Leftover Turkey Caesar Salad
Our leftover turkey Caesar salad is a great way to use up Christmas leftovers! There's crispy bacon, crunchy croutons & a punchy Caesar dressing.
Servings: 4 People
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Baking Tray
- Microplane/Grater
- Frying Pan
- Peeler
Ingredients
Caesar Dressing
- 240 g Mayonnaise
- 30 g Grated Parmesan
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
- ¾ tsp Anchovy Paste Or 2-3 Anchovies
- 3 Cloves Garlic Grated
Lardons
- 8 Rashers Streaky Bacon Cut Into Lardons
- 1 tbsp Vegetable Oil
Croutons
- 4 Thick Slices White Bread
- ½ tsp Thyme Leaves Finely Chopped
Caesar Salad
- 4 Heads Cos/Little Gem Lettuces Washed In Cold Water
- 400 g Leftover Roast Turkey Cold
- Parmesan For Shaving
Instructions
Caesar Dressing
- Place the mayonnaise into a food processor then add in the parmesan, lemon juice, anchovy paste & grated garlic.
- Blitz until smooth then taste to check the seasoning, adding salt & pepper as needed.
- Transfer the dressing to a bowl then refrigerate until needed.
Bacon Lardons
- Place a frying pan over a medium heat & pour in the veg oil. Once hot, add in the bacon then cook until crispy, stirring regularly. This will take around 5 minutes.
- Once the lardons are cooked, transfer them into a bowl without the fat & set aside. Reserve the fat for the croutons.
Croutons
- Preheat an oven to 180°c/160°c fan (356°f/320°f).
- Cut the crusts off the bread then cut/tear into chunky croutons.
- Place onto a baking tray then drizzle over the reserved bacon fat & sprinkle on the chopped thyme. Season with salt & pepper then bake for 5-10 minutes, until golden brown & crisp. Make sure to shake the tray halfway through.
- Once cooked, remove the croutons from the oven & leave to cool completely before using.
Caesar Salad
- Trim the bottom off each lettuce then roughly chop & place into a large mixing bowl.
- Add in the lardons, croutons, a handful of parmesan shavings & all the dressing.
- Chop the leftover turkey into pieces then add into the mixing bowl.
- Give everything a good mix then transfer the salad into four bowls, making sure to distribute the meat & croutons evenly between each portion.
- Top each salad with a few parmesan shavings & a crack of black pepper then serve immediately.
Notes
1. Parmesan Shavings - The best way to shave parmesan is with a veg peeler. A good handful of shavings should be added to the salad & 3 or 4 shavings on top of each salad.
2. Mayonnaise - A good mayo makes all the difference to a Caesar dressing. I'd recommend Hellmann's.
3. Anchovies - For the Caesar dressing, you can either use ¾ tsp of anchovy paste or 2-3 anchovy fillets.
4. Turkey - This recipe uses leftover roast turkey. 400 grams gives each salad a generous amount but feel free to use more or less if you'd prefer. We're serving this cold.