A classic simple Caesar salad with chicken and croutons is suitable for any table, but more often we prepare it for the holiday. The recipe for Caesar salad with chicken is very exquisite - golden croutons made from white bread, bright cherry halves and tender chicken meat look very picturesque among the lush lettuce leaves. Grated Parmesan completes the picture, and the light garlic smell tempts and beckons. It is not necessary to add all the ingredients that you are used to seeing in a classic Caesar salad.

A simple Caesar salad with chicken has a full taste and aroma; many believe that adding eggs and other products only disrupts the harmony. The easiest way to dress Caesar salad is with the store-bought sauce of the same name. Nowadays, Caesar is prepared according to various new recipes, but the basis of this dish is all the same ingredients from which the first version of this salad was prepared by restaurateur Cardini.

We are talking about crackers/croutons, lettuce, cheese and sauce. Let's look at how to choose the right main ingredients and how to prepare a classic simple Caesar salad.

Chicken Caesar - a delicious salad recipe. In 1924, restaurateur Caesar Cardini found himself in an unpleasant situation: his establishment had a large influx of visitors, so almost all the food was quickly eaten. And this is how he got out. It is unlikely that the author of the classic Caesar salad, an American chef of Italian origin, Caesar Cardini, could have imagined that his work would be so famous throughout the world.

The classic version of this salad includes green leaves, croutons, a special sauce based on egg and lemon juice with the addition of mustard and garlic, as well as Parmesan cheese as an ingredient.

Later, chicken meat was added to the main products. You can prepare Caesar salad with chicken, a classic simple recipe at home, in a variety of variations. This will be a great dish for an everyday or holiday table. An amazing combination of ingredients allows you to enjoy each product in the composition, but at the same time feel the overall symphony of taste. So, it’s time to move on from words to action. In this article we will present a variety of variations of preparing a delicious homemade Caesar.

Simple classic recipe

Ingredients:

  • Parmesan cheese – 70 g;
  • Chicken breast – 300 g;
  • Garlic – 2 cloves;
  • Loaf – 200 g;
  • Olive oil;
  • Salad – 1 bunch.

Salad sauce

Ingredients:

  • Olive oil – 100 ml;
  • Mustard – 2 tsp;
  • Fresh lemon juice – 2 tbsp;
  • Hard-boiled yolks – 2 pcs;
  • Garlic – 1 clove;
  • Pepper and salt - to taste.

Cooking method:

  1. Squeeze the garlic cloves through a press and mix them with 5 tbsp. olive oil. Mix and leave aside for 15-20 minutes. Carefully cut the prepared piece of loaf into cubes. For this case, it is better to take yesterday’s loaf rather than fresh;
  2. Wash the chicken fillet and dry it with a towel. Then cut it into cubes and fry in olive oil until fully cooked, add salt and pepper. Place on a paper towel;
  3. Now let's start preparing the salad dressing. Take 2 boiled yolks and mash them with a fork. Add mustard and mix well. Now let’s pass 1 clove of garlic through a press and add it to the yolks. Stir and add lemon juice, olive oil, ground pepper and salt. Mix everything well. Grate Parmesan cheese into a separate plate;
  4. Take a nice serving plate and rub it with half a clove of garlic. Lay out the lettuce leaves beautifully. Place croutons and fried chicken fillet on top of the salad. Pour the prepared sauce over the salad and sprinkle generously with grated Parmesan cheese. In some versions of preparing Caesar salad, the cheese is not grated and is thinly cut into slices with a vegetable cutter. You choose whichever option you like best;
  5. To decorate Caesar salad with chicken and croutons, you can also sprinkle with pomegranate seeds - the taste will not change, but its appearance will become more festive. Bon appetit!

Salad with chicken and mayonnaise

Caesar salad with chicken and mayonnaise. The Caesar salad recipe cannot be called classic. It's easy and quick to prepare, the result is excellent, especially in terms of taste.

Ingredients:

  • Chinese cabbage or Iceberg lettuce – 10-12 leaves;
  • Hard cheese, preferably Parmesan – 100-120 g;
  • Chicken fillet – 150-200 g;
  • Mayonnaise - half a glass;
  • Dried basil – 0.5 tsp;
  • Cherry tomatoes – 10-12 pcs.;
  • Cold pressed olive oil – 4 tbsp;
  • Juice of half a lemon;
  • White bread or loaf – 4 pieces;
  • Garlic – 3 cloves;
  • Ground black pepper to taste.

