Caesar Salad

Crisp Romaine lettuce, creamy Caesar dressing and golden croutons. This Caesar Salad is utterly divine and the perfect side dish to your favorite meals.

About this recipe:

There's a reason that Caesar salad is so popular, every mouthful is the perfect balance of creamy and crunchy. Traditionally, romaine lettuce is used and the creamy dressing uses egg yolks, anchovies, garlic and parmesan. Its the perfect side dish to compliment hearty pasta dishes or you can even make it a main course by adding chicken and bacon. This recipe shows you how to easily make the creamy dressing using a blender and gives suggestions for how to make this recipe your own!

Ingredients

For the dressing:

• Cloves garlic 
• Anchovies 
• Worcestershire sauce
• Olive oil
• Parmasan 
• Dijon mustard 
• Lemon juice
• Egg yolks 

For the salad and croutons:

• Baguette
• Little gem lettuce or romaine lettuce 
• Salt 
• Black pepper 
• Vegetable oil

See recipe card for quantities.

Step by step photographs:

1. Step 1: Chop your baguette into crouton sized pieces.

2. Step 2: Drizzle over olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

3. Step 3: Place croutons in the air fryer and cook at 350 f (180 C) for 3 minutes, shake to turn over and cook for a further 2- 3 minutes until golden.

4. Step 4: Meanwhile, chop your lettuce head into bitesize strips.

What are the origins of Caesar salad?

Despite what the name might suggest, this recipe has no Italian origin and isn't connected to Julius Caesar at all! It was in fact created by Caesar Cardini in Tijuana, Mexico! A great fun fact that might come up in your next pub quiz!

Substitutions

A classic Caesar Salad is exactly as written in this post. However, if you want to use up other items you have in your refrigerator or you need to switch it up for dietary requirements, then here are some suggestions:

• Parmesan - Parmesan should be very easy to get your hands on, however Grana Padano or Pecorino Romano will work just as well if you have some that needs using up
• Anchovies - I highly recommend using anchovies in the dressing, some people can be a bit sceptical about using them but they add no fishy flavour and add a delightful saltiness that you just cant replicate. However, if you really want to substitute them, a spoonful of Capers are a great replacement.
• Croutons - For a gluten free alternative, roasted chickpeas work beautifully to add that much needed crunch.

Variations

There are so many ways to make your Caesar salad into a main dish just by adding various proteins, here are my suggestions:

• Grilled chicken - grill boneless and skinless chicken breasts for 8 minutes at 400 F/ 200 C. Slice your cooked chicken breasts into bite size strips and toss into your salad.
• Bacon - fry streaky bacon or crisp it up in your air fryer. Crumble the strips into bacon pieces and sprinkle over your Caesar salad.
• Caesar Pasta Salad - cook your favorite pasta (fusilli or penne recommended), allow to cool then toss it into your salad to make it a hearty main meal.

Equipment

I make this recipe super simple by adding all the dressing ingredients to a blender. This emulsifies the egg, oil and dressing ingredients and creates an easy, super silky dressing. However, if you don't have a blender to hand, the sauce can be made simply in a bowl with a fork and whisk. Using your fork, mash your anchovies and garlic into a fine paste. Add your egg yolks, Dijon mustard, Worchester sauce, lemon juice and parmesan and whisk to combine. Then, slowly drizzle in your olive oil, whisking at the same time to emulsify and create your delicious, creamy dressing.

Storage

• Fully dressed Caesar salad - if you've already tossed your salad ingredients and dressing together and have some left over simply add to an airtight container and transfer to the fridge. Good for 24 hours.
• Working ahead of time - If you are thinking ahead and preparing your salad to be served at a later date then here are my tips. Store the lettuce, dressing and croutons separately. Place each part in a separate airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. When you're ready to serve you Caesar Salad, simply toss all your ingredients together in a bowl.