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A classic Caesar salad is a perfect appetizer or side salad. Made the traditional way with a homemade dressing, this Caesar salad is quick, easy, and a great recipe to have in your repertoire!
Caesar salad is such a classic recipe, and I love how simple it is to make! I love serving this as an appetizer or as a side alongside my Homemade Lasagna, Eggplant Parmesan or Healthy Shrimp Scampi. The dressing is so wonderfully creamy and the crispy baked croutons add a wonderful texture.
Caesar salad ingredients
- Romain lettuce: Chop roughly into bite sized pieces to form the base of the salad.
- Parmesan cheese: Shaved parmesan adds the best texture and salty bite.
- Salt and pepper: Use freshly cracked pepper and flaky salt to taste
For the croutons
- French baguette: Use a day old baguette for the crispiest croutons. Cut them into small chunks or into thin wide pieces
- Olive oil, salt and pepper: This is for flavoring the homemade croutons, but you can also add other seasoning like onion powder or garlic powder.
Caesar dressing
- Mayonnaise: You can use vegan avocado mayo if that’s what you have.
- Lemon juice: For the best tasting dressing, use fresh lemon juice rather than the bottled juice.
- Dijon mustard and Worcestershire sauce: Both of these add a great tang to the dressing. You can use different kinds of mustard, like yellow or brown, if you’d like, and you can substitute the Worcestershire sauce with soy sauce if you’d like and make it vegetarian.
- Anchovy paste: Used in a classic Caesar dressing, or you can use capers to make this vegetarian-friendly.
- Garlic: The garlic brings extra zing to this homemade caesar dressing and I recommend fresh garlic!
- Parmesan cheese: Use freshly grated for best results.
How do you make homemade caesar salad
Make the Croutons
Make the dressing
Assemble the Caesar Salad
Tips for making caesar salad
- Use one or two day old bread to make the croutons. Fresh bread contains moisture that can cause it to steam when baked and result in less crispy croutons.
- Use a salad spinner to dry the lettuce. If you don’t have a spinner, after you have washed it, pat it gently with kitchen paper to remove excess water. This helps to avoid any excess water pooling in the bottom of the salad bowl or watering down that yummy dressing.
- Dress the salad just before serving. If you dress it too early the lettuce leaves can wilt.
Frequently asked questions
Can you make it ahead of time?
You can make the dressing 3 to 4 days ahead of time and keep it in an air tight jar in the fridge. The croutons can be made up to a week ahead of time and stored in a cupboard.
Can you make it vegan?
This Caesar salad can easily be made vegan if you use to the avocado mayonnaise and capers instead of anchovy paste, and substitute the parmesan cheese for a vegan kind. You can also leave out the cheese and sprinkle some nutritional yeast on top to give it the cheesy flavor.
Can you make it a full meal?
It’s really easy to turn this simple Caesar salad into a fuller meal by adding some protein like grilled chicken or grilled shrimp. It’s a great meal prep recipe for easy lunches or light summer meals.
More salad recipes
- Beet Orange Salad
- Green Goddess Salad
- White Bean Salad
- Vegetarian Cobb Salad Jars
- Taco Salad Meal Prep
- Turmeric Rice Salad
- Mexican Chopped Salad
This easy homemade Caesar salad comes together so quickly and easily. The dressing is so delicious that I usually make a double batch to use throughout the week on my lunchtime salads!
If you’ve tried this healthy-ish feel good Caesar Salad recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
This Caesar salad recipe was originally published April 18, 2020 and has recently been updated to use a classic anchovy-based Caesar dressing. This post also includes new photography and step-by-step images to better help make the recipe.
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Caesar Salad
Ingredients
Homemade Croutons
- ½ French baguette cubed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Caesar Dressing
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoons anchovy paste
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 lemon zest and juice
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
For assembly
- 1 large head romaine lettuce cut into large pieces
- ¼ cup shaved parmesan cheese
Instructions
- To make croutons, preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the bread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Drizzle the oil on top and season with salt and pepper. Toss with your hands to combine. Bake until golden brown and crispy, about 7-8 minutes; set aside to cool.
- To make the dressing, place the garlic cloves on a small cutting board and mince until it forms a paste. Add the anchovy paste on top and continue to mince until well combined. Transfer to a small jar. Add the mayonnaise, parmesan cheese, lemon zest and lemon juice, dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce and black peppers. Whisk together until smooth and creamy. Taste and add salt or lemon juice, if needed.
- Place the romaine lettuce in a large serving bowl, top with the shaved parmesan cheese and croutons. Drizzle with the Caesar dressing and toss gently to combine and coat the lettuce with the dressing. Serve cold or at room temperature
Notes
- Instead of Worcester sauce, you can use soy sauce or liquid aminos.
- Instead of anchovy paste, you can use capers smashed into a paste.
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Hello
I would like to say that I love your recipes I have tried many of them
Is there anything I can substitute the mayonnaise with as my husband doesn’t like mayonnaise at all he wouldn’t even try and eat anything that has even a drop of mayonnaise
Thank you so much! I haven’t tried this recipe with a mayonnaise substitute, but maybe he won’t notice if it’s mixed in with the other dressing ingredients?
Hello! This is a late reply but I substituted the mayonnaise for plain Greek yogurt and it turned out really great!!!!!
I love that!
I wanted to know which are best company avocado mayonaise and Dijon mustard are good.
I really liked Primal Kitchen for those items!
Came out AMAZING! I have been using this dressing on any salad I make. So easy and so quick!
So glad to hear it!!
I was going to make this for my husband as he is vegetarian- however he informed me
That Worcester sauce is not vegetarian as it has anchovies. Do you have an alternative so I can make this for him?
Sure, you can use soy sauce instead!
Have never been a fan of Caesar salad. Caught me at Homemade creamy dressing. Made it and yes
I did enjoy it.