Caesar Salad is one of my all-time favorites, featuring crisp romaine lettuce, crunchy croutons, and plenty of Parmesan cheese tossed in a rich, homemade dressing.
This simple yet flavorful salad is perfect as a side dish to pasta or top with grilled chicken breasts or grilled sirloin steak for a satisfying meal.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights: Caesar Salad
The dressing is the best homemade Caesar salad dressing of all time. I don’t even have words for how good it is, and I come back to this recipe time and time again.
- Flavor: Creamy, savory, and tangy with lemon, garlic, Parmesan, anchovies, and capers.
- Why Make It: The blender creates a thick, restaurant-style dressing with minimal cleanup.
- Time-Saver: Make the dressing up to 3 days ahead and wash the lettuce in advance.
- Serving Suggestions: Serve as a side or add grilled chicken, garlic grilled shrimp, or salmon for a complete meal.
Total Time: 25 Minutes Serves: 6
Ingredient Notes
- Romaine Lettuce: Use crisp romaine hearts or full heads of romaine for the best texture. Wash and dry the lettuce thoroughly so the dressing clings to the leaves and is extra crisp! I love to use a salad spinner, and refrigerate if time allows. Substitute kale to create a kale Caesar salad!
- Croutons: Store-bought croutons are a convenient option, while homemade croutons are a great way to use up day-old bread.
- Parmesan Cheese: Shredded Parmesan blends beautifully into the salad, while shaved Parmesan makes an elegant garnish.
- Garnish: Garnish the salad with shredded Parmesan cheese, lemon wedges, bacon bits, or fried capers.
Caesar Salad Dressing Ingredients
- Garlic: This really is the star of the show in Caesar salad, so fresh is best.
- Anchovy Filets: Anchovies add the classic savory, umami flavor that defines Caesar dressing. Anchovy paste is convenient to keep in the fridge and blends smoothly into the dressing.
- Egg: Raw egg emulsifies with the oil to create a rich and creamy dressing (much like how mayonnaise is made); I include both the raw egg yolk and white. If you don’t want to use raw egg, I suggest making my quick Caesar salad dressing.
- Oil: This is added in a very slow stream to thicken the dressing. Use a light-flavored oil like canola or light olive oil. Extra-virgin olive oil can be a bit strong for this dressing.
How to Make Caesar Salad
- Blend the dressing ingredients. Slowly drizzle in the oil.
- Pulse in the Parmesan and chill (full recipe below).
- Toss crisp romaine with croutons, Parmesan, and as much dressing as you like.
- Finish with extra Parmesan and lemon wedges.
Storing Caesar Salad
- Storing the Dressing: Keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Storing the Salad: Store romaine, croutons, Parmesan, and dressing separately for the best texture. Washed and dried romaine can be stored with a paper towel in a bag or container for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: Do not freeze Caesar salad or Caesar dressing.
Steakhouse Style Sides
Did you enjoy this Caesar Salad Recipe? Leave a comment and rating below.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 cups chopped romaine lettuce washed and torn into bite-sized pieces
- 1 cup croutons
- ⅓ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Dressing
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 10 small capers
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 2 anchovy filets or 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
- black pepper to taste
- ½ cup light olive oil or canola oil
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Combine garlic, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, capers, egg, anchovy fillets, and pepper in a blender.
- Blend until smooth. With the blender running on low speed, slowly drizzle in olive oil in a thin, slow stream (this should take a few minutes).
- Add ¼ cup parmesan cheese and pulse to combine. Taste and season with salt and additional pepper if desired. Refrigerate until using, up to 3 days.
- In a large salad bowl, combine lettuce, croutons, and ⅓ cup parmesan cheese. Add dressing as desired and toss to combine.
- Garnish with additional parmesan cheese and fresh lemon wedges for serving.
Notes
*Keep dressing in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Ingredients (including the egg) should be at room temperature before making the dressing.
- Drizzle the oil SLOWLY. The slower you drizzle, the thicker the dressing will be.
- If you don’t have a blender, you can whisk the ingredients while slowly drizzling in the oil.
- Use fresh lemon juice and fresh garlic for best results.
- To save time, prep the dressing up to 3 days in advance and keep it in the fridge. Store lettuce, garnish, and dressing separately and combine before serving.
- For extra crisp lettuce, wash it and spin dry up to 3 days ahead of time. Store with paper towel in a plastic bag or food container.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 245 | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 282mg | Potassium: 215mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 5579IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 151mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dressing, Lunch, Salad, Side Dish
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Does the anchovies make it any sort of fishy? I cannot stand anchovies, but understand they are used for Ceasar dressing. I just dont want to taste it. The dressings I like in restaurants leaves me questioning if there are anchovies in it.
Not at all!! I have served this dressing to many and they have never known.