Slow Roasted Salmon Caesar Salad
A comeback of everyone's secret favourite salad
Foods go in and out of fashion just as much as clothing, and Caesar salad today belongs in the food equivalent of a clothing catalogue from which my mum used to order my sister and I matching nighties and fleeces in the early 2000s. Is Caesar salad comparable to the long-sleeved top under a t-shirt look? Today I struggle to see the purpose in doing that, but back then - to all of us, not just children and preteens - that pop of colour along our covered sleeves was an essential fashion requirement. Probably much like Caesar salad being on every restaurant menu.
Of course, I know Caesar salad isn’t a millennial like myself, it’s from the era that we’d call vintage today. This Roaring Twenties’ creation is of the time of flapper dresses, cigarette holders and Prohibition. It was adored by the likes of Clark Gable and Jean Harlow. Yet, why do I visualise it slightly limp and lifeless, at the end of its heyday, attached to the end of a Wetherspoons’ menu?
In 1953, the International Society of Epicures in Paris declared Caesar salad as ‘the greatest recipe to originate in the Americas in the last 50 years.’ You may need to reread that sentence. Yes, the little Caesar salad with its Cos lettuce, parmesan shavings and coddled egg dressing had acquired world domination. Its power spread from its roots in Mexico, and throughout the sixties, seventies and eighties, eras that aren’t renowned for their cuisine, it became the headline act for every restaurant, dinner party, barbecue, you name it. Variations appeared; why not try some bacon or chicken in there? Some blue cheese, peas and, of course, croutons? The classic simplicity of this Golden Age salad had gone and in its place sat a dish which represented nothing else than the gluttony of the modern world.
In the 1990s, the salad was banned in California due to the raw egg in the dressing, but I don’t think governments have learnt that banning something will only increase its popularity (did the Prohibition teach us nothing?). Even so, with its revival in 1998 and the 80,000 acres of budding Cos lettuce all thanks to Caesar salad’s acclaim, we became lazy. More often than not, a restaurant’s Caesar salad would be a disappointment - the sauce would be too garlicky or too gloopy, or worse, the parmesan came from an industrial-sized shaker. Finally, Caesar salad fell off the menu.
And yet, like anything that is deemed unfashionable by the mainstream, there is secret adoration behind closed doors. Would any of us turn down a homemade Caesar salad, it’s punchy dressing of anchovies, garlic and Worcestershire sauce claiming the title of one most inspiring salad dressings of all time? After all, here I am with a Caesar salad recipe, a little fresher and lighter than usual thanks to those chunks of succulent slow roasted salmon on top.
Caesar salads are famously made with parmesan and croutons, yet both are missing from my version (apologies) - personally I think this dressing has such a deep savoury richness from the anchovies and Worcestershire sauce that parmesan isn’t necessary. Not only that, but this salad seems fresher thanks to the light, flaky salmon, so neither parm or croutons appeared to be fitting. However, if you really crave these Caesar salad icons, go for it.
I think the secret of a good Caesar salad is the same as any other food - show it the respect it deserves, and maybe keep it off the Wetherspoons’ menu.
Slow Roasted Salmon Caesar Salad
Roast the salmon on a bed of herbs - these can be anything that you have in your fridge (this is Raid the Fridge Fridays after all). The flavour is only subtle after roasting, so if you don’t have any herbs lying around, don’t worry, trade them for slices of citrus instead.
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 30 mins
Course: Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
Keyword: slow roasted salmon, Caesar Salad, egg, anchovies, lettuce
Servings: 4
Author: Adapted from Abel & Cole’s recipe
Ingredients
For the salmon
1 side of salmon
A couple of handfuls of fresh herbs
Olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the Caesar salad
2 little gem or Cos lettuces, leaves separated and rinsed
½ cucumber, sliced into half moons
A handful of radishes, a few left whole or halved, the rest sliced
¼ fennel bulb, finely sliced and reserved fennel fronds
1 avocado, sliced
Day-old baguette or bread, ripped into chunks and tossed in olive oil and salt (optional)
A chunk of good parmesan (optional)
For the Caesar dressing
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
A pinch of salt
50ml extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp warm water
2 anchovies
¼ lemon, juice and zest
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ small clove of garlic
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 120C/100C/250F. Layer the herbs on a baking tray (one with sides as there will be some juice from the salmon that you don’t want to go all over your oven). I used thyme, coriander and parsley.
Lay the salmon on a chopping board and run your hand over it to check for pin bones. Mine was already boned (thank you Lidl) so luckily I didn’t have to get my tweezers from the bathroom. If you find bones, simply pull them out at the angle they are embedded in the salmon. Season generously with salt and pepper on both sides then lay it on the bed of herbs. Drizzle with olive oil, then slide the tray into the oven to cook for 30 mins.
Check the salmon after 25 mins - if the thickest part is flaking into chunks, it’s ready. If not, leave it for another 5 minutes or so.
While the salmon cools, make the dressing. Put the yolk, Dijon mustard and salt in a bowl, then slowly trickle in a stream of oil as you whisk. Keep the bowl stable on a tea towel as it has a habit to rock around. Don’t add the oil too quickly or it will split. Once all the oil is added, loosen the mayo with the tablespoon of warm water.
Puree the anchovies with the edge of your knife and crush the garlic. Add them, the lemon zest and juice and the Worcestershire sauce to the mayo, and season with a little more salt.
If adding croutons, fry the oily stale bread until crisp and golden.
Arrange the lettuce, cucumber, radish, avocado and fennel on the plates and top with the croutons and shavings of parmesan if using, and big flaky chunks of roasted salmon. Garnish with fennel fronds. Drizzle the dressing over everything and dig in.
That does look good - I do like a Caesar Salad I have to admit - but they do vary a lot from place to place as you say. I don't think I had considered its history before.