Deconstructed Chicken Caesar Salad on the Grill – Printable Recipe

Ingredients

Ingredients for the Caesar Dressing
• 4-5 anchovy fillets packed in oil (depending on your taste)
• 1 large garlic clove
• Kosher salt
• 2 egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice (can add additional to taste)
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Dash of Worchester sauce
• ½ cup olive oil
• 4-5 tablespoons finely grated parmesan
• Black pepper

Ingredients for the Grilled Salad
• 2 Bone-in chicken breasts with skin and ribs attached or 2 chicken quarters
• Salt and pepper
• Caesar dressing
• 1 cup Balsamic vinegar
• Head of Romaine lettuce cut lengthwise into halves or quarters
• French Bread in a loaf, cut into 1 inch slices
• Olive oil
• Parmesan cheese – shaved into strips (I used a vegetable peeler)
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

Make the Caesar dressing:
1. In your food processor or blender, place the anchovy fillets, the garlic, and a large pinch of salt. Process until all ingredients are well chopped up and pasty in appearance. (If you are not using an appliance, chop the three ingredients up on a cutting board and mash together with a knife until it becomes a paste. Then add the paste to your mixing bowl and whisk each time I say “process.”)
2. Stop the processor and add the egg yolks, lemon juice, mustard and Worchester sauce. Process until the anchovy-garlic paste is well incorporated (about 5-8 seconds).
3. With the processor running, slowly pour in the olive oil until the dressing is well incorporated and thick. Stop the processor, add the parmesan. Process for a few more seconds to fully incorporate into the dressing. Taste and season with more salt, lemon juice, or pepper as needed.
4. If you are not using the dressing right away, place in an airtight container in the refrigerator for one or two days. If you are storing overnight, I have found that the anchovy flavor is heightened. Add more lemon juice before serving if you find the anchovy flavor is overpowering.

Make the Deconstructed Salad:
1. Place your chicken in a bowl and season both sides of the meat with salt and pepper. Pour about half of the Caesar dressing on top. Reserve the rest of the dressing/marinade for later use. Coat the chicken with the dressing and make sure to get it underneath the skin. Place the bowl in the refrigerator and allow to marinate for one hour. Remove from the fridge approximately 10-15 minutes before cooking to take the chill off.
2. While the chicken is marinating, pour the balsamic vinegar into a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Allow the vinegar to reduce until it develops a syrupy consistency (about 5-8 minutes). Remove from heat and put to the side.
3. Preheat your grill (or grill pan) to about 450 degrees. Remove the chicken from the marinade and place skin side down on the grill. If using an actual grill, turn the burners directly underneath the chicken down to low heat in order to prevent flare-ups.
4. Cook the chicken, flipping occasionally, until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees. Depending on the size of your chicken pieces, this could take roughly 15 minutes per side. Once the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees, remove from the grill and let rest for 10-15 minutes to allow the juices to redistribute throughout the meat.
5. While the chicken is cooking, lightly coat your Romaine lettuce wedges the excess Caesar dressing. Set aside. Lightly brush each side of the bread slices with olive oil and set aside also.
6. After the chicken has cooked through and has been removed from the grill, place the prepared Romaine wedges on the grates using tongs. Place the oiled bread slices alongside the lettuce; you want both the lettuce and bread to develop some nice grill marks. Keep a close eye on the lettuce to make sure it doesn’t burn and rotate every few minutes to ensure an even sear. Flip the bread half-way through to cook both sides. If you feel like things are cooking too quickly or not quickly enough, adjust the heat of the burners accordingly. Remove items from the grill after the lettuce has been seared on all sides and the bread is crispy on the outside, but still soft in the middle. This should take about 5 minutes.

Assembly:
1. Place the bread slices on a plate. Put the shaved parmesan on top of the bread. Drizzle some of reserved Caesar dressing over the top of the parmesan.
2. Place a lettuce wedge on top of the bread, followed by a piece of chicken. Drizzle some additional Caesar dressing on top of the chicken and around the plate. Now drizzle some of the balsamic reduction around the plate and across the stacked chicken.
3. Crumble a few additional shavings of parmesan on top of the dish as a garnish. Serve the leftover balsamic reduction alongside the dish.

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