American
Classic Restaurant Caesar Salad with Garlic Anchovy Dressing
A straight-ahead tableside-style Caesar: cool whole romaine leaves, a dressing built from mashed anchovy and garlic emulsified with egg yolk and lemon, plenty of Parmesan, and olive oil until it coats the back of a spoon. Homemade croutons from a day-old baguette add the crunch you want without tasting like a grocery kit.
Gluten-FreeHigh VeggiesQuick WeeknightComfort Food
At a Glance
- Time
- 30 mins
- Serves
- 4 as a starter, 2 as a light main
- Cost
- Low
- Cuisine
- American
- Dietary fit
- Gluten-Free
Instructions
- Warm the 3 tablespoons olive oil for croutons in a skillet over medium heat with the crushed garlic clove. Add the bread cubes, toss to coat, and toast until golden and crisp on most sides, 8 to 10 minutes. Discard the garlic, season croutons with salt, and cool on a paper towel.
- Using a mortar and pestle or the side of a chef's knife on a board, mash the minced garlic with a pinch of salt into a paste. Add the anchovies and mash again until you have a rough, pungent paste.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk the anchovy-garlic paste with egg yolks, lemon juice, Dijon, Worcestershire if using, and several grinds of black pepper until smooth. Slowly drizzle in the 1/4 cup olive oil for dressing while whisking constantly until the dressing is thick and glossy like loose mayonnaise.
- Whisk in half the grated Parmesan. Taste — it should be aggressively salty, lemony, and funky from anchovy. Adjust with more lemon, salt, or a spoon of cold water if it is too thick.
- Drizzle dressing over the romaine in a large bowl and toss with your hands until leaves are lightly coated. Fold in croutons, scatter remaining Parmesan and extra pepper on top, and serve immediately with lemon wedges.
Adaptations
Hard to Adapt- Gluten-Free: Easy Swap Easy swap; see the adaptation note below.
- Dairy-Free: Not a Good Fit Not a clean dairy-free fit without changing the dish substantially.
- Vegetarian: Not Vegetarian Not adaptable; this recipe is built around meat, poultry, or seafood.
How to adapt: For gluten-free, use GF bread for the croutons or skip them and serve with Parmesan crisps baked on a sheet pan instead. For dairy-free, substitute a hard plant-based aged Italian-style cheese for the Parmesan in both the dressing and the finish; note that Parmesan is a defining flavor in Caesar so the result will taste noticeably different.