Ceasar salad – a dish in itself
Although Caesar salad seems like a multi-stage… salad, it is actually a dish in itself. Perfect for dinner for a party of four, plus there might be still some left for your lunch the following day. You can find a lot of facts about and a detailed description of Caesar salad here. Below is my simplified 5-element version. For me it is the quickest and the most amazing Caesar salad. However, test it yourself!
Preparation – the meat
Dice 2 chicken breasts. Add them to a large mixing bowl and spice them up to get a rich marinade:
- Sweet 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon of sweet paprika,
- Pungent a pinch of cayenne, a pinch of black pepper, a pinch of freshly grated coriander seeds,
- Salty a 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of soy sauce (optional),
- Sour 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, a pinch of basil,
- Bitter a pinch of thyme, 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric.
Set the chicken aside.
For a little bit of variation you can add a shop-bought peri peri spice mix. It is my latest discovery! As it is mostly pungent, add it with other pungent ingredients. Another interesting variation will be adding sumac with the sour ingredients.
Preparation – the eggs
Hard boil 4 eggs. Set them aside.
Preparation – the dressing
In a medium mixing bowl add the following:
- Sour 4-5 tablespoons of yoghurt, a tablespoon of lemon juice,
- Bitter a pinch of thyme,
- Sweet 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon of olive oil,
- Pungent 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce, grate in 1 garlic clove, a pinch of black pepper,
- Salty a pinch of salt.
Set the dressing aside.
Preparation – the vegetables
On a large platter arrange leaves of 2 little gem lettuce or any kind of lettuce of your choice and add 1 large diced tomato, 1/4 diced cucumber, 1 diced sweet red pepper.
Preparation – the croutons
Use 2 slices of good quality toast bread or a few slices of a baguette. Cut them into medium-size dice.
In a large frying pan fry the meat and arrange on the vegetables. In the same pan fry the croutons and arrange on top of the salad. Cut the eggs into halves and arrange on top of everything. Pour the dressing over. Sprinkle with a few thin slices of parmesan.
Instead of chicken you can use turkey, shrimps of anchovies. Feel free to experiment. If you prefer a vegetarian option, skip the meat. The most amazing Caesar salad will not lose anything. Also, when it comes to the greens and vegetables, do not hesitate to add anything you like!
For other salad recipes check out Tetris salad, green salad with sorrel, potato and sorrel salad or pear and parsnip crisps salad.