Cooking method:

  1. Cut the loaf pieces into small cubes;
  2. As an experiment, try crackers made from black bread and white bread in a 50/50 ratio, it will turn out delicious. Place the pieces of bread on a baking sheet in one layer, drizzle olive oil on top, place in the oven for 15 minutes, temperature 150 degrees, the crackers should turn golden;
  3. Lightly pound the chicken fillet, add salt and pepper;
  4. Fry in a little olive oil on both sides until crust appears, then cook until done, covered. Cool the chicken and cut into pieces the size of croutons;
  5. To prepare the sauce, chop the garlic to a garlic paste and place in a bowl;
  6. Add mayonnaise, dried basil, ground black pepper;
  7. Squeeze the juice from half a lemon and add to the sauce along with olive oil;
  8. Mix everything using a blender. The result will be a simply gorgeous dressing;
  9. Wash the leaves of Chinese cabbage and tear them into small pieces with your hands (can be replaced with lettuce or iceberg lettuce), place on the bottom of the salad bowl;
  10. Place croutons on top;
  11. Then add chicken pieces, halved cherry tomatoes;
  12. Spread the sauce over the entire surface, grate the cheese on top;
  13. Repeat all layers again. Caesar salad with chicken is ready, now leave for 15 minutes and you can serve. Bon appetit!

Salad with chicken and tomatoes

Salad with chicken, croutons and tomatoes. This is an option for preparing a simple Caesar salad according to the classic recipe with chicken, but with tomatoes. It takes a minimum of time to prepare, and tomatoes perfectly complement the delicate taste.

Ingredients:

  • Tomatoes - 200 g;
  • Chicken fillet - 0.5 kg;
  • Olive oil;
  • Parmesan cheese - 100 g;
  • Lettuce leaves - 150 g;
  • Loaf without crust - 200 g.
  • Lemon juice - 1 tbsp;
  • Garlic - 1 clove;
  • Mustard to taste;
  • Spices to taste.

Cooking method:

  1. First of all, we cook the meat. It needs to be washed and then fried on both sides with spices in vegetable oil until golden brown. Cool the meat and then cut it into fairly large pieces. While the other ingredients are being prepared, the chicken meat will have time to cool completely - this is what we need;
  2. Now we prepare the crackers, for which we cut the white bread into cubes about 1 cm on each side. Next, fry the bread in vegetable oil, and then you can put the crackers in the oven to dry them a little. But it’s important not to overdry the ingredient, so be careful. Tear the washed lettuce leaves with your hands and place them on a plate to serve Caesar. Chop the tomatoes coarsely, just like the chicken. The cheese is grated on a large grater;
  3. To prepare the sauce, mix all the ingredients in a separate bowl. First pass the garlic through a press and then add it to the sauce. Place chicken, tomatoes, and croutons on prepared lettuce leaves. Pour the sauce over everything and sprinkle cheese on top. Bon appetit!

Smoked chicken salad

Caesar salad with smoked chicken. You can prepare Caesar salad with chicken, a classic simple recipe, according to the video version, where smoked chicken meat is taken instead of raw chicken. This is a savory version of a much-loved dish that significantly reduces the overall cooking time.

Ingredients:

  • Cheese - 100 g;
  • Chicken yolk - 2 pcs.;
  • Olive oil;
  • Garlic - 1 clove;
  • Lemon juice - 1 tbsp;
  • Mustard - 1 tbsp;
  • Chicken fillet - 300 g;
  • Loaf - 200 g;
  • A bunch of lettuce.

Cooking method:

  1. To quickly and easily prepare delicious crackers, you can simply dry the diced bread in the oven. In principle, you can fry crackers in vegetable oil, depending on who you like. Cut the chicken into large pieces, tear the salad into large portions, and grate the cheese. All the ingredients are ready and all that remains is to make the dressing, and then start assembling the salad;
  2. To prepare the dressing, you need to combine chopped garlic with olive oil and carefully pour everything with plenty of lemon juice. Add salt and favorite spices. Separately, grind the yolks with mustard, and then pour them into the main composition of the sauce, mix everything until smooth.
    Place green leaves on a salad serving plate, place chicken on top: pour dressing over everything. Next comes the cheese and crackers, pour everything over again generously and beautifully with sauce. Caesar salad with chicken is ready! Bon appetit!

