapping components in and out. They’re flexible and adaptable. After all, one of McKinnon’s salad rules is that anything can be one.

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They’re also well-suited to prepping. You can roast the vegetables, cook the legumes and boil the noodles beforehand and put them together an hour or even two in advance. Some of the salads in the book can sit for up to two days in the fridge, freeing up the host.

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“When you can do that and have people at your table, it means you can be part of it.”

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SOBA WITH ROASTED BRUSSELS SPROUTS, MUSHROOMS AND MAPLE-SOY SAUCE CARAMEL

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Serves: 4 to 6

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1 1/2 lb (650 g) Brussels sprouts, halved
1 lb (450 g) mushrooms, such as cremini, button, oyster or king oyster/trumpet, halved
1 tsp five-spice powder
Extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and black pepper
8 oz (225 g) soba or thick rice noodles
Toasted white or black sesame seeds
Handful of fresh cilantro leaves

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Maple-Soy Sauce Caramel:
1/4 cup (60 mL) maple syrup
2 tbsp (30 g) vegan or dairy unsalted butter
1/4 cup (60 mL) soy sauce or tamari
4 tsp coconut cream, heavy cream or whole milk
1/4 tsp red chili flakes

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Substitutions:
Brussels sprouts: broccoli or cauliflower
Five-spice powder: ground coriander

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Step 1

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Preheat the oven to 425F (220C).

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Step 2

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Place the Brussels sprouts and mushrooms onto a baking sheet. Scatter the five-spice powder on top and drizzle with 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt and a big pinch of black pepper. Toss to combine. Roast until the sprouts and mushrooms are golden and tender, 25 to 30 minutes.

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Step 3

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Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until al dente according to the packet directions. Drain and refresh the noodles under cold water.

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Step 4

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Make the caramel: In a medium saucepan, heat the maple syrup over medium heat until it comes to a boil and bubbles aggressively, 2 to 3 minutes. Immediately and carefully whisk in the butter. When the butter has melted, whisk in the soy sauce, coconut cream and chili flakes. Whisk constantly until the caramel sauce is bubbling and thick enough to coat a spoon, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour into a bowl and let cool. It will thicken further as it cools.

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Step 5

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Place the noodles onto a large serving platter and top with the Brussels sprouts and mushrooms. Drizzle the caramel on top (it’s a potent sauce, so use less if you like). Scatter sesame seeds and a few cilantro leaves over everything. Serve at room temperature.

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Tip: You can prep the dressing ahead of time and store it in an airtight container in the fridge, but the butter may solidify. To melt it again, microwave the dressing for 10 seconds or soak the bottom of the container in hot tap water for 5 minutes.

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ROASTED GRAPES AND FETA WITH GRAINS AND KALE

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Serves: 4

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1 lb (450 g) seedless grapes (any colour)
1 small red onion, cut into thin wedges
3 to 4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves picked
2 to 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Extra-virgin olive oil
7-oz (200 g) block vegan or dairy feta
Sea salt and black pepper
1 cup (200 g) grains, such as farro or pearl barley
1 bunch (9 oz/250 g) lacinato kale, leaves separated and roughly chopped
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 cup (4 oz/110 g) roughly chopped toasted walnuts
1 cup (30 g) roughly chopped or torn fresh parsley or mint leaves (or a combination of both)

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For gluten-free:
Substitute the farro or pearl barley with quinoa or brown rice

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Substitutions:
Grapes: pitted cherries
Farro or pearl barley: quinoa, brown rice or black lentils
Kale: baby spinach, arugula or salad leaves

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Step 1

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Preheat the oven to 425F (220C).

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Step 2

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Place the grapes and red onion on a baking sheet, scatter the thyme leaves on top and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the vinegar and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Toss briefly to coat.

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Step 3

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Roast until the grapes begin to collapse, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven and add the feta. Drizzle with some olive oil and season with pepper. Return the pan to the oven and bake until the onion is tender, the feta is soft and the grapes begin to burst, about 10 minutes.

