Best Ever Caesar Salad
This is my version of a Caesar salad. It’s delicious and easy. No fussing around with egg yolks and anchovies. My secret is fish sauce. Same umami, less work. I’m not particularly dogmatic about much when it comes to cooking, but I do insist that you make your croutons from scratch with this recipe. In my opinion, you can tell the quality of a restaurant by the croutons they serve. If you’re served those desiccated, pseudo-bread, artificially seasoned brown nibblets on a salad, run away, run away!!
Oh, and yes- I use mayonnaise in this recipe. To all you mayo haters out there: get over it already. It’s one of the greatest culinary triumphs of the human race. Geesh-don’t be so snobby.
Jump to RecipeNotes:
Croutons:
This crouton recipe pairs perfectly with this salad. If I’m serving this salad with a heavy carb meal (pasta or pizza, for example), sometimes I’ll make it without the croutons. But I’ll warn you in advance, once your dining companions have tasted these croutons, they’ll hate you for omitting them!
Lettuce:
It needs to be romaine lettuce, and you absolutely must cut your lettuce for this recipe. No tearing lettuce leaves allowed! I like my pieces about 1 inch thick. Substantial enough to hold up to the creamy dressing, but not so huge to be awkward to eat.
Dressing:
These are approximate ratios for the dressing. I love a lemony dressing with only moderate garlic and lots of salt (of course). But your tastes might vary. The goal is to throw the ingredients together, dip in a piece of lettuce to sample the dressing, and then adjust to your taste. This recipe makes more than enough dressing for 3-4 hearts of romaine. Start by mixing in about 1/2 or 3/4 of the dressing with the prepared lettuce, and see if that’s enough for your taste.
Cheese:
I use finely grated parmesan cheese whisked into the dressing. If you want to use the shelf stable stuff- go for it. I won’t tell the cooking mags! But when it comes to the coarsely grated cheese you will toss in with the lettuce, croutons, and prepared dressing at the end- use the good stuff. You’re going to taste it separately from the other ingredients in every bite. Being the fugal chef I am, I once tried to sneak the much less expensive Romano cheese in a caesar I made my kids. One bite and they refused to eat any more. “What is this cheese? This isn’t Parmesan!”. Who knew my children would have such discerning palates and be such cheese snobs? C’mon people, pony up for the good stuff- your dinner guests are worth it.
The Best Ever Caesar Salad
Ingredients
Casear Salad Dressing Ingredients:
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp dijon mustard
- juice of 1 medium to large lemon
- 3-5 cloves of garlic crushed in a garlic press
- 1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
Salad Ingredients:
- 3-4 heads hearts of romaine lettuce
- 1 cup coarsely grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
To make dressing:
- Whisk the dressing ingredients together until smooth. Dip a piece of prepared lettuce in the dressing to sample. Adjust to you liking (more lemon? more salt?). If the dressing seems too thick to mix with the prepared lettuce, 2-3 tablespoons cold water can be whisked into the dressing to make a thinner consistency.
Prepare lettuce and dress salad:
- Cut the hearts of romaine into one inch pieces. Wash and dry in a salad spinner.
- Add the prepared salad to a large mixing bowl.
- Add the croutons to the bowl of lettuce and half of the coarsely grated parmesan cheese.
- Add about 2/3s of the prepared dressing and gently toss to coat the lettuce.
- Add the remaining grated cheese and more of the dressing if needed.