Video recipe “Caesar salad with chicken and croutons”

Very often, Caesar salad, so beloved by many, is associated with the figure of Ancient Rome, Gaius Julius Caesar. But this is a myth. The classic dish was invented in the 19th century by an Italian living in the United States, Caesar Cardini. When his restaurant ran out of ingredients for the then famous dishes, he decided to experiment and made an appetizer from lettuce, boiled eggs, Parmesan cheese, and toasted croutons. Season the ingredients with garlic oil, lemon juice and sprinkle with vinegar. The guests of the establishment liked the new dish so much that it soon became the chef’s signature dish.

The original recipe that Cardini came up with included grated Parmesan cheese. However, today the methods of preparation have changed, as well as the ingredients included in the traditional Caesar. In order not to spoil the taste of the dish, it is recommended to grate real hard European or Russian cheeses on a fine grater. It is best to use “Cheddar”, “Swiss”, “Cuban”, “Gouda”, “Gruyère”. Some chefs get creative and add grated feta cheese, mozzarella, fetax or cheese balls. It all depends on preferences and taste preferences.

Depending on the type of cheese, the taste of the salad also changes. For example, regular Parmesan adds piquancy and originality to the salad. Fetaxa or mozzarella have more delicate notes, so the salad turns out soft and juicy. It must be remembered that all types of hard cheeses have a salty, pleasant taste and a slightly nutty aftertaste. Therefore, any gourmet will choose the right cheese variety for himself: from softer sweet and salty varieties to spicy, rich types.

Some specific types of cheeses will help make Caesar salad taste especially refined. For example, it is better to grate Gruyère into a real Caesar salad with chicken; traditional Parmesan and Cheddar are combined with seafood products. These are interesting products with a specific smell and original taste. “Grana Podano” is a unique type of cheese that can easily replace traditional “Parmesan”. Its sweet, nutty and pleasant aroma will give the dish that very zest. Cheese goes well with other salad products. Also, how the cheese is served is important. At home, the easiest way is to grate cream cheese. In restaurants and cafes, the product is often placed in slices. The cheese also opens up interestingly when cut into medium cubes.

Since Caesar salad cheese is the main indispensable product, you need to know how to choose it correctly. Don't let the name on the label mislead you. As a rule, good hard cheese is not cheap. Therefore, when choosing, first of all, you need to pay attention to the price of the product. Secondly, when purchasing, be careful and check the expiration date. Such varieties should not be stored for more than six months. It is very important. Otherwise, the dish may not only be spoiled, but there is also a chance of poisoning. Today it is difficult to find real French, Italian or Swiss cheeses in domestic stores. Most likely, under their guise they are selling a fake. It is better if you purchase analogues of these cheeses. In particular, cheeses from Armenia are also considered elite types of hard product.

When you choose a variety of your choice, you should know when to add it to the salad during the step-by-step preparation process. Typically, the grated or sliced ​​ingredient is added at the end of cooking. They decorate the dish. That is, cheese is sprinkled on top. However, in some restaurants the component is cut into cubes and served mixed with nuts and other ingredients. As practice shows, it is not so important how to add cheese to a salad, but it is important to know which varieties are combined with meat and vegetable products that are part of the classic Caesar.

Classic recipe, ingredients and everything, everything, everything about Caesar salad.

The question of how to properly prepare the legendary Caesar salad torments more than one hundred and even more than one thousand advanced cooks. Everyone has their own point of view, and everyone considers it the only correct one, while you just need to take into account the fact that, like any other popular recipe, “Caesar” has long acquired numerous variations, acquired a lot of shades and acquired improvisations on a given topic . Of course, there is a classic version, however, who said that fantasies about the basic recipe have no right to life?

"Caesar" or fantasies on the theme?

In recent years, many cafes and restaurants have been trying to come up with some kind of “zest” of their own, so that the beloved and often ordered “Caesar” in their establishment becomes one of the main “calling cards”. Most often, the “tricks” relate to the method of serving - dishes, dish design, decor. There are deep salad bowls and absolutely flat plates, mini-versions such as verrines and huge bowls for a large company, lettuce leaves as dishes and absolute fusion options in the form of a liquid snack that is drunk through a cocktail straw. The salad is decorated with long dried strips of bread, curly pieces of cheese, and all kinds of bouquets of herbs and vegetables.

