Hands down Caesar Salad has to be one of the easiest ways to eat your greens! Especially when its vegan or plant based, which means no guilt-laden ingredients.

Confession time. It’s winter here and I am still eating vegan salads just about daily! I’ve opted to keep-it-simple and cut back on adding too many ingredients in my salads. So this mouth-watering Caesar Salad is perfectly fitting with literally two main salad vegetables.

This recipe can be whipped up in no-time-at-all with the help of store bought mayonnaise. There are some great vegan mayo’s in the supermarkets nowadays and quite frankly who has time to make their own? I certainly don’t and guessing you most likely don’t either.

Super salad Ingredients

The other great thing about this salad is, for any non-vegans you could be easily tricked into thinking it includes chicken, but alas no! Check out how good oyster mushrooms look, roughly torn and lightly sautéed in a pan.

Oyster Mushrooms — Gently torn in strips, looks just like shredded chicken!

But for me the hero of this dish is the lettuce – who would have thought! This salad is loaded with gorgeous crispy green leaves dressed in a light Caesar salad, style dressing.

In case you’re wondering, a Gem lettuce is a cross between a Romaine Lettuce and a Butter Lettuce with semi-soft outer leaves and crisp leaves nearer the heart. Quite often you can find two main varieties at the green grocers, the smaller ‘baby’ gems and standard size. So select accordingly.

However any lettuce will work and whilst I’ve tried most lettuce varieties its the Gem lettuce which gets my vote here. Just the right amount of crispness to smooth – a perfect balance for the spices and dressing.

Now, chipotle you ask? Chipotle is another hack used here to give this Caesar salad that familiar smoky taste of bacon, but not a rasher in sight.

Chipotle is a heady, smoke dried jalapeño pepper which is used frequently in Mexican and South American cooking. I like to use the dried, powdered form which keeps in the store cupboard along with your other spices for months.

Looking for menu options?

This vegan Caesar salad is a versatile partner to so many dishes. But if you’re looking for a mexi-inspired main meal to serve alongside this lovely light salad then perhaps accompany it with plant based Vegetarian Nacho’s with Cauliflower ‘faux’ mince.