Sabzi’s Caesar dressing

SABZI’s Caesar dressing

When it came to the time to write up a new recipe for you all, I was trying to think of one of our absolute classic, big-hitting favourites, both within the team and with our wonderful customers! Fleur, our Head Chef, adores this dressing and so it feels like a good one to share this time!

Sabzi’s Caesar Dressing is hard working – it’s amazing used across so many dishes…

Classic; shred your favourite lettuce, add as many greens as you’ve got to hand, and dress liberally. Serve alongside some roasted chicken, or crispy, oven baked chickpeas.

A slight twist on a classic Caesar; at this time of year Cornish cabbages are amazing; pick up a selection – I’d recommend savoy and hispi – cut into wedges and season well with salt, pepper, lemon and garlic. Roast on a fairly high heat until they’re slightly charred and buttery soft. Either keep the cabbage in wedges and arrange artfully on a platter, or shred them into delicate ribbons. While the cabbage is roasting add a couple of tins of chickpeas to a roasting tray with some roughly chopped croutons and roast these off while your cabbages are cooking (simply toss in oil with plenty of seasoning, juice of half a lemon and a couple of cloves of garlic and roast quickly for a delicious texture and flavour – if it’s just for you, you can just as easily get this effect using a pan on the hob to save heating up the oven – if you’re doing croutons too, add a bit more oil and a big sprig of rosemary to the tray/pan). When cooled and shredded, pile your cabbage, chickpeas, croutons and some parsley and chives if you have them into a big bowl and dress generously with the Caesar dressing. If dressing as wedges, simply scatter with the crispy chickpeas and croutons, drizzle liberally with the Caesar, and garnish with fresh herbs before enjoying. The joy of this version of a Caesar is that all the elements can be prepped easily in advance and then it comes together so quickly, and holds really well from a texture point of view, meaning it’s a brilliant dish to make for guests when you don’t want to feel under pressure.

As a dressing for an incredible potato salad; after either roasting or boiling your potatoes (this is lovely with a delicate new potato as well as a roastie) dress entirely or layer up with this gorgeous dressing. Add a handful of chopped dill pickles or some shredded baby spinach for some extra greens and tasty tang, and you’ve got the perfect picnic dish or accompaniment to a relaxed roast lunch.

An alternative slaw dressing; shred your favourite raw veg (I’d go for a mix of carrot and cabbage with plenty of apple for sweetness), add a generous handful of fresh herbs and massage with Caesar dressing.

Ingredients

Makes ½ litre dressing

• 350ml Greek yoghurt

• 4 cloves confit garlic

• 35ml garlic oil (from above technique or you could use olive oil of your choosing)

• 50ml lemon juice (bottled is fine)

• 35g wholegrain mustard

• 65g parmesan (plus extra to add to your dishes)

• Generous grind black pepper

• Approx. 30-50ml water (to loosen) 

• Salt, to taste

Method

Grate your parmesan on the finest grater blade you can find. Crush your garlic on a board to make a fine paste. Mix all of the ingredients together before, adding in parmesan. Taste, adjust seasoning and drizzle in water if needed to achieve desired consistency. Once your dressing has reached the desired consistency and flavour, feel free to add extra grated parmesan.