The second direction for imagination is filling the salad, and here, too, a huge field for creativity appears. Games with lettuce leaves, experiments with dressing, various sauces for croutons, replacing some components with others and introducing completely unexpected ingredients - Caesar often becomes the object of culinary creativity, and, you see, this is not so bad.

It was thanks to such experiments that Caesar pizza(thin crispy dough that is covered with sauce, sprinkled with cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, grilled chicken and lettuce), Caesar kebab(the same salad with which chicken fillet skewers are served), Caesar salad with pasta(classic version, diluted with boiled pasta), sandwich of the same name(a soft bun with a small portion of lettuce, meat and cheese hidden in the middle, seasoned with sauce) and many other non-standard variations of a standard dish.

However, in order to understand the wealth of fantasy recipes, let’s take a look at the main components of the real “Caesar” in order - let’s go through the classic version and at the same time consider the variations.

Lettuce leaves for classic Caesar salad and more

Try making a salad with, say, iceberg leaves and call it a classic Caesar, and you'll immediately hear a bunch of indignant comments about how a proper salad should definitely be served with fresh and crisp romaine.

There's no point in arguing. Yes, initially the recipe included the leaves of this particular salad, however, over time the basic version has been transformed almost globally, and today in a bowl of Caesar you can find lollo rosso, arugula, Chinese cabbage, and even all kinds of salad mixtures. Is it good or bad? This is probably not the question at all. Cooking does not stand still, it grows and develops, and any recipe from time to time undergoes certain changes, which are influenced by geographical features, budgetary opportunities and a host of other factors. Evolution is natural and irreversible, however, it does not at all prevent you from sticking to the canonical version of the salad, in which romaine leaves are placed - it all depends on your taste preferences.

Main component

Perhaps everyone knows that the classic version of Caesar salad is based on chicken fillet, and at the same time everyone... is wrong.

Is it really an authentic Caesar salad with chicken? No.
Authentic composition: lettuce leaves, croutons, sauce, cheese. All.

Caesar consists of lettuce, croutons, dressing and cheese. All. The salad turns out to be quite light, so it has been prepared with chicken for a long time - so long that everyone thinks that it should be so. Moreover, as a rule, even the most advanced cooking gurus are not outraged by this fact. Therefore - chicken fillet!

To make it not only tasty, but also beautiful, not only appetizing, but also healthy, the meat is usually fried on an open grill or boiled. Sometimes recipes include a baked version, fried in a pan, or even smoked. Chicken is delicious in almost any form, and chefs who conjure up “Caesar” actively take advantage of this.

Caesar salad is prepared not only with chicken fillet, but with any other meat, including bacon. Salad with seafood is also popular, especially if it is Caesar with shrimp.

When the classics suddenly begin to seem boring, chefs boldly decide to experiment. Other types of meat (veal, pork, turkey, venison, rabbit, fried bacon), fish (red salted, white boiled, grilled river, smoked sea), seafood (shrimp, mussels, squid and other possible reptiles) - you can experiment almost endlessly , and “Caesar” with this approach will definitely never get boring.

It's also fun to try making a salad with fried meatballs, creating a vegetarian version with vegetable meatballs, and even serving a Caesar with fresh oysters. The field for fantasy is infinitely huge!

Be sure to try the vegetarian Caesar salad with vegetable meatballs and Caesar salad with oysters. Experiment with other components!

Croutons for a classic recipe. Secrets of technology

Croutons are oven-dried pieces of white bread that are crispy on top and soft on the inside. Please note that we are by no means talking about crackers! What is added to a real Caesar simply must meet the above requirement: dry crust, soft center.

This is achieved by constantly monitoring the baking of croutons: pieces of bread, seasoned with sauce, are laid out on a baking sheet and placed in a well-heated oven. If the temperature is not high enough, you will simply dry out the bread, turning it into the proverbial croutons. If it's too high, you'll end up with fragrant coals pretty quickly. Optimally - 180-200 degrees and constant control: as soon as you see that the bread has acquired a crust, take it out. Overexpose it a little - and that’s it, the middle will also become dry and hard. Not fatal, of course, but not the same.

Ideal croutons for Caesar: soft on the inside and hard on the outside.

Another secret to perfect croutons is the amount of bread you place on the baking sheet. If there is too much of it, the air will not circulate freely: the bread will dry out along the edges of the sheet, and the middle will remain wet from the sauce. It’s better not to be lazy and cook the croutons in two batches than to end up with an indistinct half-raw, half-dried mass that not only will not decorate the salad, but will most likely even ruin it.

