Chicken and Bacon Caesar Salad is a slight upgrade on the classic Caesar Salad. This has crispy bacon and flavourful chicken breast. The tangy homemade Caesar Dressing is easy to whip up, and is made from fairly typical pantry ingredients.

Ceasar Salad with Chicken & Bacon

The legend of Caesar Salad states that it was created out of desperation by Italian chef Caesar Cardini in the 1920s. He was running low on ingredients during a 4th of July rush at his restaurant in Tijuana and improvised using what he had to create a salad with Romaine lettuce, croutons and Parmesan cheese. There are many variations of this famous salad, and though this recipe is in no way ‘authentic’ it is a great everyday version which is easy to make at home.

Course Main Course, Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine Mediterranean

Prep Time 30

Cost £8

Ingredients

For the salad:

1 head of romaine lettuce washed and torn into bite-sized pieces
60 g croutons store-bought or homemade
25 g freshly grated Parmesan cheese
6 strips of bacon cooked until crispy and chopped
1 grilled chicken breast sliced (optional)

For the dressing:

2 cloves garlic minced
2 anchovy fillets finely chopped (optional, but traditional)
60 g mayonnaise
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
60 ml extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic, anchovy fillets (if using), mayonnaise, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, and Worcestershire sauce until well combined.
While whisking continuously, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until the dressing is emulsified. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
In a large salad bowl, add the torn romaine lettuce leaves.
Pour the dressing over the lettuce and toss well to coat the leaves evenly.
Sprinkle the grated Parmesan cheese over the salad and toss again.
Add the chopped bacon and sliced grilled chicken breast (if using) to the salad.
Add the croutons and toss once more to distribute all the ingredients evenly throughout the salad.
Serve immediately as a satisfying main course or as a delicious side dish.