
Hail, Caesar—ahem—salad! Wildly popular and extremely simple to make, the classic Caesar salad gets a "grill up" in this recipe. The idea of grilled lettuce may leave you scratching your head, but trust us, it’s a game-changer. Read on for some tips for how to make it.
The lettuce:
The romaine hearts are cut lengthwise through the core to keep the leaves intact. Then it gets a quick pass on the ripping-hot grill for a minute or two to get a nice char, which imparts a great smoky flavor.
The bread:
Since we already had the grill going, we threw on a few slices of crusty sourdough bread. It takes on a smoky flavor as well, and crisps up a bit to give some more texture. We then rubbed the bread with some garlic to infuse it with even more flavor.
The equipment:
Don’t worry if you don’t have a grill or grill pan; you can use a heavy skillet, like cast iron, and follow the recipe as written.
Serving ideas:
The salad comes together super quick and is great for lunch and dinner as a main paired with grilled chicken, shrimp, or even tofu, or as a side to decadent pasta dish. To make things even faster, the dressing can be prepared and stored in the fridge up to two days ahead.
Did you try this recipe? Let us know how it went in the comments!
Ingredients
- 2
cloves garlic, peeled, divided
- 3/4 oz.
Parmesan, finely grated (about 1/2 c.), plus more, shaved, for serving
- 1/2 cup
mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup
extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
- 2 Tbsp.
fresh lemon juice
- 2 tsp.
Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp.
fish sauce
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
- 4
(1/2"-thick) slices sourdough bread
- 2
hearts romaine, halved lengthwise
Directions
- Step 1Grate 1 garlic clove into a medium bowl. Add grated Parmesan, mayonnaise, oil, lemon juice, mustard, and fish sauce and whisk to combine; season with salt and pepper.
- Step 2Prepare a grill for medium-high heat; preheat 5 minutes (or heat a grill pan over medium-high heat). Lightly brush oil on both sides of bread and cut sides of romaine; season with salt and pepper.
- Step 3Grill bread until charred on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate. Meanwhile, grill romaine cut side down until charred, 1 to 2 minutes. Rub one side of bread with remaining 1 garlic clove and tear into 1/2" pieces.
- Step 4Spread some dressing on a platter. Top with grilled romaine. Drizzle romaine with more dressing. Top with croutons and shaved Parmesan.

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