In addition, to ensure that the croutons cook evenly, it is worth trimming the crusts from the bread from which you are making them. The most convenient way is to buy a fresh loaf, break it in half and carefully remove the crumb with your hands. We need smooth, cut edges if we are preparing crackers; in this case, we just need to “tear” the loaf into small pieces.

Don't cook the croutons too much in advance - they will become soggy and you will end up with soggy pieces of bread. For the same reason, when assembling Caesar, do not rush to put the dried bread on the salad - do it before serving, and then you will have the perfect dish on the table!

Sauce for croutons

However, the most important secret of successful croutons is still hidden in the sauce. Before putting them in the oven, sprinkle them evenly with olive oil mixed with salt and garlic - and then you will get not just a well-prepared essential salad ingredient, but a perfect, perfect, incredibly tasty component that will give the salad one of the main flavors lines.

The main secret of delicious croutons is the sauce.

The basic version of the sauce consists of vegetable oil, salt and garlic. Try to play a little with additives - and over time you will find your recipe for perfectly tasty croutons. Can be used:
— various vegetable oils (mustard, sesame, nut, grape, pumpkin and others);
- dry herbs (basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme, mint, dill, parsley and others);
— spices and seasonings (black pepper, chili pepper, paprika, dry adjika and everything that you personally think is appropriate);
- nuts, grains and seeds (mustard, cumin, coriander, sesame, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, chopped almonds and hazelnuts).

And yet, finally, two more words about crackers. Nobody forbids you to use them either. We looked at the classic version of Caesar, which is prepared using croutons, however, if you want variations on the classic theme, you can also use regular croutons - both white and black bread. The only taboo is that you should not take store-bought “Kirieshki”, “three crusts” and other sets of letters E, preservatives, flavor enhancers and dyes. Caesar should be a salad, not an example of the use of the Periodic Table in cooking.

Caesar Salad Dressing or Dressing

Of course, there is a classic version of the legendary Caesar dressing. This is a rather complex multi-component sauce, which, nevertheless, is absolutely simple to prepare, especially if you do it regularly.

The biggest secret is that the training is based on a slightly boiled egg: you need to put the indicated component in boiling water and cook it for exactly 1 minute. After this, the egg is broken into a bowl, mixed with olive oil and a few drops of Worcestershire sauce, salted and seasoned with a drop of lemon juice. Ready.

However, if you are in the mood, you can try something new. Agree, any food, even the most delicious, refined and delicacy, can become boring and turn into a boring dish if it is served monotonously and without imagination over and over again. Salad dressing is one of the easiest ways to add a touch of novelty and intrigue to an ordinary dish, so don't neglect your creativity in this matter.

Sauce for dressing Caesar salad can be prepared on the basis of mayonnaise (of course, homemade, prepared in advance). To create a new sauce, you can mix it with:
- chopped pickled cucumbers;
- mustard;
- anchovies;
- olives;
- ketchup;
- any spices and seasonings, nuts and seeds;
- garlic;
- lemon or orange zest;
- sour cream or cream;
- yogurt;
- soy sauce.
And the list is not at all limited to the products listed. The only limitation is your imagination.

Cheese for salad

Of course, the correct, authentic Caesar involves the use of Parmesan. If you slip slices of “Russian” or cubes of “Dutch” to a connoisseur of this salad, you will most likely get a storm of indignation - it is believed that it is Parmesan that perfectly reveals the taste of the other components, that it is it that fits into the general choir and sounds in it with its own unique song – bright, ringing, beautiful and clean.

Nevertheless, as we have already agreed, a step to the right, a step to the left in cooking is not a crime at all, but simply an opportunity to find new horizons, so if you wish, feel free to replace Parmesan with whatever you personally think is appropriate. Does the soul require a harsh, sharp “Russian”? Please take "Russian". Do you want to conduct an experiment and try the soft-tasting “Sour Cream” cheese? No problem, try it. Maybe you'll take a chance and completely move away from the concept of using hard cheeses in Caesar and cut the brie into thick slices? It will be quite interesting. Would you go even further and take a rich-tasting and very characteristic cheese with blue or green mold? Proud “Roquefort” and democratic “Dor Blue” will give the salad a special piquancy.

