Equipment
Ingredients
Blue Cheese Dressing
- 120 g blue cheese, crumbled
- 80 ml buttermilk, well shaken
- 120 g sour cream, full fat
- 60 g mayonnaise
- 15 ml apple cider vinegar
- 2 g garlic powder
- 2 g black pepper, freshly cracked
- 2 g kosher salt
Salad
- 150 g thick-cut bacon, diced
- 1 iceberg lettuce, outer leaves removed, cored
- 150 g cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
- 10 g fresh chives, finely chopped
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 458 kcal
- Protein
- 15 g
- Carbohydrates
- 10 g
- Fat
- 40 g
- Fiber
- 3 g
- Sugar
- 7 g
- Sodium
- 1007 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 15 g
- Trans Fat
- 0 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 12 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 9 g
- Cholesterol
- 71 mg
- Potassium
- 457 mg
- Calcium
- 248 mg
- Iron
- 1.1 mg
- Magnesium
- 28 mg
- Phosphorus
- 239 mg
- Zinc
- 1.6 mg
- Vitamin A
- 167 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 6 mg
- Vitamin D
- 0.3 mcg
- Vitamin E
- 1.1 mg
- Vitamin K
- 63 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.2 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 0.6 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.19 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.24 mg
- Niacin
- 2.0 mg
- Folate
- 57 mcg
- Water
- 202 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Place the diced bacon in a cold frying pan over medium heat. Cook until the fat has rendered and the bacon is deeply golden and crispy, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Remove the bacon from the pan using a slotted spoon and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain excess fat. Set aside to cool.
In a mixing bowl, combine the sour cream, mayonnaise, buttermilk, apple cider vinegar, garlic powder, black pepper, and kosher salt. Whisk until smooth and completely incorporated.
Gently fold the crumbled blue cheese into the buttermilk mixture, leaving some larger chunks intact for texture.
Cover the dressing and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld and the dressing to thicken slightly.
Place the head of iceberg lettuce core-side down on a cutting board. Cut it in half, then cut each half again to create four equal wedges. Trim any excess core, but leave enough intact to hold the leaves together.
Place each lettuce wedge on a serving plate. Spoon a generous amount of the chilled blue cheese dressing over the top, allowing it to pool slightly at the base.
Scatter the crispy bacon bits and halved cherry tomatoes evenly over the dressed wedges. Garnish heavily with fresh chopped chives and an extra crack of black pepper.
Chef's Notes
- Temperature contrast is crucial here. Serve the iceberg lettuce ice-cold and the bacon slightly warm or at room temperature.
- For an extra layer of flavor, reserve one tablespoon of the rendered bacon fat and whisk it into the blue cheese dressing.
- If your blue cheese is very dense, mash a small portion of it into the sour cream base before folding in the rest of the crumbles. This intensifies the blue cheese flavor throughout the dressing.
- Do not dress the salad until the exact moment of serving. Iceberg lettuce releases a high amount of water and will dilute the dressing if left sitting.
Storage
Refrigerator: 1 week — Dressing only. Store in an airtight container.
Troubleshooting
Dressing is too thin and watery
Cause: Too much buttermilk added or dressing was not chilled long enough
Fix: Whisk in an additional spoonful of mayonnaise or sour cream to thicken
Prevention: Add buttermilk gradually until desired consistency is reached; always chill before serving
Lettuce wedges fall apart
Cause: The core was completely removed before slicing
Fix: Serve as a chopped salad instead
Prevention: Leave a small portion of the core intact when cutting the wedges to act as an anchor
Salad tastes watery
Cause: Lettuce was washed but not dried thoroughly
Fix: Cannot be fixed once dressed
Prevention: Pat the outside of the lettuce head completely dry with paper towels before cutting
Cultural Context
The wedge salad became a hallmark of American steakhouses in the 1950s and 1960s, praised for its unapologetic decadence and textural contrast. It serves as an assertive, crisp, and rich prelude that stands up to the heavy, savory profile of a premium steak.
