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[1] Instead of Caesar dressing with a raw egg yolk, try a poached egg. This variation also uses a long strip of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese‡ as a form to contain the salad and a dotted garnish of Parmigiano cream sauce. Beautiful! (photo © Payard).
[2] Bibimbap. The egg yolk is broken and mixed in with the other ingredients—vegetables and meat (photo © Minche11 | Pexels).
[3] Classic Caesar Salad (photo © Safe Eggs).
[4] A different take on Caesar. Hearts of romaine are cut in half, not torn. The recipe is below (photo © Parma Ham Consortium).
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We were delighted to discover this innovative Caesar salad variation at Payard in New York City (photon #1).
It borrows its key idea from bibimbap, the signature Korean dish (photo #3).
Bibimbap (BEE-bim-baahp) means “mixed rice.”
It starts with a bowl of white rice topped with seasoned vegetables and chili pepper paste.
A raw or fried egg and sliced beef or other meat are typically added (photo #2).
The ingredients are stirred together just before eating; the egg yolk creates a creamy sauce.
Chef François Payard adapted the bibimbap concept to a poached egg atop a Caesar salad, creating a delicious riff that also allays concerns of eating the raw egg yolk* in classic Caesar dressing.†
So gather your romaine, grated or shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, croutons and anchovies.
Make a dressing from olive oil and fresh lemon juice (and anchovy paste, if you prefer it to fresh anchovies).
Toss the romaine and cheese with the dressing, add the croutons and top with the poached egg.
Add shrimp or sliced chicken as an alternative protein—although you’ll have to decide which comes first: the chicken or the egg.
> National Caesar Salad Day is July 4th. The date was chosen because this popular salad was first served on July 4th, 1924.
> The history of the Caesar Salad.
> Here’s the original Caesar Salad recipe. Leave out the raw egg yolk and top with the poached egg instead (or a hard-boiled, soft-boiled, or deviled egg if you prefer.
> The history of Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese.
> The other Italian grating cheeses (not authentic Caesar ingredients, but just as tasty).
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*If you’re not comfortable eating raw eggs, get Safe Eggs, which are pasteurized raw eggs.
†The original recipe used only lemon and olive oil to dress the salad. Anchovies, Worcestershire Sauce and creamy Caesar dressing were later additions. Here’s the original Caesar salad recipe.
‡Use a vegetable peeler on unaged Parmigiano-Reggiano.
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