Greetings, Caesar salad! This recipe "grills up" Caesar salad, a popular and easy dish. Grilled lettuce may seem odd, but it's a game-changer. Tips for making it follow.
For lettuce, cut the romaine hearts lengthwise through the core to preserve the leaves. After a minute or two on the hot grill, it gets a beautiful char and a smokey flavor.
While grilling, we added a few slices of crusty sourdough bread. It tastes smokey and crisps up for texture. To add flavor, we rubbed the bread with garlic.
For those without a grill or grill pan, use a heavy skillet like cast iron and follow the recipe as described.
Serve the salad as a main meal with grilled chicken, shrimp, or tofu, or as a side dish to a rich pasta dish. It comes together quickly. To speed things up, the dressing can be made and refrigerated two days ahead.
To prepare, peel and divide 2 cloves of garlic. 3/4 oz. finely grated Parmesan (1/2 c.), plus extra, shaved, for serving 1/2 c. mayo 1/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil + more for brushing 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tsp Dijon 2 tsp. fish sauce Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 4 1/2"-thick sourdough slices 2-halved romaine hearts