Monday, July 12, 2004

The Great Chicken Caesar Salad Debate

According to Merriam-Webster Online:

Caesar salad, noun, a tossed salad usually made of romaine, garlic, anchovies, and croutons and dressed with olive oil, coddled egg, lemon juice, and grated cheese
Well, what the hell does Merriam-Webster know anyway, huh?!?!

The modern American Caesar Salad doesn't quite resemble this older recipe, but that doesn't make the new recipe any less valid. The common incarnation is composed of grilled chicken (natch), Romaine lettuce, Parmesan cheese, Caesar dressing, and croutons. It has proved so popular a salad that there are very few restaurants that do not serve either a Caesar salad as a side or a Chicken Caesar as a main entree.

Now, you'd think that such a simple recipe would be hard to screw up, but it can be done. I happen to very much enjoy a good Chicken Caesar Salad, so I plan on posting reviews of different ones at different restaurants, starting tomorrow with one of my favorites at Panera. Stay tuned (all two of you).

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