I’d seen grilled romaine hearts on a few menus over the years and never ordered it as I thought it was odd to have warm lettuce. Then I finally tried it and realized that I’d been missing something.
Romaine hearts are the center leaves of a head of romaine lettuce. They tend to be sweeter and more tender than what you’d get from a full head of romaine. It’s what you find a good Ceasar salad.
You’ll want to cut the romaine hearts in half lengthwise. Do not cut off the bottoms as that’s what will hold the leaves together – simply cut from top to bottom. We made the mistake of cutting off the bottoms once – it’s not the end of the world, but it doesn’t grill up as nicely. The lettuce doesn’t spend too long on the grill but during its time there it gets a bit of grill flavor and wilts a bit but still stays crunchy.
I wanted the lettuce to stand out, so I dressed it with a simple vinaigrette made with white balsamic vinegar (more subtle than traditional balsamic vinegar) and a quick rosemary-infused olive oil. The dressing was well received.
While I usually use feta or goat cheese on this salad, this time I made an exception and used a wonderful Brebis (French for ‘sheep’) cheese from Day Spring Farm in Coatesville, PA. It came to me by way of Growing Roots’ Farmers Market in Malvern, PA – my go-to farmers market. I was wandering around looking for cheese inspiration and tasted a sample and knew it would be a nice addition to a grilled romaine salad. Given its nice developed rind with a creamy inside, I cut it into small pieces as it wasn’t going to crumble like feta or goat cheese would.
This salad is great on its own as a side but you can also add grilled chicken or shrimp to make it a main course.
Grilled Romaine Hearts with Rosemary Vinaigrette
Ingredients
Dressing
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
- 2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
- 1 small clove garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Salad
- 4 romaine hearts
- 3 to 4 ounces goat cheese or feta crumbled
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- Heat oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add rosemary sprigs and fry until crisp, about a minute. Transfer rosemary to paper towel to dry. Set rosemary olive oil aside.
- Whisk vinegar, garlic, mustard, salt and pepper in a small bowl or measuring cup.
- Add rosemary oil in a slow stream, whisking until emulsified (well blended). Crumble fried rosemary into dressing. Set aside.
- Preheat grill to medium.
- Cut each head of romaine into two pieces from top to bottom – do not remove bottoms of romaine or it will fall apart on the grill.
- Brush olive oil on both sides of romaine pieces. Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Place romaine cut side down on grill. Grill for about 3 minutes. Flip and grill for an additional 2 minutes. Romaine should still be crispy.
- Transfer grilled romaine to serving plates. Sprinkle crumbled cheese over romaine and drizzle with dressing. You may have leftover dressing.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
* Dressing can be made 24 hours in advance.
In the absence of a grill, could one seat the romaine in a fry pan?
Denise – Yes. Do you have a grill pan to use on top of your stove? I’d start with that and if not, I’d use a cast iron pan. I don’t think a non-stick would work very well. Thanks for asking!