In addition to the classic Parmesan and the non-classical use of other cheeses, you can try a completely different approach. How about adding... instead of cheese to a Caesar? Take several types of cheese, grate them, mix, add an egg if necessary, form into balls, roll in breadcrumbs and fry in hot vegetable oil. Of course, it will be a few more calories, but it will taste so much better! The delicious crispy crust and stretchy strings of cheese are simply a delight, an explosion, a splendor!

If you are not attracted to the idea of ​​​​making cheese balls, but your soul requires experimentation, you can use the same principle to fry hard cheese (Russian, Dutch and their analogues) and even cheeses with white mold (Camembert) simply cut into cubes and rolled in breadcrumbs , brie and others).

In addition, you can make cheese “chips”. To do this, grate the hard cheese you have chosen (soft varieties will not work, they are quite difficult to work with in this version). Sprinkle small “puddles” of grated cheese onto a sheet of baking paper, then place the sheet on a baking sheet and place in an oven preheated to 180-200 degrees for a couple of minutes. When the cheese has melted and lightly browned on the edges, you can take it out. Once cooled, you'll have nice crispy cheesy "chips" that can also be added to a Caesar.

By the way, cheese baskets are prepared using the same principle - for this, after removing the melted cheese from the oven, it is enough to immediately cover the resulting “blots” with a suitable shaped bowl or a small salad bowl. After cooling, you will have a basket in your hands in which you can serve a portioned Caesar.

Other additives: eggs, tomatoes, etc...

In general, many believe that all the charm of Caesar lies in its brevity: just take the freshest lettuce leaves, the best extra virgin olive oil, luxurious Parmesan, soft wheat bread - and you almost have the perfect salad ready. However, the authentic recipe is regularly revised - chefs of all levels “play” with additives, trying not to make Caesar even better, but simply trying to add a touch of freshness and variety to the usual classics.

Sometimes eggs are added to a bowl of salad, more often quail eggs. Many people add tomatoes (a gesture of special elegance – cherry tomatoes). There are mushrooms, oranges, olives and other, other, other options. Here it’s best to remember that there is no dispute about tastes, and just cook Caesar the way you see fit.

Origin story

Do you know the French proverb that a woman can make a hat, a scandal and a salad out of nothing? “Caesar” appeared this way, however, its author was a man - very enterprising and savvy.

Caesar Cardini, a native of Italy, emigrated with his family to the USA after the First World War, where he opened his own small restaurant. Things went differently, sometimes it was necessary to be cunning and circumvent the rules, but on the whole the business stayed afloat, and one day, on July 4, 1924, a large company of Hollywood filmmakers stopped by Caesar’s Place. There were no problems with alcohol (despite the “prohibition” law in force in the States at that time, Caesar Cardini found loopholes), but with food... with food it was almost a failure: the owner did not expect that such a thing would suddenly show up to visit him number of guests.

Caesar Cardini dejectedly wandered into the kitchen, opened the cabinets, took out everything he had, and... made a salad. The chef rubbed the plates in which the legendary dish was then served with garlic. Narwhal and laid out crispy romaine leaves. I mixed high-quality olive oil with a slightly boiled egg, added a couple of drops of Worcestershire sauce, and a little lemon juice. Lightly toasted white bread. I quickly mixed everything together, seasoned with Parmesan and served.

Furor! Among Hollywood stars, the salad created a real sensation, quickly gained popularity and received the name of its “parent” - it is thanks to the Italian Caesar Cardini that today we indulge in a delicious dish that is popular in a huge number of countries. A little later, the brother of the great chef contributed to the almost family recipe, proposing to add anchovies to Caesar, however, this version, unlike the original, did not receive much recognition and remained an amateur recipe.

By the way, about countries. In 1953, at one of the competitions in Paris, the salad received the title of “the best dish that has appeared in the USA over the past 50 years.” In addition, the dish has repeatedly found its way into the pages of the Guinness Book of Records.

Classic Caesar salad recipe

The original version of the legendary salad was reproduced from the words of Caesar Cardini’s daughter - it was she who told how her father prepared this dish. All other versions appeared later as variations of the basic recipe.

Recipe Ingredients

  • 400 g romaine lettuce;
  • 100 g white bread;
  • 30 ml olive oil for croutons;
  • 30 ml olive oil for dressing;
  • 2 cloves of garlic;
  • 1 chicken egg;
  • 1 tsp. lemon juice;
  • a few drops of Worcestershire sauce;
  • 50 g grated parmesan;
  • salt, ground black pepper to taste.

