The secret to any good caesar salad is really mastering the caesar-salad-formula, and I think this Tahini Caesar Salad is the perfect introductory course. The dressing has to be just salty enough, perfectly emulsified, and thick enough to grip onto really big, crisp, romaine wedges. And I’m a romaine purist, you won’t find my caesar salads on any other green!
This Tahini Caesar Salad is the perfect caesar salad formula, and trust me, I have it down to a craft. The tahini does the same thing an egg yolk does in traditional caesar salads, but it adds a certain umami, nutty note and thickness that you can’t get with any other ingredient. It has made me start to prefer Tahini Caesar Salad over traditional caesars…and that’s saying something!
What makes my perfect Tahini Caesar Salad
There are a lot of things that make a salad what I deem “perfect” (which is a subjective comment, I know, but we digress!), but here are just a few examples of what I absolutely need to have the best Tahini Caesar Salad experience:
- The lettuce must be crisp, and it must be cut into big pieces – If I’m making a caesar, I tend to discard any wilted or softer lettuce pieces. You can use them in other salads, or for topping sandwiches, but I don’t think they hold up well to a heavy caesar dressing.
- Anchovies are a must – if you don’t eat fish, capers are a great alternative. I’d just recommend blending the dressing then, since capers don’t “collapse” the same way anchovies do!
- The dressing must be perfectly emulsified – this might seem like a “no, duh,” BUT a lot of people skip it! Or thing a broken dressing will be fine. The thing with tahini caesars is you will need to add water to get the perfect emulsion. But I think that’s a part of cooking magic, different ingredients need different things to transform. So don’t give up if this dressing isn’t creamy right away, it will (and should) get there!
- Bread crumbs and parmesan MUST be piled on top – these are the third level of saltiness and texture that the salad needs. Not only do they balance the flavor, they make each bite a bit more dynamic.
And that’s it for this Tahini Caesar Salad! If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you.
Tahini Caesar Salad
Equipment
- 1 chef's knife
- 1 rasp-style grater
- 1 wooden spoon
- 1 Whisk
Ingredients
- 1 head romaine lettuce
- 1/2 cup fresh dill
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 lemon for both zest and juice
- 4 flat-packed anchovy fillets
- 2 tablespoons tahini the more drizzly, the better
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons cool water if needed
- 2 ounces fresh parmesan for grating
- 1/4 cup Fennel Seed Taralli (crushed into crumbs) or toasted breadcrumbs for topping
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Halve the romaine crosswise and tear off any wilty leaves. Cut off the base of the romaine and pull apart the leaves. Wash and dry these very well in a salad spinner.
- Roughly chop the dill and set aside.
- To a large bowl, grate in the garlic cloves. Grate in the zest from half of the lemon. Squeeze in the juice from half the lemon (about 2 tablespoons) and add the anchovy fillets. Use a wooden spoon to bread the anchovies into the zest and garlic.
- Add in the tahini and mix to combine.
- Switch to using a whisk, and while whisking constantly, drizzle in the olive oil. The tahini will begin to seize up into a creamy sauce. It will reach a smooth dressing consistency, but if it looks a bit broken, switch to the water and drizzle that in the same way, whisking constantly. A creamy dressing should form. Taste and season with salt as preferred, but I find it never needs it.
- Add the romaine and dill to the bowl and mix to coat in the dressing.
- Transfer the salad to a serving plate and grate over the parmesan. Top with the taralli or toasted breadcrumbs, grate on some freshly ground pepper and serve!
Doubling this one next time! She’s a keeper.
Made this two nights in a row! I’m vegan, so I did a tsp of capers and brine (mashed with the back of a fork) and a heaping tsp of white miso instead of anchovies. It really is worth it to make sure it’s fully emulsified! And I am so pro dill and breadcrumbs on this salad.
Omg YAY TEAM DILL. And thanks for this intel for the vegan community, I’m sure it’ll help others looking to make it!
OMG! This was amazing!!! Thank you.
YAY – sorry for the delay in my reply, but I’m so happy you liked it!
So amazing! I added toasted pine nuts to it!
YAY I’m so thrilled you liked it!
Tasty and simple. I make sure to have a double batch of the dressing every week. Thank you for sharing your recipe!!
So glad you like it!!