Charred Broccoli Salad with Yoghurt ‘Caesar’, Za’atar Croutons, Pickled Radish & Onions
I don’t eat a lot of meat and would say I’m vegan/veggie about 95% of the time — like this sally would suggest, I’m much more likely to be craving a nice bit of broccoli than chicken which is how this became one of my weeknight staples. You don’t need an explanation for it all, but the dressing is one of my favourites — I can’t be bothered to make Caesar from scratch after work and I also get twitchy about how much oil is in stuff (during the week only, weekends are a different story) so this is a quicker, lighter version that *doesn’t use anchovies* (shock horror, I know.) Even though I’m not a ‘chovy lover, I am partial to Lea & Perrins which I think makes a nice sub.
Serves: 2
Season: Spring/Summer
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Photography: Liam Desbois
Food Styling: Jodie Nixon
Prop Styling: Megan Thompson
Ingredients
For the salad
A rough guide, feel free to scale as you wish
1 big pack of tenderstem broccoli
1-2 heads of Romaine lettuce
Hunk of stale bread or a ciabatta roll
½ tbsp za’atar
Handful of radishes
1 red onion
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil + more for croutons
Parmesan or Pecorino for serving
For the fake Caeser-ish dressing
2 tbsp yoghurt
1/2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp worcestershire
1/4 garlic clove, grated
Squeeze of lemon
Lots of black pepper
Method
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First, finely slice your radishes and red onion. Put them into a small bowl and cover with white wine vinegar, ¼ tsp sugar and a pinch of salt, give them a good scrunch with your hands to get them going.
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Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan. Tear up the bread into 2cm pieces, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt, pepper and za’atar. Pop them them in the oven for about 15 minutes until golden and crisp.
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Heat a glug of oil in a pan over a high heat and fry the broccoli until charred and tender. Set aside whilst you roughly chop or tear the romaine.
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Whisk all the dressing ingredients together in a bowl.
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To serve, mix the salad-y bits in a large bowl with the fake caesar dressing, then top with parmesan shavings and pickled radishes and onions.
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