Why the Caesar salad is a perfect match for Texas barbecue.
Who goes to a barbecue joint to eat a salad?
Apparently, quite a few people. Salads continue to make inroads on expanded barbecue joint menus, with one in particular taking a leading role: the Caesar salad.
Why does a Caesar make the most sense? It comes down to guest expectations and the flavors associated with smoked meats in Texas.
The Caesar salad, like gumbo and cornbread, has reached that elite level of American culinary lore — everyone has an opinion about the best version and recipe. Croutons or toast? Chopped or whole leaves of Romaine lettuce?
However, unlike other traditional dishes with murky provenance, the Caesar has a traceable history and original recipe. Though often associated with Italian American restaurants, the salad originated in Tijuana, Mexico.
I remember many years ago attending a dinner sponsored by the national tourism office of Mexico at Hugo’s restaurant in Houston. The dinner featured the “greatest hits” of traditional Mexican cuisine, including chiles en nogada, cochinita pibil and Caesar salad. More than a few food writers were scratching their heads.
Indeed, the “Caesar’s salad” originated at the Hotel Caesar in Tijuana in the 1920s. Attributed to Italian immigrant Caesar Cardini and his brother Alex, the recipe features whole leaves of Romaine lettuce tossed in a rich dressing of raw or coddled egg yolks, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, anchovies and Parmesan cheese.
The savory and salty flavor of the salad is undoubtedly what makes it so popular among American palates. This flavor profile also connects the Caesar salad to Texas barbecue.
Why do Texans love barbecue so much? Among many other things, the salty, smoky, fatty flavor of barbecue satisfies a deeply held instinct of human food consumption.
The scientific term for this type of flavor is “umami” and refers to the richness of meat and other fatty foods and intensely flavored ingredients. When we visit a barbecue joint, we are conditioned to expect a wave of savory, fatty goodness. Caesar ingredients, such as Worcestershire sauce, Parmesan, anchovies and egg yolks, offer the same savory, salty, umami-laden goodness.
Recently, I’ve come across several great examples of the Caesar salad being incorporated into Texas barbecue.
At Redbird BBQ in Port Neches, pitmaster Amir Jalali, a self-proclaimed Caesar salad fanatic, has transformed traditional coleslaw with chopped Romaine lettuce and a dressing that substitutes the old-school mayonnaise-based version with a creamy, savory Parmesan-tinged variation.
Co-owners Will and Nichole Buckman of CorkScrew BBQ in Spring have teamed up with chef Austin Simmons, formerly of Tris restaurant in The Woodlands, to create a Caesar salad that’s optionally served as a sandwich with brisket (“TRIS-ket” sandwich).
And at Feges BBQ – Spring Branch, the Caesar salad features whole leaves of Romaine lettuce that have been charred on the grill, adding a uniquely smoky flavor to a dish that is no longer just an afterthought on a barbecue joint menu.
