Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
Recipe courtesy of Florence Fabricant, photo by Melina Hammer for The New York Times.
"Depending on your appetite, this variation on a classic Caesar salad with grilled chicken makes an excellent first-course or a full-on meal. Hitting the lettuce with a little fire is an unexpectedly brilliant trick; the green leaves char and crisp and the insides become slightly tender, but you still get the satisfying crunch everyone loves about romaine." — Florence Fabricant
Ingredients:
- ⅔ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 salt-cured anchovies, rinsed and dried
- ½ cup lemon juice
- 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 pounds skinless and boneless chicken breasts
- 2 hard-cooked eggs
- ¼ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
- 2 heads romaine lettuce
- 4 slices whole-grain bread, without crusts
Preparation:
Place 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a small saucepan. Add anchovies and cook on low, stirring, until they fall apart and meld with the oil. Place in a small bowl. Add the lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and remaining olive oil.
Place chicken in a bowl, add ¼ cup of the olive oil dressing, turn to coat chicken breasts, cover and set aside to marinate 2 hours, longer if refrigerated.
Separate egg whites and yolks. Place yolks in a small dish, add a little of the dressing, blend until smooth and mix in with the rest of the dressing. Stir in cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Dice whites and keep them separate.
Light a grill. Remove any tired outer leaves from the romaine, then quarter each head vertically. Place on a large platter and drizzle cut sides with a little of the dressing. Grill romaine close to the heat source, turning clusters of leaves and any individual leaves so they wilt a little and become lightly charred. Remove. Place bread on grill and sear to toast. Remove. Place chicken on grill and cook, turning a few times and basting with the marinade until cooked through, about 15 minutes. It’s best to grill chicken away from the source of heat so it does not char.
Coarsely shred romaine onto a large rimmed platter. Dice toasted bread and add it, along with the egg whites. Drizzle with about half the dressing. Slice the chicken about ½-inch thick, arrange it over the romaine and drizzle with the remaining dressing. Serve warm.