May 19, 2008

Lechon Kawali Caesar Salad

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a match made in heaven: lechon kawali and Caesar salad

After reading about the much maligned Chicken Caesar Salad in Michael Ruhlman's blog and his improved version with pork belly confit in place of chicken, I was convinced and made Caesar salad topped with Filipino lechon kawali or bagnet which is the same thing as the pork confit, btw, only crispier and yummier, IMHO. The salad dressing I have been using is the recipe I learned from the sous chef of all places, the Asian Development Bank executive dining room. The sous chef, I can't recall her name, gave a half-day lesson to bank employees who were interested on how to prepare a few popular dishes the dining room had in their menu at the time. One of my favorites is Caesar salad and the other that I never wrote down but still remember from memory is Quiche Lorraine. I don't have precise measurements for the salad's dressing and the following is just a guide which can be adjusted to suit your taste. Or you can prepare your own recipe and top the salad with lechon kawali. I never knew this combination is really delicious, unhealthy but indescribably delicious.

Lechon Kawali Caesar Salad
chopped lechon kawali, homemade or store bought
hearts of romaine, torn into largish pieces
garlic flavored croutons, homemade or store bought
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons lemon or calamansi juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 anchovy fillets in olive oil
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
shaved Parmesan for topping, optional
  • In a large bowl, whisk egg yolk, lemon juice, mustard, anchovies, and wooster sauce until well combined and thickened a bit. Slowly pour olive oil while constantly whisking. Stir in grated Parmesan cheese.
  • In another bowl, toss some lettuce and dressing. Transfer into a salad plate and top with croutons and chopped lechon kawali.
Marvin of Burnt Lumpia made a yummy, delightful, and very creative version of Caesar salad using some of our beloved Filipino ingredients such as pandesal, bagoong alamang, and chicken adobo. His wonderful recipe is here. Enjoy!


9 comments:

raissa said...

wow! I dont think its an unhealthy option to mix greens and fried pork. Its more like a trade off hahahah. Good one Oggi!

Chibog in Chief said...

goodness this is so good oggi!! but i think i will definitely eat this with a bowl of rice :-) LOL pinoy na pinoy talaga ang panlasa ko ..

caninecologne said...

wow! that salad looks delicious!!!

i was just thinking of buying some lechon kawali at our local Filipino store - so I could put it in pinakbet...now, here's another option!

Oggi said...

Raissa, I think you're right..the dish is balanced with all the food groups included: meat, veggies, carbs, egg, cheese..:)

Dhanggit, I ate the leftover lechon with rice and vinegar dipping.:)

Caninecologne, the salad is really yummy.
Store bought lechon kawali is sometimes better...I once ate at a turo-turo here in Virginia, their lechon kawali and caldereta are so delicious..it's a good thing the store is an hour drive from my house or I'll eat there every weekend if not everyday!:)

Anonymous said...

Such a nice way to "balance" the fattiness of the pork with lettuce;)

Ok, so maybe it's not much of a balance, but I'm sure it's soooo good!

 gmirage said...

It looks healthy nga but lechon means fats, ok lang sarap naman eh! And there's no vinegar ba? =D

Btw, here I is the link for food friday: http://lifesnippets.net/ ...see you!

Oggi said...

Marvin, anything with fatty crispy pork is goood.:)

gizelle, the dressing uses lemon juice not vinegar so you'll like it.:)
Thanks for the link.:)

Anonymous said...

who needs croutons! this is the way to go!

Oggi said...

Paoix, so true..the crunch from the crispy pork skin won't make you miss the croutons that much.:)

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