Uploaded April 2023 | Updated September 2026, 20 hours ago
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The wedge salad is one of those classic recipes from the middle of the last century which is perhaps just coming back into vogue again. I was inspired to make it when I realized that local farmers were offering iceberg lettuce for sale. This is a pretty classic approach to the salad, with a creamy blue cheese dressing, bacon, and crispy croutons. For those who’d rather avoid blue cheese, the salad may also be made with ranch dressing or another similarly creamy dressing.
Make all the components in advance, and then come back to finish the salad whenever the time is right. Crisping up the bacon and then using its grease to make the croutons can take upwards of an hour, but it can also be done in advance. The bacon need not be warm in the salad (but they should not be cold), and the croutons will even hold overnight. The pickles only benefit from sitting in their brine longer.
Certainly some parts of the procedure may be omitted: for instance, if you have fresh tomatoes straight from the garden, do not salt or drain them but just use them as they are. Similarly, if you already possess some form of onion pickle or prefer some other pickle, that might also be made to work as long as it is not too sweet. The croutons are really optional, but making them does extend the bacony elements of the salad, and also provides a nice textural variation to the dish. To avoid gluten, consider replacing them with toasted pepitas (though I do not recommend toasting them in the bacon fat).
Makes enough for 4 people, using 1 head of iceberg lettuce.
Equipment:
• 2 or 3 mixing bowls
• strainer
• skillet, optionally two skillets: one for bacon and one for croutons
• optional: sheet pan for toasting croutons in the oven instead
Ingredients:
1 head iceberg lettuce
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup red onion diced small
1/4 lb bacon pieces lardons, or pieces of preferred size
2 oz bread 1 or 2 slices, shredded
1/4 lb tomato cut, salted and drained
Blue cheese dressing:
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream or good full-fat yogurt
2 oz blue cheese crumbled
1-2 Tbsp buttermilk
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp parsley minced
to taste s&p, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce
Procedure:
1. Place the bacon skillet over medium heat and add the bacon to the pan and let it slowly brown and release its grease.
2. Prepare the tomatoes by cutting them to a good salad size: quarters or eighths for cherry or grape tomatoes, or medium dice for regular tomatoes.
3. Place the tomatoes into a small, nonreactive mixing bowl or a glass measuring cup. Salt them a bit and let them stand. They can stand in a strainer or in a bowl and be strained at the end for a few minutes.
4. Dice the red onion small and combine it with the vinegar in a small nonreactive bowl or glass measuring cup. Let it stand until time to make the salad.
5. Shred the bread with a bread knife, or by hand, or potentially in a food processor if need be.
6. Once the bacon is done, remove it from the pan and let it cool.
7. In the same or a separate skillet, toast the bread shreds with some or all of the bacon grease.
8. Let the croutons toast for about 15 minutes over medium-low heat so that it becomes crispy before it becomes profoundly toasty.
9. To prepare the salad dressing, start by crumbling the blue cheese in a mixing bowl with a fork.
10. Once it has been crumbled or at least loosened, mix in the sour cream, mayonnaise, buttermilk, lemon juice, parsley, salt, pepper, Worcestershire and Tabasco sauces.
11. Mix well and adjust seasonings to taste.
12. To finish the salad, cut wedges (generally quarters) of iceberg lettuce held together by the stem.
13. Place the wedges on a dish cut point up, and drizzle liberally with the dressing.
14. Garnish the dressed wedges with drained tomatoes, bacon pieces, croutons, quick red-onion-pickle relish, and chopped herbs such as parsley or chives.
15. Enjoy as an entree, possibly with the addition of boiled egg for additional protein, or as a side for any number of regular entrees.
Music: bensound.com/royalty-free-music
Check our our Patreon!
patreon.com/loveyourfood
Need a kitchen thermometer? Check out ChefsTemp! Use code LoveYourFood for 15% off a meat thermometer!
shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=2084649&u=3322095&m=111859&urllink=&afftrack=
The wedge salad is one of those classic recipes from the middle of the last century which is perhaps just coming back into vogue again. I was inspired to make it when I realized that local farmers were offering iceberg lettuce for sale. This is a pretty classic approach to the salad, with a creamy blue cheese dressing, bacon, and crispy croutons. For those who’d rather avoid blue cheese, the salad may also be made with ranch dressing or another similarly creamy dressing.
Make all the components in advance, and then come back to finish the salad whenever the time is right. Crisping up the bacon and then using its grease to make the croutons can take upwards of an hour, but it can also be done in advance. The bacon need not be warm in the salad (but they should not be cold), and the croutons will even hold overnight. The pickles only benefit from sitting in their brine longer.
Certainly some parts of the procedure may be omitted: for instance, if you have fresh tomatoes straight from the garden, do not salt or drain them but just use them as they are. Similarly, if you already possess some form of onion pickle or prefer some other pickle, that might also be made to work as long as it is not too sweet. The croutons are really optional, but making them does extend the bacony elements of the salad, and also provides a nice textural variation to the dish. To avoid gluten, consider replacing them with toasted pepitas (though I do not recommend toasting them in the bacon fat).
Makes enough for 4 people, using 1 head of iceberg lettuce.
Equipment:
• 2 or 3 mixing bowls
• strainer
• skillet, optionally two skillets: one for bacon and one for croutons
• optional: sheet pan for toasting croutons in the oven instead
Ingredients:
1 head iceberg lettuce
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup red onion diced small
1/4 lb bacon pieces lardons, or pieces of preferred size
2 oz bread 1 or 2 slices, shredded
1/4 lb tomato cut, salted and drained
Blue cheese dressing:
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream or good full-fat yogurt
2 oz blue cheese crumbled
1-2 Tbsp buttermilk
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp parsley minced
to taste s&p, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce
Procedure:
1. Place the bacon skillet over medium heat and add the bacon to the pan and let it slowly brown and release its grease.
2. Prepare the tomatoes by cutting them to a good salad size: quarters or eighths for cherry or grape tomatoes, or medium dice for regular tomatoes.
3. Place the tomatoes into a small, nonreactive mixing bowl or a glass measuring cup. Salt them a bit and let them stand. They can stand in a strainer or in a bowl and be strained at the end for a few minutes.
4. Dice the red onion small and combine it with the vinegar in a small nonreactive bowl or glass measuring cup. Let it stand until time to make the salad.
5. Shred the bread with a bread knife, or by hand, or potentially in a food processor if need be.
6. Once the bacon is done, remove it from the pan and let it cool.
7. In the same or a separate skillet, toast the bread shreds with some or all of the bacon grease.
8. Let the croutons toast for about 15 minutes over medium-low heat so that it becomes crispy before it becomes profoundly toasty.
9. To prepare the salad dressing, start by crumbling the blue cheese in a mixing bowl with a fork.
10. Once it has been crumbled or at least loosened, mix in the sour cream, mayonnaise, buttermilk, lemon juice, parsley, salt, pepper, Worcestershire and Tabasco sauces.
11. Mix well and adjust seasonings to taste.
12. To finish the salad, cut wedges (generally quarters) of iceberg lettuce held together by the stem.
13. Place the wedges on a dish cut point up, and drizzle liberally with the dressing.
14. Garnish the dressed wedges with drained tomatoes, bacon pieces, croutons, quick red-onion-pickle relish, and chopped herbs such as parsley or chives.
15. Enjoy as an entree, possibly with the addition of boiled egg for additional protein, or as a side for any number of regular entrees.
Music: bensound.com/royalty-free-music
