Caesar Salad
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 1-pound loaf day-old country or sourdough bread
- ⅓cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt, to taste
- 1egg yolk at room temperature
- ¾cup neutral oil, such as grapeseed
- 3 to 4tablespoons lemon juice, more if needed for mayonnaise
- 8anchovy fillets
- 1garlic clove, finely grated or pounded with a pinch of salt
- 1teaspoon white wine vinegar
- 13-ounce chunk of Parmesan, finely grated (about 1 cup), plus more for serving
- ¾teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- Salt and ground black pepper
- Romaine lettuce, Little Gem lettuce, chicories, raw or blanched kale, shaved brussels sprouts or Belgian endive
For the Torn Croutons
For the Salad
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
505 calories; 36 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 21 grams monounsaturated fat; 7 grams polyunsaturated fat; 31 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 14 grams protein; 750 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Make the torn croutons: Heat oven to 400 degrees. Remove the crusts from the bread, then cut into inch-thick slices. Cut each slice into inch-wide strips, and tear each strip into inch-size pieces. Toss with olive oil to coat them evenly, then spread pieces out in a single layer on a baking sheet. (Use a second sheet if needed to prevent crowding.) Toast for 18 to 22 minutes, checking them after 8 minutes. Rotate pans, switch their oven positions and use a metal spatula to turn the croutons so they brown evenly. Bake until they’re golden brown and crunchy on the outside, with just a tiny bit of chew on the inside. Season with a light sprinkling of salt if needed. Use immediately; store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
- Step 2
Meanwhile, make mayonnaise: Place the egg yolk in a deep, medium metal or ceramic bowl. Dampen a tea towel and roll it up into a long log, then form it into a ring on the counter. Place the bowl inside the ring; this will hold the bowl in place while you whisk. (And if whisking by hand is simply out of the question, use a blender, stand mixer or food processor.)
- Step 3
Use a ladle or bottle with a nozzle to drip in the neutral oil a drop at a time, while whisking the oil into the yolk. Go. Really. Slowly. And don’t stop whisking. Once you’ve added about half the oil, you can start adding a little more oil at once. You want the mayonnaise to be stiff, but if it thickens so much that it’s impossible to whisk, add a teaspoon or so of lemon juice to help thin it out.
- Step 4
Prepare the dressing: Coarsely chop the anchovies and then pound them into a fine paste using a mortar and pestle. The more you break them down, the better the dressing will be.
- Step 5
In a medium bowl, stir together the anchovies, mayonnaise, garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, Parmesan, Worcestershire and pepper. Taste with a leaf of lettuce, then add salt and adjust the acid (the lemon juice and vinegar) as needed, or add a little of each salty ingredient (Worcestershire, anchovies, Parmesan) to the dressing, bit by bit. Adjust the acid, then taste and adjust the salty ingredients until you reach the ideal balance of salt, fat and acid.
- Step 6
Use your hands to toss the greens and torn croutons with an abundant amount of dressing in a large bowl to coat evenly. Garnish with Parmesan and black pepper and serve immediately. Refrigerate leftover dressing, covered, for up to 3 days.
Private Notes
Comments
Nicole, I make caesar salad dressing literally once a week, using these same ingredients, and always make it in a small Cuisinart food processor.
With the utmost respect to chef/author Nosrat, spare yourself the tea towel and double bowels, and just follow instructions using a processor. Voila! The time-cost-benefit-taste ratio of making your own dressing > store-bought.
Do follow her tips about slow oil pour, finely pulverizing the garlic-anchovy and only adding salt at the end, though.
Do not be afraid of the anchovies. Use good quality salt-packed anchovies that you rinse well. You will be rewarded with a depth of flavor that is not "fishy".
Immersing the egg in boiling water for 45 seconds kills any bacteria that may be on the outside of the shell and does not cook the yolk. I always use this method when using raw egg yolks.
We made this last night for family dinner and I'm still wondering why we waited so long. These are all things I have in my pantry/fridge! We had to hold back a bit on the anchovies because the children were horrified by the idea of EIGHT. And the mayo set up so quickly that we overcorrected with the lemon juice. Despite the imbalance, we loved it. NOTE: this makes a lot of dressing! More than we needed for one family salad.
@KS in MD i’ve kept it for much longer than two days in the fridge. It’s a nice dressing to have on hand, both as salad dressing and as a dip.
Caesar salad isn’t as common in the UK. I remember ‘discovering’ it one summer when I was 14 and travelling around the east coast- I was vegetarian and ordered it in every food court, diner or restaurant that we went to. I loved the combination of fresh, rich, creamy, crunchy, sharpness and umami. I was feeling nostalgic so sought out a recipe to make at home. This one was good - but next time I will cut the anchovies in the dressing by half, it tasted a bit fishy
I make this often. What’s great about it is that it tastes like the Caesar salad you want but it’s so simple. You can throw it together in 10 or 15 minutes and it always hits.