How to Make an Authentic, Classic Caesar Salad

Wash the salad, dry it and tear it into medium-sized pieces.
Tear white bread into small pieces. Mix olive oil with salt and garlic, sprinkle the resulting mixture on the bread, then place it on a baking sheet and dry it in the oven at high temperature for several minutes - it should brown slightly on top, but remain soft inside.
Place the egg in boiling water for 1 minute, then remove and leave to cool. Break the egg into a bowl with olive oil, beat with a blender until smooth, add Parmesan, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, mix again.
In a large bowl, carefully mix the salad leaves with the dressing (preferably with your hands), then put everything on the plate in which we plan to serve the Caesar (the plate should first be lightly rubbed with a clove of garlic).
Place croutons on top and serve immediately.
Bon appetit!

Congratulations, you have finished reading the article on how to prepare the right Caesar salad, and now you know a little more than you knew five minutes ago. However, we hope that you have learned the main thing: do not neglect culinary experiences, boldly move forward, trust your intuition and do not be afraid to make mistakes. Thanks to those who want to learn and create, new ingenious recipes are born.

  • Peel the garlic and crush it with the flat side of the knife. Place in a small bowl and add olive oil. Microwave for 40 seconds. Cut the crust off the white loaf and cut the flesh into cubes. Place on a baking sheet, pour over the resulting garlic oil and stir. Place the pan in the oven for 20 - 40 minutes and bake at 150 degrees.
  • Cool the finished crackers. For the dressing, mix boiled yolks, mustard and crushed garlic. Grind the mixture with a pestle in a small mortar. Add lemon juice and salt to taste. Pour in olive oil in portions, continuing to grind. Leave the sauce to steep for an hour. Cut the raw chicken fillet lengthwise into thin slices, add salt and pepper to taste.
  • Fry in olive oil for 4-5 minutes on each side. Wash and dry green salad leaves. Tear the leaves into pieces and place on a plate. Top with croutons with garlic butter and chicken slices, then parmesan cheese cut into thin slices. Drizzle classic chicken Caesar salad with dressing. Garnish with cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters, or regular tomato slices.

Today there are so many Caesar salad recipes on the Internet that you don’t know which Caesar is real. I'll give you a recipe for a delicious Caesar salad and dressing that you can easily make at home.

After conducting many experiments at home, I tested these Caesar salad recipes and came to the conclusion that it is almost impossible to make a true Caesar at home, primarily because all the “salt” of Caesar is in the sauce, and it is very difficult to find all the ingredients necessary for the sauce. But for a salad they also need to be mixed correctly. Even many reputable restaurants where I have tried Caesar salad often do not focus on the sauce. Should we rack our brains and get knocked down looking for ingredients when we can make Caesar dressing at home and get great results? Moreover, there is no comrade for taste and color. So, let's prepare the sauce.

Caesar salad recipe - homemade sauces

What my family and I liked the most was the option where you need to mix the ingredients with your hands. They say that this way any dish, not just Caesar salad, conveys human warmth and positive energy.

So, the classic sauce recipe for making Caesar salad dressing In a small saucepan, combine the juice of one lemon, a dessert spoon of mustard, two egg yolks and two crushed small cloves of garlic, mix and whisk with a whisk, adding olive oil little by little, about one hundred milliliters (half a glass). Sometimes vinegar is added to this Caesar salad dressing recipe, one or two tablespoons, but I think. that a lemon is enough, but you look at your taste. Whisk the dressing until the sauce thickens.

The second version of Caesar sauce is based on sour cream. It is milder and is well suited to those salad lovers for whom the combination of spicy mustard-lemon-vinegar is too sour or not recommended for the stomach. In this case, just take a glass of medium-fat sour cream, add 2 crushed cloves of garlic and a teaspoon of mustard. To add a piquant taste to the Caesar sauce and salad, you can chop 3 small pickled cucumbers. Mix the composition in a blender or mixer.

The third recipe for Caesar salad sauce is good because the product has a soft, creamy taste and is perfect for those who are watching their figure. To prepare the sauce, mix 150 grams (about one jar each) of sour cream with 15-20% fat content and natural yogurt without filler. Add 1-2 tbsp. l. Grated cheese is better, of course Parmesan, but any hard or soft (such as mascarpone) cheese can be used. Add salt to taste, but we recommend using fine salt or crushing coarse salt in a mortar, so the Caesar salad dressing will have a more uniform consistency. For a more spicy taste, you can add a tablespoon of capers through a garlic press to the sauce.

