Caesar Salad

Name: Caesar Salad
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 cup mayonnaise; 1/2 teaspoon garlic; 2 anchovy fillets; 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice; 1 teaspoon dijon mustard; 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce; 1/2 cup parmesan; 3 tablespoons milk; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon pepper; white bread; 1 garlic; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1/4 salt; 150 grams streaky bacon; 10 cups romaine lettuce; 4 egg; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon pepper; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1 avocado

Fazza October 22, 2023 0 Comments

Discover the timeless allure of a classic Caesar salad. With crisp romaine lettuce, tangy dressing, and crunchy garlic croutons, this recipe elevates the salad game. Topped off with shavings of Parmesan, it’s a symphony of flavors and textures that never goes out of style.

Healthy

Caesar Salad

Author: Fazza Cooking Method: Baking Cuisine: Western Courses: Salads, Side Dishes

Prep Time 20 min Cook Time 20 min Total Time 40 mins

Cooking Temp: 180 °C

Description

A classic Caesar salad recipe that combines crisp romaine, creamy dressing, garlic croutons, and parmesan shavings. Simple to make, yet always a crowd-pleaser, it's the go-to for any occasion.

Instructions

Dressing

Whizz all ingredients in food processor until smooth, starting with 3 tbsp milk.
Taste and adjust salt and pepper as desired, and use milk to get the dressing to the desired consistency. (Note 6)
Set aside for 20+ minutes to allow flavours to develop.

Bacon

Place bacon into a cold skillet (no oil), then turn onto medium high. Cook until golden, turn, cook other side until golden. Remove onto paper towels, cool, then chop.

Garlic Croutons

Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.
Toast bread in the toaster for 1 minute (or oven for 2 minutes each side) until surface is dried but not browned.
Rub both sides of each piece of bread with the cut side of the garlic (Note 7)
Remove crust from bread (optional) and cut into cubes - around 1.5 cups. Drizzle with 1 - 2 tbsp olive oil, sprinkle with salt, then bake until golden, shaking the tray once. Sandwich bread will take around 7 minutes, sourdough and similar breads take 12 - 15 min.

Assembling

Place lettuce in bowl with 1/2 the Dressing. Toss well, taste, then decide if you want more Dressing.
Transfer to serving bowl. (Top with chicken and egg if using) Scatter over with bacon and croutons. Sprinkle with parmesan and serve!

Optional Extras - Chicken & Egg

Eggs: Place the eggs in a saucepan and cover with water. Place over medium high heat and bring to simmer. Once the water is simmering, turn down to medium (gentle simmer) and cook for 3 min (for soft centres), 4 min for firm yolks and 6 min for hard boiled. Remove eggs, run under cold water for 15 sec then leave submerged in a bowl of cold tap water for 5 min. Peel then set aside. (Note 6)
Chicken: Either pound the chicken to about 1.2cm/ 1/2" even thickness, or slice each breast in half horizontally. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Use bacon fat remaining in skillet. Cook first side for 5 min, turn then cook the other side for 2 min. Remove, cover loosely with foil and rest for 5 min. Cut into slices.
Avocado: slice the avocado in quarters.

Note

1. Mayonnaise - the better the mayo, the better than dressing. Egg mayonnaise are creamier and have a smoother, richer flavour than others that can be too vinegary or too sweet.

2. Anchovy fillets are key to achieve a true restaurant quality flavour. You can't taste it, but it's the seasoning for the sauce so if you skip it, you'll need to add more salt. Use the dark brown anchovy fillets in oil that come in a jar or can in the canned fish aisle of supermarkets, not the white anchovy fillets that are brined in vinegar.

3. Parmesan - Store bought pre-grated parmesan is denser than freshly grated which is why you don't need as much. It won't whizz up as smoothly either, but personally it doesn't bother me.

4. Croutons - you want enough bread to make 1.5 cups croutons (on the generous side, but no one wants to run out!). Use plain, normal sandwich bread or make your own.

5. Lettuce - iceberg is also great. Make sure you wash lettuce well in advance to let it dry properly. Dressing won't coat wet lettuce so make sure it's dried!

6. Dressing - Don't thin the dressing too much, otherwise it won't cling to the lettuce.

7. Croutons - The purpose of this step is to add garlic flavour to the croutons. I prefer not to toss the croutons in minced garlic because the garlic burns before the croutons turn golden.

8. Storage - After tossing in Dressing, salad is good for around 20 minutes (longer than the usual leafy salads), then after that the lettuce starts getting soft. Best to dress just before serving - if taking somewhere, take all components separately.

Dressing will keep 3 to 4 days - seems to get better with time!

Caesar Salad