Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad for Two

 

One of my favorite dinner salad options in the summer has to be the Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad.  Caesar salad is my favorite salad anyways!

Add some grilled chicken and I am one very happy camper!  It makes a salad a meal!

 We have had some stinking hot weather these past few days here in the Valley.  Combine that with high humidity and nobody feels like cooking much! 

Quick, easy and painless is the order of the day.  I am not sure about you, but for me, when it gets hot and sticky like this, I don't really have much of an appetite anyways!   

 

If I can have my dinner as a main dish salad, then I am perfectly content, and its more than enough for me to enjoy.

Today I created my favorite Chicken Caesar Salad in a size small enough to feed just two people.  It may be smaller in size, but lacks none of the delicious flavors of the original!

 

Caesar Salad is such an easy salad to make. I can't understand why so many restaurants get it so wrong!  I'll be honest here.

Its been a very long time since I have had a decent Caesar Salad in a restaurant.  You pay an arm and a leg for it, and when it comes the lettuce is limp, the dressing weak and the whole thing looks like a complete afterthought.

 

I hate being disappointed when it comes to ordering and paying for good food!  I have now gotten to the point where I don't order salads at all in restaurants.  I find them to be a complete and total waste of money.

Which is a shame really. I started my culinary career as the pastry chef in a local hotel here in the Valley. I was responsible for the appetizers, salads and desserts.  I can promise you, nobody got a weak salad, dessert or appetizer when I was on the job!

 

Its not that hard really to put together a good salad, with fresh crisp ingredients, and a tasty dressing.  Not that hard at all.

I don't  know why so many get it wrong!  Its sad really.

 

For this tasty take on the delicious Caesar Salad you begin by rubbing some chicken with a Montreal Chicken Seasoning and grilling it to perfection.

You can do this outside if you have an outdoor grill, or you can do it inside on an indoor grill or a frying pan. (That's what I had to do this time.)

 

The dressing itself is a very simple and easy one to make.  Lemon juice, garlic, yogurt, Anchovy paste, Dijon, Worcestershire and Parmesan cheese . . .  simple ingredients.  

You can also use a purchased dressing if you wish, but use a well flavored and good quality one. (In the UK, I liked Newman's Own, here in Canada, I like Renee's.)

 

I use real bacon, normally popping the rashers of streaky bacon onto a baking sheet and baking them in the oven to perfection while I am cooking the chicken.  

Its really simple and if you line your baking sheet with baking parchment, there's  no flipping and very little clean up involved. (Yes, I am that lazy!) 

 

You could also use a really good quality of ready made bacon bits.  Just don't use those nasty soy ones.

Well, I suppose you could if you were a vegetarian, but then why are you eating a Caesar salad anyways! Especially one with chicken, lol.

 

I also make my own garlic croutons.  They are also very simple to make. Just buttered white bread. Use a rustic one if you can.  

A ciabatta or a French bread both work very well. Ordinary sliced white bread, not so good. 

 

I use Romaine lettuce, the heart. One good sized head is enough for two people.  

It has a nice slightly bitter taste that goes well with everything else and I think it is fairly traditional in a Caesar Salad for just that reason. 

 

You want to use a robust lettuce that is going to stand up to the flavors and textures of the other ingredients. Romaine does just that.

My mom would never eat any kind of lettuce other than iceberg. I don't think I knew any other kind existed when I was growing up. To be fair however, unless you grew it yourself there were not really any other kinds available.

 

Don't get me wrong. I adore iceberg lettuce. There are certain salads and applications that would not be the same without iceberg lettuce.

Think of the wedge for instance. It has such a lovely crisp quality that goes very well in burgers and the like as well!

 

But for other salads like this one, you want a more robust and flavorful lettuce.  I cannot imagine making one with any other kind but romaine.

Oh, how I miss the baby gem lettuces that I used to get in the UK. They were like a baby romaine, tiny, crisp and dark green, but were also decidedly bitter. 

 

They lent themselves very well to a blue cheese dressing. I used to make a lovely salad with a blue

cheese vinaigrette and spring onions, along with the baby gem lettuce. 

Oh my but it was some good.  Maybe next year I can grow some in a window box.

This is a quick and easy salad to make once you have all of the components ready.  Cut your lettuce crosswise into chunks and scatter it on two places.

Likewise slice your chicken and lay the pieces on top.   Scatter with the croutons and bacon pieces, then drizzle with the dressing.

I like to grind some black pepper over top, scatter with a bit of Parmesan and then pass a bit of extra dressing at the table.   This is great summer eating, pure and simple. Enjoy! 

Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad for Two

Yield: 2

Author: Marie Rayner

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 30 Min

This is a fabulous deliciously light lunch or supper, depending on how hungry you are!

Ingredients

You will need:

• 1 head of Romaine (Cos) lettuce, washed, dried and sliced crosswise
• 4 slices of cooked streaky bacon, cut into slices

For the grilled chicken:

• 2 single free range boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Montreal Chicken seasoning to taste

For the croutons:

• two firm slices of white bread
• softened butter to spread
• Garlic Italian Seasoning to taste

For the Dressing:

• 2 TBS fresh lemon juice
• 1 small clove garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp anchovy paste
• 1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 245g low fat Greek Yogurt (1 cup)
• 90g finely grated Parmesan cheese (1/2 cup)
• salt to taste and freshly ground black pepper

You will also need: (optional)

• 2 -3 TBS grated Parmesan Cheese to garnish
• freshly ground black pepper
• wedges of lemon 

Instructions

1. First make the dressing. Whisk all of the ingredients together and then cover and chill in the refrigerator until you need it. This can be done well ahead. You may not need it all, but it keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
2. To make the croutons, preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Have a baking tray ready Butter the bread on both sides lightly. Cut into decorative shapes with a small cutter (about 1 inch in size). Place onto a baking tray in single layer and sprinkle with the Garlic Italian seasoning to taste. Toast in the oven until golden brown. 8 to 10 minutes. Remove and set aside.
3. Season the chicken all over with the Montreal Chicken Seasoning. (I make my own seasoning.) Heat a skillet over moderate heat, add a splash of oil. Put the chicken in top side down. Cook until golden brown on that side, about 7 minutes, flip over and cook for a further 6 to 7 minutes until cooked through and the juices run clear. Remove and let sit for about five minutes before slicing diagonally into 1/2 inch slices.
4. Divide the salad greens between two large chilled plates. Place an equal portion of chicken in the center of each. Sprinkle on the bacon and croutons and cheese, again dividing them equally. Drizzle with a tiny bit of dressing and grind some fresh black pepper on top to taste. Pass the remaining dressing at the table, so that each person can use as much or as little as they want. Delicious!

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @marierayner5530 on instagram and hashtag it #TheEnglishKitchen

This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com 

Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!

Follow me on Bloglovin