This is a simple kale salad with a garlicky Caesar dressing. Add the
crispy bacon or pancetta, homemade croutons, and some shavings of Pecorino
cheese for a salad bursting with flavor and crunch!
Note: For years now I have been baking bacon on a rack over a sheet pan or on a broiler pan at 400 degrees in the oven, allowing the fat to drip below, and the bacon to get crisp. It usually takes about 20 to 25 minutes, turning once carefully with tongs. No more messy frying in a skillet soaking in the fat as it cooks! Simply remove to a paper towel lined plate and blot dry with a paper towel, before serving, or continuing with recipe.
Back to the kale salad…
Along with the bacon or pancetta, homemade (or store bought) croutons, and sharp Pecorino, when tossed with the delicious Caesar dressing even those who think they don’t like kale may change their minds.
Kale Salad with Bacon and Pecorino (serves 4)
(adapted from Kale Salad with Pancetta and Pecorino, Ina Garten, Cooking for Jeffrey)
Ingredients
4 anchovy fillets, drained
1 large garlic clove
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, at room temperature (about 2 lemons)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2/3 cup good olive oil, plus extra to cook the pancetta, (if using)
¼ cup freshly grated Italian Pecorino cheese
1 pound kale (lacinato , Tuscan, or curly )
4 ounces pancetta, or bacon, small diced
1 cup (½-inch-diced bread cubes, crusts removed
½ cup shaved Italian Pecorino cheese (2 ounces)
For the dressing
Place the anchovies, garlic, mustard, egg yolks, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 and ½ teaspoon pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade.
Process for 30 seconds, until smooth. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil through the feed tube, until the mixture emulsifies.
Add the grated Pecorino and process just until combined.
Transfer to a container and refrigerate until ready to use.
For the salad
Wash the kale and spin it dry in a salad spinner. Remove the rib from each leaf.
Stack the leaves and slice them thinly crosswise, as you would cole slaw.
Place the kale in a large bowl and toss with enough dressing to moisten.
If using pancetta, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium (10-inch) saute pan. Add the pancetta and cook over medium heat for 6 to 8 minutes, tossing frequently, until browned and crisp.
Transfer the pancetta with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with paper towels.
Add the bread cubes to the pan, sprinkle with salt, and saute for 5 to 7 minutes, tossing frequently, until evenly browned.
Add the pancetta, toasted bread, and shaved Pecorino to the kale and toss with large spoons. Serve at room temperature.
Make ahead : Prepare the dressing, slice the kale, and store in the fridge. Before serving, cook the pancetta or bacon and toasted bread cubes, toss the kale with the dressing, and complete the recipe.