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Step 4

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Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the grains and cook until tender according to the package directions. Drain, rinse under cold water and drain again. Let cool.

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Step 5

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Place the kale leaves into a large serving bowl. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil and the lemon juice and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Using your hands, massage the mixture until the leaves soften.

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Step 6

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Add the cooled grains to the kale, along with the warm grapes, onion and feta, half of the walnuts and the herbs (try to do this while the feta is still warm so it melts and coats some of the grains). Add another tablespoon of the vinegar, drizzle generously with 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil and toss to combine. Season with salt and lots of black pepper. Taste and make sure you are happy with the seasoning, adding more salt or vinegar if needed. Top with the remaining walnuts and serve.

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BROCCOLI AND TEMPEH WITH SALSA MACHA

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Serves: 4

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16 oz (450 g) tempeh, cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces
4 tsp tamari or soy sauce
1 tsp ground cumin
4 tsp nutritional yeast (optional)
Sea salt and black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 to 3 small heads broccoli (1 1/2 lb/700 g), cut into florets, woody exterior removed from stems and cut into discs
2 handfuls pea shoots, pea sprouts or salad leaves, such as baby spinach or arugula
1 to 2 tbsp salsa macha, homemade (recipe follows) or store-bought
1 lime, halved

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Substitutions:
Tempeh: extra-firm tofu
Broccoli: cauliflower or Brussels sprouts
Salsa macha: chili crisp/oil

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Step 1

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Preheat the oven to 400F (200C).

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Step 2

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In a small bowl, place the tempeh, tamari, cumin, nutritional yeast (if using), a pinch of pepper and 1 tablespoon olive oil and toss to combine. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.

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Step 3

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Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the broccoli with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and arrange the broccoli and stems around the tempeh so they are in a single layer (not in a pile). Return the pan to the oven until the broccoli is just tender, bright green and a little crispy on the edges and the tempeh is golden, 15 to 17 minutes.

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Step 4

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Transfer the broccoli and tempeh to a serving platter and let cool for 10 minutes. Add the shoots or salad leaves and toss to combine. Drizzle with the salsa macha, squeeze over some lime juice and season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Toss gently to combine and serve.

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SALSA MACHA

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Makes: 1 1/3 cups (300 mL)

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1 cup extra-virgin olive oil or neutral oil
2 garlic cloves, sliced
1/4 cup (1 oz/30 g) roughly chopped peanuts
3 dried chilies (1/2 oz/15 g), such as guajillo, chipotle or ancho, stems removed (and reserved) and flesh crushed
1/2 oz (15 g) dried chile de árbol, stems removed (and reserved) and flesh crushed
2 tbsp white sesame seeds
1 (6-inch/15-cm) piece dried kombu, crushed into smaller pieces (optional but recommended)
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns (optional)
1 tsp sea salt, plus more to taste
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar, white wine vinegar or rice vinegar

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Step 1

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Heat a heavy skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium-high heat until hot, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and add the oil, garlic and peanuts. Stir for about 30 seconds, until the nuts and garlic are just starting to colour — don’t be tempted to cook them too long, as they turn from pale to deeply golden very quickly. Add the dried chilies, sesame seeds, kombu (if using), cumin seeds and Sichuan peppercorns (if using) and stir until fragrant and the garlic is golden, 30 to 60 seconds. Remove from the heat and transfer to a blender or food processor — it’s important to do this immediately as the garlic, nuts and seeds will continue to cook in the hot pan and will burn. Let cool for about 5 minutes. Blend until the nuts and chilies are coarsely ground but before the mixture becomes a paste, about 10 seconds. If you want a chunkier oil (more like Chinese chili crisp), blend for only 4 to 5 seconds — this is a matter of personal preference. Stir in the salt, sugar and vinegar. Taste and make sure you are happy with the seasoning, adding more salt if needed.

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Step 2

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Transfer to a sterilized airtight jar and let cool completely. Store in the fridge for up to 6 months.

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Recipes and images reprinted with permission from Linger by Hetty Lui McKinnon, copyright ©2025. Published by Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC.

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