Cobb Salad with Roasted Sweet Onion Dressing Recipe

Southern Cobb Salad with Roasted Sweet Onion Dressing — Every good barbecue has a fresh salad on the side. Photo: © Con Poulos

Total Time:

1 hr 15 mins

Yield:

4 to 6

Chef Sean Doty roasts sweet Vidalia onion and garlic until they are lightly charred, then purees them to make the apple cider vinaigrette that gives this Cobb salad its tang and depth of flavor. The dressing will keep in the refrigerator; so make it in advance if you like.

To assemble this salad like Doty does at his restaurant, arrange the shredded chicken, blue cheese, tomatoes, cooked bacon pieces, buckwheat sprouts, corn kernels, and toasted pecans over the top of a bowl of fresh mixed greens that have been tossed with a bit of the dressing. Offer more of the charred vinaigrette on the side — it lends the salad a toasty flavor that ties all the ingredients together. This is a great salad to bring to a potluck, barbecue or to prep ahead for lunch at the office.

Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

Dressing

6 cloves garlic (unpeeled)
2 Vidalia onions (large; 1 1/ pounds peeled and quartered through the core)
1 ¼ cups vegetable oil (plus more for brushing)
½ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper

Salad

10 cups mixed lettuces (lightly packed; 8 ounces)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 cups cooked chicken (shredded)
1 cup corn kernels (cooked fresh or thawed frozen)
1 cup buckwheat or radish sprouts
4 ounces blue cheese (1 cup crumbled)
½ cup cooked bacon (crumbled)
1 Hass avocado (peeled and diced)
1 tomato (medium diced)
½ cup toasted pecans (chopped)
2 hard-cooked eggs (peeled and sliced lengthwise)

Directions

Make the Dressing

Preheat oven to 425°F. Wrap garlic cloves in foil and set on a rimmed baking sheet. Brush onions with oil and arrange on the baking sheet. Bake for about 1 hour, until onions and garlic are lightly charred and soft. Let cool.
Peel garlic and transfer cloves to a blender. Add onions, cider vinegar and lemon juice and puree until smooth. With blender on, gradually add vegetable oil until incorporated. Season dressing with salt and pepper.

Make the Salad

In a large bowl, toss lettuces with 1/2 cup of the dressing and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl or platter. Arrange remaining ingredients on top and serve, passing remaining dressing at the table.

Make Ahead

The onion dressing can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.

Suggested Pairing

Medium-bodied Sauvignon Blanc has enough heft to go with ingredients like bacon and eggs and enough brightness to stand up to vinegary dressings. Pour a Sancerre.

Originally appeared: September 2013

Cobb Salad with Roasted Sweet Onion Dressing