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Classic Caesar Salad
The most epic, classic caesar salad recipe made with homemade dressing! Hands down my favorite salad is THIS and in its most classic form; crispy croutons, a creamy dressing tossed with parmesan and crisp romaine – nothing better. Make it a meal with protein of your choice: crispy tofu, salmon, shrimp or chicken, YUM!
It’s no surprise that we’re back with another caesar salad. We have tons of variations like our little gem caesar, horseradish kale caesar, and brussel sprouts caesar, which are all SO good!
Caesar salad was one of the first and only salads I would eat growing up, and it’s still one of my favorites to this day!
Ingredients for the best caesar salad recipe
For the lettuce: We are using head of romaine hearts, romaine lettuce here. I love the crunch it provides that is just everything to this salad. Super cold, crisp and perfect!
For the caesar salad: You will need a loaf of bread for the homemade croutons, cut into bread cubes of choice. Extra-virgin olive oil, Kosher salt and pepper to taste too!
Parmesan cheese: Either shredded or thinly shaved using a vegetable peeler.
Proteins: You can also add proteins here to make this a shrimp or chicken caesar salad!
For the homemade caesar salad dressing:
- Anchovies, or anchovy paste
- Garlic clove
- Raw egg yolk (can substitute with mayonnaise)
- Lemon
- Dijon mustard
- Worcestershire sauce
- Grated parmesan
- Vegetable or canola oil
- Virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Tossed all together to perfection with crispy breadcrumbs, lettuce and parmesan!
Steps To Make This Recipe
Step 1: make your croutons
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. To begin your salad, cube/tear and toss your croutons with olive oil, salt and pepper and bake on a baking tray until golden brown, 10-12 mins. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Step 2: make your caesar dressing
Next, get your dressing ready. Separate your yolks, mince your garlic and finely dice your anchovies, almost making a paste.
Step 3
In a bowl, add your yolk. Add minced garlic, anchovies, dijon, lemon juice and fork/mash the mixture until a paste forms. Season with pepper. Whisk well until all combined and creamy.
Step 4
Slowly start drizzling in your vegetable or canola oil as you’re whisking. Then add your olive oil and keep whisking until everything is all emulsified. Finish with a dash of Worcestershire and shredded parmesan. Mix well. Adjust and season with salt, pepper and lemon juice as needed!
Step 5: prep lettuce
Lastly, prep your lettuce. Wash, tear or slice your lettuce into bites, or tear off the leaves. Season with salt, pepper and a small drizzle of olive oil. Toss.
Step 6: let’s eat!
Assemble! You can either add your lettuce directly in your dressing bowl (if you use a big bowl, table-side style), or add in a big bowl and pour over your dressing. Finish with your croutons, parmesan and pepper. Mix well and serve.
Tips, Tricks and Substitutions
Bread to use
You can really use any bread your heart desires! Whether that be a sourdough baguette, or a country loaf. I love a good sourdough, so I generally gravitate towards that, but sometimes I’ll use a sesame wheat loaf as well, which is just as good. Using stale bread here is also a great way to use up old bread that would otherwise go in the garbage to make your croutons!
My one note for bread is to not use any bread that is too soft, it won’t crisp as much and provide the crouton crunchy vessel you need for your caesar, it will get soggy too fast with the dressing.
Egg yolk substitutions
If you’re not into making your dressing from scratch with egg yolk, feel free to sub out with regular mayo. You can see a mayo caesar forward version here. You can also use a blender or food processor to make the dressing rather than by hand, too.
Anchovy substitutions
The best way to make the most authentic and classic caesar is with real anchovies. Also, most Worcestershire sauce also has anchovies in it! If you don’t want to use or open real anchovies, you can sub with more Worcestershire, or omit all together. However, it really does give the tangy flavor that IS caesar salad and I do recommend you try using real anchovies if you can! Another great sub here can be caper juice as well, it will give that briny taste.
To make this dairy-free
A great way to take out the dairy is to sub with vegan mayo and use nutritional yeast. You can also blend up some soaked cashews for that creamy texture, or even sub with tahini.
Some ideas & inspiration to serve with this dish:
- Lemon Mascarpone Pasta
- Herb Lamb Meatballs with a Horseradish Dipping Sauce
- Portobello Mushroom “Steaks”
More salad recipes to check out:
- Stone Fruit, Burrata & Prosciutto Salad
- Grilled New York Steak with Sherry Shallot Vinaigrette Salad
- Little Gem Caesar Salad with Panko Breadcrumbs
- Crispy Buffalo Chicken Salad with Yogurt Ranch
If you do make this Classic Caesar Salad recipe (first of all, thank you!!), be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram and through social media so I can be sure to see what you’re making! If you’d like to stay in touch and get the latest to your inbox, sign up for our Newsletter here as well!
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Updated from October 2021
Watch How To Make This Recipe
Classic Caesar Salad
Ingredients
For Your Salad
- 3-4 romaine hearts torn or cut into pieces
- 1/2 loaf (sourdough or country loaf, desired preference) cubed or ton
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- parmesan for serving shredded or shaved depending on your preference
For The Dressing
- 4 oil packed anchovies minced and diced
- 1 garlic clove, minced add a second garlic clove if you like it more garlicky!
- 1 egg yolk
- juice of 1 lemon about 2 tablespoons
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce optional
- 3 tablespoons shredded parmesan
- 1/4th cup vegetable or canola oil
- 1/4th cup extra virgin olive oil
- salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. To begin your salad, cube/tear and toss your croutons with olive oil, salt and pepper and bake on a baking tray until golden brown, 10-12 mins. Remove from the oven and let cool.
- Next, get your dressing ready. Separate your yolks, mince your garlic and finely dice your anchovies, almost making a paste. *You can do so by using your knife blade to smooth it out, you can add a pinch of salt to help with this process. You can alternatively also just mash it in the bowl when you're whisking (depends on your preference).
- In a bowl, add your yolk. Add minced garlic, anchovies, dijon, lemon juice and fork/mash the mixture until a paste forms. Season with pepper. Whisk well until all combined and creamy.
- Slowly start drizzling in your vegetable or canola oil as you're whisking. Then add your olive oil and keep whisking until everything is all emulsified.
- Finish with a dash of worcestershire and shredded parmesan. Mix well. Adjust and season with salt, pepper and lemon juice as needed!
- Lastly, prep your lettuce. Wash, tear or slice your lettuce in cubes. Season with salt, pepper and a small drizzle of olive oil. Toss.
- Assemble! You can either add your lettuce directly in your dressing bowl (if you use a big bowl, tableside style), or add in a big bowl and pour over your dressing. Finish with your croutons, parmesan and pepper. Mix well and serve.
