Salads let the produce speak for itself. Bypass the pre-packed, limp-leaved lettuces and set about compiling a locally-sourced, robust salad full of fresh and delicious ingredients. Nothing could be healthier or more filling to feast on in July.

Salads have been popular in Britain ever since the 1400s. The British Salad season traditionally runs from late May until October (depending upon the weather). There are around 14,000 acres of salad leaf farms in the UK, with over 50 different types of salad leaf grown from frilly lollo rosso to baby spinach. The five main types of British wholehead salad leaf grown are: Iceberg, Romaine (otherwise known as Cos), Gem, Batavia and Speciality lettuce such as lollo rosso or oak leaf. In addition there are loose leaves such as rocket, spinach and red chard.

There is so much British seasonal produce that can be incorporated into a Summer salad. Aubergines, courgettes and peppers can be grilled on the barbecue or roasted in the oven and embedded into the lettuce alongside some warmed goats cheese. Other cheeses that are delicious in salads are Dorset Blue and Somerset Brie. British peas and beans add a sweet and succulent flavour as do British carrots which can be grated to make them less dense. Tomatoes are wonderful when amalgamated into a salad or can be sensational when served as a stand-alone, garnished with some basil and oil

Another fruit that can be incorporated into the mix or left to headline its own dish is the Cucumber. The poor British radish is often forgotten about but adds a sense of solidity to a salad in its earthy taste and refreshing texture. One either loves it or loathes it, but the British Beetroot is for many, integral to the Summer salad and has, since Roman times, been considered an aphrodisiac.

Remembering to look for the Red Lion mark, the sunny yolks of British Eggs bring cheer to any salad and are best served soft boiled or poached. They work particularly well when accompanying fish such as smoked mackerel, smoked haddock or crab..

Anyone who saw the BBC's Great British Menu will have found themselves salivating at the site of the Aberdeen Angus beef salad recipe. There is something sublime about the contrast of warm roasted meat lying alongside a crispy, crunchy array of fresh greenery. British Pork comes into its own in the salad season and can be served as cold slices of ham, crispy bacon pieces, or roasted loin. Coronation chicken, is a truly British salad dish. It was invented by Constance Spry in 1953 for the Queen's Coronation. Though it is simple to make, don't be lulled into thinking that it merely involves a blob of mayonnaise, some sultanas, curry powder and chicken. For Rose Prince's authentic recipe [click here].

Smoked duck, or pigeon breast can be served alongside English cherries for a deliciously fragrant and succulent salad. In recent years, UK cherry growers have suffered from the arrival of cheap imports and now cherry orchards cover just one-tenth of the land they did in the 1950s. Look for British cherries at farmers markets, farm shops or pick-your-own. Borough Market in London is hosting a Cherry Corner from 16-18 July.

Traditionally, salads should always have some form of dressing - a thickened liquid usually consisting of oil, other liquids such as vinegar, and seasonings and flavourings. It was the Ancient Greeks who introduced the dressing, by mixing various greens with oil, salt and herbs. The Romans called this dish a herba salata giving us our modern word, salad.

The key to a good dressing is sticking to the rule of 3:1 - three parts oil to one part acid. The consistency of the dressing slightly depends on the ingredients of the salad. If the body of the salad consists of baked beetroot and slithers of roasted beef then a horseradish based dressing would compliment it beautifully. For a delicious English cherry dressing recipe that can be served with a Wild Boar salad [click here]. When buying ready-made dressings, oils or relishes look for British brands such as The Good Range or Kits Kitchen. Remember to dress to thrill as oppose to kill, an over-dressed salad is just as bad as an under-dressed one.

The beauty of the British salad is that it can be the cheapest or the most expensive dish depending on what ingredients you want to incorporate. In 2003, Raymond Blanc created the world's most expensive salad, valuing at over £600 a serving and consisting of ingredients such as Almas golden caviar, Beluga caviar, truffles, Kreel caught langoustines, Cornish crab and lobster. Ultimately, salads are whatever you want them to be. Quite simply, there is nothing more refreshing, filling or healthy that can be served in the Summer. As the C18th food writer Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin observed “Salad freshens without enfeebling and fortifies without irritating.”

For information on UK salad growers [click here]
For inspirational British salad recipes [click here]
For information and recipe ideas on British watercress [click here]
For a recipe on how to make homemade mayonnaise [click here]
For a recipe for watercress mayonnaise [click here]
For a new potato salad recipe [click here]
For a wild garlic and radish salad recipe [click here]
For more information on the British Cherry [click here]