You know I have a ‘thing’ for salad, right? I may have mentioned it once or twice or fifty billion times. I pink puffy heart salad.

While my ‘every day salad’ is dressed with a simple olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper, I love a composed classic salad with great dressing from time to time. When I say great dressing, I do mean great.

Almost certainly, the salad dressing will be homemade, and it is quite likely that it will be homemade Thick Caesar Dressing. Everyone has probably had Caesar dressing and knows about what it’s supposed to taste like, but people, there’s something so decadent and perfect about Thick Caesar Dressing, and it’s a little bit of a culinary bad boy.

It is made with raw egg yolk and anchovies and garlic. It’s going to destroy your breath and give you street cred as an adventurous eater.

Wait. Do adventurous eaters have street cred?

I move that any dressing as thick as Thick Caesar Dressing confers automatic street cred. Thick Caesar Dressing bridges the nebulous, creamy world that exists between salad dressing and thick mayonnaise.

It’s 100% Caesar, but it’s Caesar on steroids. It’s ABSOLUTELY a salad dressing and yet? It is still thick enough to spread on a sandwich or burger or use as a dip for fries or chips.

BECAUSE DIPPING CHIPS IN THICK CAESAR DRESSING IS HOW YOU SHOULD LIVE LIFE.

How is something so very thick a salad dressing? It’s because of one simple fact about Caesar Salad: it is dressed tableside or before it reaches the table.

By dressed, I don’t mean you pour it over the greens, I mean you actually TOSS it with the greens, coating everything. And when you coat greens they release liquid.

It’s a scientific fact. THAT thins the dressing out somewhat.

It’s true, the classic Caesar dressing is going to be a little thinner, but I really do prefer this for the oomph and flavour impact it provides and the fact that it keeps the salad from getting quite so wimpy and wilted if you have to let it stand a few minutes before digging in.

Thick Caesar Dressing

Yes, there is raw yolk in this dressing. There is also raw yolk in homemade mayonnaise.

If you are pregnant, a child, or have compromised immunities, you should probably not consume Thick Caesar Dressing. If not? Street cred.

There are also anchovies in this dressing. This is true of all Caesar dressing.

There really is no substitute for anchovies in Caesar dressing. The only acceptable substitute for the anchovy fillets is anchovy paste. Still anchovies.

Don’t choose your biggest, burliest garlic clove for the Thick Caesar Dressing. Normally, I’m a “pump up the garlic” kind of girl, but Caesar is so big on flavour that you don’t want a massive garlic presence to compete with what is already a big, bold flavour profile.

Let it be a mild presence. You’ll be glad you did.

There’s no getting around it, you’re going to have to use this up within 10 days. Around here, we can polish off a batch in two days, but everyone here (7 people) loves Thick Caesar Dressing on their salad.

I love using my stick blender to make this in a wide mouth pint jar. It’s by far the easiest method I know.

If you don’t have one, you can still DEFINITELY make it with a whisk in a bowl or in a blender or in a food processor. Just follow the same basic method.

Smoosh the anchovy fillets with the garlic clove, whisk (blend) in the yolks and Dijon, then whisk (blend) in the olive oil one to two drops at a time, then whisk (blend) in the vegetable oil one to two drops at a time, fully incorporating after each addition, until it is thick and glossy. Add grated cheese, salt, and pepper to taste, then “voila!”

Store any leftovers tightly wrapped in the refrigerator. Consume within 10 days for optimal food safety.

If Main Dish Salads are your thing, we also have Bo Luc Lac (Vietnamese Shaking Beef Salad), Cheeseburger Salad, Greek Salad, Pizza Salad, Tex-Mex Cobb Salad, Spicy Southwestern Chicken Salad + Meal Prep, and Blackened Salmon Caesar Salad.

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Caesar Dressing and Mayonnaise

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Rebecca Lindamood

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Ingredients

  

• 6 anchovy fillets
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons finely grated parmesan cheese
• black pepper and salt

Instructions

 

Stick Blender Directions:

• Smash the anchovy fillets and minced garlic together on a cutting board with a fork. Scrape into a wide mouthed pint jar. Blend in the egg yolks, lemon juice, and Dijon mustard, then -with the stick blender running- add the olive oil two drops at a time. When the olive oil is fully incorporated, add the vegetable oil in a thin stream, blending constantly, until the mixture is thick and glossy. Whisk or blend in the grated parmesan cheese, and adjust with black pepper and salt to taste.

Food Processor or Blender Directions:

• Smash the anchovy fillets and minced garlic together on a cutting board with a fork. Scrape into the work bowl or carafe of a blender fitted with a metal blade. Blend in the egg yolks, lemon juice, and Dijon mustard, then -with the blender running- add the olive oil two drops at a time. When the olive oil is fully incorporated, add the vegetable oil in a thin stream, blending constantly, until the mixture is thick and glossy. Do not over blend or process as the mixture will break (oil will separate out.) Pulse in the grated parmesan cheese, and adjust with black pepper and salt to taste.

Hand Blending Directions:

• Smash the anchovy fillets and minced garlic together on a cutting board with a fork. Scrape into a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the egg yolks, lemon juice, and Dijon mustard, then -whisking constantly- add the olive oil two drops at a time. When the olive oil is fully incorporated, add the vegetable oil in a thin stream, whisking constantly, until the mixture is thick and glossy. Whisk in the grated parmesan cheese, and adjust with black pepper and salt to taste.

To Serve as a Salad Dressing:

• Dress salads with a ratio of 1 teaspoon (lightly dressed) to 1 1/2 tablespoons (generously dressed) to 3 large Romaine leaves.

Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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It’s ready to be dressed. Do you have Thick Caesar Dressing on hand?