With yet another heatwave forecast this week, we wanted to let you in on our latest too-hot-to-cook obsession. Granted, as the well-known saying goes, no good story starts with a salad. But M&S’ new £5.50 Cheesy Nacho Salad is about as far from a sad bowl of limp lettuce as you can get.
Because while technically, yes, it is a salad, this is the kind we genuinely look forward to eating.
The M&S Cheesy Nacho Salad starts respectably enough with crunchy cos lettuce, quinoa, black beans (great for fibre!), sweetcorn and rainbow slaw. So far, so virtuous. Then things get considerably more interesting: there’s Monterey Jack cheese, pickled red onions, a smoky yogurt dressing and, crucially, a generous scattering of salted tortilla chips, which are a serious step up from your bog-standard crouton. In other words, all the fun of nachos with none of the effort.
At £5.50 for a 395g bowl, M&S reckons this serves four, but it’s never stretched further than me, myself and I. It’s exactly the sort of thing we want in the fridge when temperatures soar and the thought of turning the oven on makes us want to cry.
And we’re not the only ones obsessed. Our colleagues are all in on the action: ‘This had all the flavour, texture and joy of a plate of nachos, with no cooking needed. I loved the tortilla shards for crunch, the Monterey Jack cheese and the smoky yogurt dressing – it’s just a great combination. I’ve been eating it during the previous heatwaves instead of turning the oven on.’
At the weekend, we’d serve it alongside something from the barbecue if we’re feeling energetic, or you could try piling it into a wrap. But midweek, we’re eating it exactly as it comes – perhaps with a little leftover cooked chicken if the fridge offers it up. No chopping. No cooking. Hurrah!
What to read next
The only catch? It’s a limited-edition number, so we wouldn’t hang about if you like the sound of it.
Turns out, the secret to a great salad is loads of cheese, a creamy dressing and tortilla chips. Who knew?
Stacey looks after all food and drink reviews — from coffee pods and veg boxes, to natural wine and tequila. Stacey is also founder of Crummbs, where she’s written nearly 2,000 restaurant and hotel reviews since 2013. Prior to this, Stacey wrote hundreds of in-depth buying guides for the Independent, i newspaper and BBC Good Food, as well as reviewing restaurants and interviewing celebrities in her column at Balance Magazine. Stacey has also appeared in BAFTA-nominated BBC documentary Blood, Sweat & Takeaways, where she investigated South East Asia's food production industry, appearing on both Newsnight and BBC World Service to share her findings. Regularly checking out the latest restaurants, bars and product launches, Stacey also loves experimenting with recipes at home, and is a WSET-certified wine and spirits expert, with over 10 years of experience in the business. You can follow Stacey on Instagram @crummbs_uk