Little secret. You can now buy Calve's Caesar salad dressing in stores. Of course, it is very far from the true combination of a full-fledged sauce, but its taste characteristics may be useful to you. It is clear that using a store-bought mixture for a homemade Caesar salad is bad manners, but you can add a couple of spoons to the main sauce to please your taste buds.

Caesar salad - recipe for croutons

Making croutons yourself means mastering the Caesar salad recipe to perfection and boldly looking your guests in the eye. It is only important to determine which bread in Caesar salad you prefer - white or black. White is used more often. Never make croutons from old bread or, especially not store-bought crackers, this will spoil both the taste and pleasure of the dish. The recipe for croutons for Caesar salad is as follows. Bread - 200 gr. - you need to peel and cut into cubes with edges no larger than a centimeter, dip them in olive oil and bake in the oven. Please note that the croutons for Caesar salad should not become breadcrumbs, they should only be covered with a thin golden crust, remaining quite soft inside. At an oven temperature of two hundred degrees, this will take about 5-7 minutes.

Caesar salad - base

As I already said, there are different recipes for Caesar salad. Classic Caesar salad recipe provides only lettuce, sauce, cheese and croutons, but modern chefs find it too simple, and they have “improved” it. Now three varieties are popular - with chicken, shrimp or, if you are a gourmet or you need something special, with anchovies (we know this fish as anchovy). I guess I'm not a gourmet, I like it better with chicken. Caesar salad with shrimp is also delicious, but it’s too dietary - my husband can’t get enough of it, so I don’t cook it. As for anchovies, I tried them a couple of times and didn’t see any special sophistication - maybe I didn’t look well)))

Therefore, for your attention - a classicchicken salad recipe Caesar. Cook the chicken like this - cut the white fillet into small cubes, roll in chicken seasoning and fry until golden brown. The Caesar salad recipe requires that the ingredients be mixed together cold, so the chicken must cool, not in the pan, but on the plate. If you have anchovies instead of chicken, just chop them fairly finely.

Another important item is cheese. The “native” cheese for Caesar salad is Parmesan. But if subtleties are not important to you, choose any hard variety. Its quantity is not strictly limited, it all depends on your love for cheese. For a serving of salad for two, they usually take from 50 to 100 grams. cheese.

And, of course, lettuce leaves. There should be enough of them to cover the bottom of the plate on which you plan to serve the salad 3-4 times.

Caesar salad - recipe

How to make Caesar salad is the simplest action of all that we have described, if everything is prepared correctly. First cook the chicken - as I said, it needs to cool. While it cools, make the sauce you like and grate the cheese. Next, cover the bottom of the plate with lettuce leaves, lay out/pour about a third of the sauce onto them. Tear the remaining lettuce leaves into the rest of the sauce, add half the croutons, half the grated cheese, chicken, shrimp or anchovies, mix and place on a plate on top of the leaves, sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese and croutons, and, if desired, decorate the Caesar salad with small tomatoes and pitted olives.

Of course, Caesar salad is not the only salad worthy of your attention. See all salad recipes and bon appetit.

Zhenya Zhukova especially for

Caesar salad - reviews and comments on the recipe

Faith, review on the topic Caesar Salad
I express my deep gratitude to you for sharing the secrets of Caesar salad. My family loves it very much, but when I cooked it, there was always a feeling that something was missing. Then I read your article and noticed that you suggest frying the chicken in seasoning, but I usually boiled it. I decided to follow your recipe - the result is excellent. The salad received a new flavor that my recipe was missing. Now I always fry the chicken in spices, but I decided to additionally roll the pieces in breadcrumbs - it turned out very unusual, but very tasty. Thanks again!

Reviews and comments (10)

Zhenya, thank you, but for clarity, they would have put on a video, after all, Caesar is such a salad. in which everyone considers themselves experts and it is better not to make mistakes when serving it on the table. It's better, as they say, to see once...

The history of the birth of Caesar salad is already 81 years old. It is loved in many countries of the world, although it is an Italian dish, and its classic recipe is modified by many chefs. It is also called the king of salads. There are a lot of recipes today. And with mushrooms, and with anchovy, with king prawns. The classic Caesar is sold and served in many restaurants around the world. It will decorate any table. Well, if you add special sauce... .