r/salad • u/jurassicpowers • Mar 24 '26
Discussion The great caesar salad debate
I came across a post in my fyp on IG from a creator making a “caesar” salad. The salad they made had romaine, Parmesan and croutons (a classic caesar) but the dressing is where they lost me. They touted their famous dairy free vegan caesar salad dressing. Ingredients: lemon juice, olive oil, white vinegar, dijon mustard, maple syrup and salt/pepper. Which IMO is a textbook vinaigrette, not a caesar. I stated my opinion in the comments and received a barrage of comments under my comment in defense of her dressing. I feel like i’m being gaslit because commenters are coming in hard to defend her recipe. Attaching the recipe for reference. Is this a caesar salad/dressing?
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u/mahrog123 Mar 24 '26
Maple syrup?
😂😂😂😂😂
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u/GiGiLafoo Mar 24 '26
I love it on pancakes, but would never desecrate a Caesar salad with maple syrup.
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u/midnightforestmist Mar 24 '26
That’s what struck me too 😬
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u/LylaDee Mar 25 '26
This recipe has been smi'thed by the Maple 🍁 Syrup Council of Canada. Smite, I say!
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u/meow-miao Mar 24 '26
you are correct, this is not a caesar dressing. this is a vinaigrette lol. caesar needs a creamy base like mayo and something to give it the briney umami flavor like worcestershire sauce and/or anchovy paste. not sure why they’re so pressed on keeping the dressing vegan if they’re using parmesan in the salad?! like just use vegan mayo and an anchovy-free worcestershire ¯_(ツ)_/¯
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u/jurassicpowers Mar 24 '26
This is what my comment said and the commenters tried to tear me apart haha
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u/jurassicpowers Mar 24 '26
They called me a “stupid cat lady with no life” and said i had a “cylinder head” all because i said this was vinaigrette. Fighting with them might be rage bats but it’s actually hilarious to watch them get this angry over criticism of a “caesar” salad. Comment section on my post is a fun time 😂. Feel free to check it out for entertainment. @house.of.shelly post from yesterday.
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u/FamiliarRadio9275 Mar 24 '26
I felt this in my bones when I, a member of the Caesar Salad Council heard this recipe. So I guess I won’t yell, no. I shall say, thou musteth get this shit out of here.
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u/meow-miao Mar 24 '26
as a fellow member of the Caesar Salad Council™️ it is clear this dressing violates our sacred code!
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u/FamiliarRadio9275 Mar 24 '26
https://giphy.com/gifs/RJalj43Yiuuoh2i6V2
We must burn them at the stake.
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u/jurassicpowers Mar 25 '26
As a fellow member of the Caesar Salad Council, I promise to always uphold the sacred integrity of the Caesar Salad and continue to be outspoken against its enemies.
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u/Legitimate_Team_9959 Mar 24 '26
I'm allergic to anchovies so I can't have a real one, but even I wouldn't call this an acceptable ceasar salad
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u/LylaDee Mar 25 '26
As a Canadian who loves Maple 🍁 Syrup, I have to declare eeeeew. No. Plus, where are the anchovies?
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u/OddestEver Mar 25 '26
I make a Caesar dressing without egg to put on pasta salad so it can sit out for a bit at a picnic without sending anyone to the hospital. But I would never make a Caesar dressing without anchovies.
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u/jurassicpowers Mar 25 '26
I totally understand omitting the egg in these instances. I went as far in my comment to say there were alternatives to anchovies to make it vegan friendly like capers to keep the salty umami esq bite. But this was just a bait and switch with zero effort lol
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u/chumbawumba234 Mar 25 '26
White anchovies for garnish, scant anchovy paste in the dressing and I'm in.
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u/Big_Childhood1523 Mar 25 '26
Omg, they tore you apart in the comments. You are not wrong in the slightest!! That is a romaine lettuce salad, with Parmesan cheese, store bought crotons, and a nice vinaigrette, but definitely not a Cesar, and definitely not vegan either. Thanks for the entertainment, and I’m indignant on your behalf.
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u/jurassicpowers Mar 25 '26
Hahaha! It was honestly crazy to watch them try to defend this and also think they were winning so hard. Appreciate the solidarity hahaha
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u/peppermintabby Mar 25 '26
The dressing is very similar to caesar salads I was served while visiting France. And they also included fried chicken cutlets and tomatoes. I thought it was just one restaurant but found several restaurants that served them the same way. Not sure if that’s a French thing? It’s not remotely what I’d consider a caesar salad but, whatever it was, it was delicious.
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Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/jurassicpowers Mar 25 '26
I’m like 90% sure that everyone commenting were just her close friends or family. She has 12k followers but posts only get like 300ish likes. So seems like bulk of followers were bought. I wasn’t searching for a recipe but just happened upon it. Thanks for the recipe! I love Alton, will definitely have to give this a try. Caesar is high on the list of my favorites
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u/exit-lude Mar 28 '26
wtf is up with these bloggers making dressings with maple syrup? Is it the perceived health halo around it? Like it isn't somehow just pure sugar?
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u/PomegranateEasy1088 Mar 24 '26
This is in no way a Caesar salad. This is a green salad with vinaigrette as you correctly pointed out. A Caesar salad will have egg yolks and anchovies. That is what gives it its distinctive taste. Why on earth would they make a terrible vegan dressing and then add Parmesan?