Grill/Barbecue

Grilled Chicken Caesar Lettuce Wraps

by:
October  4, 2022
4.7
7 Ratings
Grilled Chicken Caesar Lettuce Wraps
Photo by Julia Gartland
  • Prep time 30 minutes
  • Cook time 12 minutes
  • Serves 6
Author Notes

Everything I adore about a chicken caesar salad—but you can eat it with your hands. Instead of chopping up the romaine, you pull apart its leaves into cups. Use these to scoop up caesar-dressed grilled chicken and crusty croutons. —Emma Laperruque

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For the Caesar dressing:
  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 (2-ounce) can anchovy fillets, drained, and minced
  • 2 lemons, juiced
  • 2 garlic cloves, smashed, peeled, and minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire, plus more to taste
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 pinch kosher salt, plus more to taste
  • For the chicken lettuce wraps:
  • 4 chicken breasts, halved horizontally
  • 6 slices bread, ideally crusty and rustic
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more as needed
  • 1 small head radicchio, halved, cored, and thinly sliced
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan
  • 2 tablespoons drained capers
  • 3 hearts of romaine, broken into leafs for lettuce cups
Directions
  1. For the Caesar dressing:
  2. Make the Caesar dressing. Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Taste and adjust accordingly.
  1. For the chicken lettuce wraps:
  2. Marinate the chicken. Add the chicken breasts to a big plastic bag and add 1/2 cup Caesar dressing. Mush around to completely coat. Marinate for at least 1 hour in the fridge or up to 1 day.
  3. Get your grill going. For charcoal: Set up for one-zone, high-temperature cooking. For gas: Heat to high until the temperature reaches about 600° F. Make sure the grill grates are clean, then lightly oil them.
  4. Grill the chicken over direct heat for 3 to 4 minutes per side, until charred on the outside and cooked (about 165° F) on the inside. Transfer to a plate to rest.
  5. Now grill the bread. First drizzle with olive oil, then grill over direct heat until charred, a couple minutes per side. Transfer to a plate to cool and crisp.
  6. Chop the chicken into chicken chunks. Add to a bowl along with the radicchio, parmesan, and capers. Dress with the remaining Caesar dressing—use however much feels right to you. Taste and adjust salt accordingly.
  7. Tear the grilled bread slices into crumbs.
  8. Serve as such: lettuce cups on one plate, chicken salad in a bowl, crumbs on another plate. To assemble: Fill a lettuce cup with chicken salad and top with breadcrumbs.
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  • boulangere
    boulangere
  • Emma Laperruque
    Emma Laperruque
Emma Laperruque
Emma was the food editor at Food52. She created the award-winning column, Big Little Recipes, and turned it into a cookbook in 2021. These days, she's a senior editor at Bon Appétit, leading digital cooking coverage. Say hello on Instagram at @emmalaperruque.

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2 Reviews

boulangere
boulangere August 22, 2018
I posted a very similar Caesar recipe to the most recent contest. However, for the same amount of mayo, I use 2 anchovy fillets, not an entire can, and the juice of 1/2 lemon rather than of two lemons. Both are ample in my experience.

https://food52.com/recipes/17783-caesar-with-sopressata
 
Emma L.
Emma L. August 23, 2018
Hi Cynthia! Thanks for submitting—we enjoyed making your salad :) Caesar is definitely personal; I always lean toward more anchovy, more lemon (more everything actually!) but, like you said, you can always adjust to taste.