The original Caesar salad recipe includes a few ingredients: lettuce, crackers, croutons, Parmesan, and a sauce made from garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, and semi-cooked eggs.
In addition, according to the creator of the original Caesar salad, it should not be served on a plate but a wooden board, exposing the ingredients.
Read on to find out how to make a delicious Caesar salad at home: an original recipe without chicken, salmon, and mayonnaise. Why is it called Caesar salad, who invented it, and what kitchen does it belong to? What cheese is needed to make the classic recipe?
Who Invented the Caesar Salad?
The Caesar salad is not named after the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar. The classic recipe first emerged in 1924 in Mexico and was invented by emigrants from Italy, the Cardini brothers: César, Gaudenzio, and Alex.
In the 1940s, its creators opened restaurants in the United States, in Sacramento, San Diego, and later in Los Angeles.
Caesar Cardini’s restaurant quickly gained popularity among Hollywood stars, mainly due to this unusual signature dish. On a wooden plate, guests were served salad leaves with croutons, Parmesan, and original sauce, the classic Caesar salad.
Later, the original recipe changed: it began to include eggs (initially, they were only present in the sauce), chicken, bacon, and tomatoes; in addition, the salad began to be served on a standard plate. César Cardini himself patented the signature sauce and began to produce it for home use.
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Original recipe
The original composition of the Caesar salad included romaine lettuce leaves, egg yolk, croutons roasted with garlic in olive oil, Parmesan cheese, and traditional Worcestershire sauce. A sauce based on malt vinegar, molasses, sugar, salt, anchovies, tamarind extract, onion, garlic, and spices.
As we mentioned earlier, the original Caesar salad differs from what one knows today. Fried croutons were placed on large lettuce leaves, cheese was added, and sauce with mayonnaise.
The original Caesar salad had to be eaten by hand without using a fork. In addition, initially, the dish was prepared before the eyes of the visitors since it took a few minutes.
How to make classic Caesar salad at home?
According to the story, the classic original Caesar salad recipe should have good quality croutons, olive oil, lemons, and Parmesan cheese.
Here’s how you can make a classic salad at home.
Ingredients (4 servings)
- Romaine or cappuccino lettuce – 1 large unit
- Olive oil – Half a cup
- Half a baguette or bread to make the croutons
- 2 cloves of garlic
- Juice of two lemons
- 2 egg yolks
- Butter 10 grams
- 12 drops of Worcester sauce or original sauce
- 120 g of Parmesan
- Salt and pepper
- Make the croutons
Cut the baguette into 1 cm slices, then prepare the dressing; cut the garlic very small and press it with the edge of the knife, mix it with the butter and a little olive oil. First, dry the cookies in the oven for 10 minutes, then fry them in a pan.
- Prepare the ingredients for the salad.
Slice the Romano salad by carefully separating the dark leaves and stem base, then boil the eggs in boiling water for exactly 1 minute. Squeeze the juice from the lemons (or use ready-made lemon juice) and grate the Parmesan cheese on a coarse grater.
- Make the sauce
Take a large bowl, mix two tablespoons of olive oil, 12 drops of Worcester sauce, salt, and pepper, or use a ready-made original Caesar salad dressing.
- Mix the ingredients
Add chopped romaine leaves to the sauce bowl. Then add the yolk, fried bread, and cheese and mix again. Arrange on plates and serve.
Calories
The caloric content of a portion of Caesar salad, prepared according to the classic recipe, is only 200 kcal. Of these, most are from croutons, 30-40 kcal for Parmesan cheese, 30-40 kcal for egg yolk, 20-25 kcal for sauce, and 5-10 kcal for lettuce.
What kind of salad and cheese do you need at Caesar?
You need romaine or capuccina lettuce; although looking like other green leaves, they are very different. Romaine lettuce is known for its slightly bitter taste; crunchier and juicier, the leaves have an elongated shape.
The cheese should be hard enough to be cut or grated; when adding Parmesan to Caesar salad, make sure it is not too hard.
However, the main secret of the delicious Caesar salad is the original sauce. It should have a light texture and a fresh aroma – unusual mayonnaise is not the best.
ABSTRACT
The Caesar salad was not invented in ancient Rome, nor is it connected to the emperor. Its history begins in modern America.
The classic recipe does not contain meat, chicken, or mayonnaise. But an adhesion is based on semi-raw eggs. The dish was prepared before the eyes of the restaurant’s visitors. The Caesar salad is easy to make at home; it will take a few minutes.
