Cuban Avocado and Watercress Salad
The Cuban ensalada de aguacate is usually the plainest thing on the table: ripe avocado fanned out with thin onion, dressed with sour orange or lime. This version keeps that spirit and adds watercress, berro, the peppery green Cubans grow and love, which gives the plate some backbone and bite against the buttery avocado. The dressing is only citrus and toasted cumin, no oil, since the avocado is the fat. Soaking the onion first is the small step that makes it: it turns a harsh raw onion into something sweet enough to eat in slivers. It comes together in the time it takes to slice everything, and it belongs next to a pot of black beans and rice. The avocado makes it rich, so a little goes a long way.
Ingredients
- 2 Avocados, sliced
- 4 cups Watercress, trimmed
- 1/2 Red onions, sliced paper-thin
- 1 Orange, segmented
- 2 tbsp Lime juice
- 1/2 tsp Cumin seed, toasted and ground
- 1/4 tsp Black peppercorns, ground
Method
- Soak the sliced onion in cold water for 10 minutes, then drain. The cold water pulls out the raw sulfur bite so the onion reads sweet and crisp rather than sharp, the same trick that tames it in a Cuban table salad.
- Whisk the lime juice with a squeeze of orange, the toasted cumin, and black pepper. Citrus and cumin are the Cuban dressing here, and the avocado supplies all the richness that oil would.
- Arrange the watercress, avocado slices, onion, and orange segments on a plate rather than tossing them. Composed this way, the soft avocado stays in one piece instead of smearing.
- Spoon the dressing over just before serving, so the watercress stays crisp and the cut avocado does not brown.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 160 calories, 3 g protein, 6 g fiber, 20 mg sodium. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement. How these are computed.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt. How this is computed.
