Old-School Bleu Cheese Wedge Salad Recipe
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The wedge salad is a classic American steakhouse staple, and for good reason. The old-school wedge consists of a crisp, intact, quartered head of iceberg lettuce topped with bleu cheese, tomatoes, bacon, and onions all drizzled with a creamy, bleu cheese-studded dressing. It's a simple yet dressy appetizer or side dish that offers cool and fresh flavors culinarily contrasting their sizzling steak counterparts (the steak is technically optional, but it does make for a perfect pairing).
There's a lot of contested history around the wedge salad and how it specifically became a steakhouse staple, mostly centered around credited invention and first menu appearance. The one thing that is not contested is the steakhouse responsible for putting this salad on the global menu map: Delmonico's. This New York City establishment is widely considered ground zero for many early-to-mid 20th century fine dining trends, and at the very least, it no doubt popularized the wedge salad we all know and love today.
As much as I love a good steak, I absolutely don't need one present to thoroughly enjoy a steakhouse wedge. To honor the traditional elements of the iconic salad in this old-school bleu cheese wedge salad recipe, I made sure to include a creamy-tangy homemade bleu cheese dressing and crispy frizzled onions in addition to the iceberg lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and bacon.
Gather the old-school bleu cheese wedge salad ingredients
To make the creamy bleu cheese dressing, you will need mayonnaise, sour cream, bleu cheese crumbles, fresh chives, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, rice vinegar (you can also use apple cider vinegar), whole milk, black pepper, and salt.
For constructing the salad and for crafting the crispy onions, you will need bacon, yellow onions, olive oil, iceberg lettuce, and cherry tomatoes.
Step 1: Add dressing ingredients to bowl
To make the salad dressing, place the mayonnaise, sour cream, ⅓ cup bleu cheese crumbles, 1 tablespoon chopped chives, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, rice vinegar, milk, black pepper, and salt in a medium bowl.
Step 2: Combine the dressing
Stir to combine the dressing, cover, and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Step 3: Place bacon in a skillet
Place bacon in a large skillet over medium heat.
Step 4: Cook the bacon
Cook the bacon until crisp and, using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the skillet and set aside to drain on paper towels. Reserve the pan drippings in the skillet.
Step 5: Dry the onions
Thoroughly pat the onions dry with paper towels.
Step 6: Add olive oil to the skillet
Add the olive oil to the skillet with the pan drippings and whisk to combine (you want about ½-inch of oil in the skillet, add additional oil if necessary). Heat the oil and pan drippings over medium heat until the temperature reaches 300 to 350 F.
Step 7: Fry the onions
Once hot, add the sliced onions in batches, and fry until golden and crisp, about 2 minutes.
Step 8: Drain the onions
Using a slotted spoon, remove the fried onions from the oil, and set aside to drain with the bacon.
Step 9: Assemble the wedge salads
To assemble the salads, divide the iceberg quarters between plates.
Step 10: Top wedges with salad dressing
Generously top the lettuce with dressing.
Step 11: Top with tomatoes, bleu cheese, and bacon
Top with the halved cherry tomatoes, the remaining ⅓ cup of bleu cheese crumbles, and the bacon.
Step 12: Top with fried onions and chives
Sprinkle with the fried onions and remaining 2 tablespoons of chives before serving. Serve with any remaining dressing on the side.
What to serve with old-school bleu cheese wedge salads
Old-School Bleu Cheese Wedge Salad Recipe
This bleu cheese wedge salad recipe keeps things old-school with inclusions like a creamy bleu cheese dressing, crispy bacon, tomatoes, and crispy onions.
Ingredients
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup sour cream
- ⅔ cup bleu cheese crumbles, divided
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives, divided
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon whole milk
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 slices bacon, diced
- ¾ cup thinly sliced yellow onion
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 head iceberg lettuce, quartered
- 2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
Directions
- To make the salad dressing, place the mayonnaise, sour cream, ⅓ cup bleu cheese crumbles, 1 tablespoon chopped chives, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, rice vinegar, milk, black pepper, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Stir to combine the dressing, cover, and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Place bacon in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Cook the bacon until crisp and, using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the skillet and set aside to drain on paper towels. Reserve the pan drippings in the skillet.
- Thoroughly pat the onions dry with paper towels.
- Add the olive oil to the skillet with the pan drippings and whisk to combine (you want about ½-inch of oil in the skillet, add additional oil if necessary). Heat the oil and pan drippings over medium heat until the temperature reaches 300 to 350 F.
- Once hot, add the sliced onions in batches, and fry until golden and crisp, about 2 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the fried onions from the oil, and set aside to drain with the bacon.
- To assemble the salads, divide the iceberg quarters between plates.
- Generously top the lettuce with dressing.
- Top with the halved cherry tomatoes, the remaining ⅓ cup of bleu cheese crumbles, and the bacon.
- Sprinkle with the fried onions and remaining 2 tablespoons of chives before serving. Serve with any remaining dressing on the side.
What types of bleu cheese would work best for this wedge salad recipe?
There is a whole multiverse of bleu cheese options available to us, so it can be daunting trying to pick the right one for a salad. The best bleu cheese for your wedge salad is really a matter of taste and functionality. Being that bleu cheese is serving two functions in this recipe, you might even want to consider multiple types.
For the dressing, I recommend a mild, creamy bleu: Gorgonzola, Danish, Cashel or Maytag. These cheeses offer a nice richness that mixes and melds well for a drizzly dressing. Their flavor is relatively mellow for bleu cheese and appeals to those who prefer something less pungent or sharp. Gorgonzola is an excellent multi-purpose choice for this recipe as it crumbles well for topping the salad.
Speaking of crumbles, you could use a different bleu cheese here to include something with a little more gusto. Stilton, Roquefort, and Cabrales are considered stronger, more pungent bleu cheeses. These are aged for longer than the options I listed for the dressing, making them sharper tasting and, often, more crumbly (since they have less moisture).
What tips do you have for frying onions?
I love this style of crispy, frizzled onion, since we conveniently don't have to coat or bread them. They fry naturally into this perfectly crisp and concentrated bite of oniony bliss. Here are my top tips for achieving these fantastic frizzles.
First, make sure they are thin and dry. I use a mandolin when slicing my onions — this helps achieve a uniformity to my onion slices that ensures even browning and crisping. Drying the onions also helps with even browning and crisping. So, make sure to give them a thorough pat and press between sheets of paper towels.
Since we are using a blended oil to fry the onions, a combination of bacon drippings and olive oil, we want to make sure our oil temp doesn't exceed 350 F. Bacon drippings can burn and result in acrid tasting onions. It's best to use a digital thermometer to gauge and maintain our temperature. You don't have to use the bacon drippings (even though they make for a really tasty, savory onion). Frying in a neutral oil or solely in olive oil will work just as well.
Lastly, don't overcrowd your skillet. Make sure to give your onions plenty of contact space with the oil for an even fry. These onions fry quickly, so working in batches doesn't add much to our prep time.