Active Time

　　10 minutes

　　Total Time

　　15 minutes

　　I get a lot of inspiration from staring at the supermarket shelves, and seeing what items are grouped together. I made this recipe because I found the smoked oysters next to the anchovies in the canned fish section and decided to try them out instead in my Caesar dressing. Once I did that, I decided to riff on the croutons a bit too. In this recipe, the smoky oysters complement the rich egg yolks, which in turn get cut by a healthy dose of lemon juice. Do you like other canned fishies? All are good Caesar salad material, providing they are packed in oil, which amps up their flavor almost to a condiment level of oomph. If you want to get real crazy, find the canned seafood section in an ethnic market.

　　

Ingredients

Serves 8 people

　　2 egg yolks

　　1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

　　1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

　　2 teaspoons minced garlic

　　3 teaspoons kosher salt, divided

　　1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

　　3/4 cup vegetable oil

　　1 3.7-ounce can smoked oysters packed in oil

　　2 cups oyster crackers

　　1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

　　1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for serving

　　4 romaine hearts, bases removed and halved lengthwise

　　1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese

　　

Step 1

In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, or in a blender, pulse the egg yolks, lemon juice, Dijon, garlic, 2 teaspoons salt, and Worcestershire until thoroughly combined. With the machine running, add the vegetable oil very slowly to make an emulsified dressing.

　　

Step 2

Drain the oysters from their oil, reserving 1 tablespoon of the oil for the croutons. Add the drained oysters to the dressing and pulse until smooth.

　　

Step 3

Combine crackers, olive oil, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and black pepper with the reserved tablespoon of oyster oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, tossing often, until the crackers are toasty. Set aside to cool.

　　

Step 4

Put a spoonful of the dressing directly onto each plate. Place a romaine heart half, face up, on the dressing, and drizzle with additional dressing. Top with croutons, cracked black pepper and cheese.

　　

Do ahead

Step 5

Dressing can be made up to 7 days ahead. Pour into a container and keep chilled.

　　Reprinted with permission from The Laws of Cooking: And How to Break Them, by Justin Warner, copyright © 2015, published by Flatiron Books.