Delicious vegan caesar salad packed with crispy homemade croutons and topped with a creamy vegan caesar dressing. Rich and satisfying.
There’s something about a caesar salad that just looks so inviting and this vegan caesar salad is no exception.
I’m thinking it’s the croutons! Not to mention that creamy cheesy dressing.
Crispy bread and a creamy cheesy sauce in a salad. Now that’s a salad that everyone can get behind.
The croutons are really the core part of a vegan caesar salad. The other ingredients are romaine lettuce, chopped parsley, and vegan parmesan cheese.
And of course you have to have that creamy perfect vegan caesar dressing too, but the base ingredients are just croutons, romaine, parsley and vegan parmesan.
So you need perfect croutons, basically.
How To Make Perfect Croutons
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
Making your own croutons is super easy. Though of course if you want to go with a store-bought version, this is totally cool too.
But to make them yourself you just need half a loaf of nice sturdy bread, preferably a little on the stale side. Chop it into squares, toss it in some olive oil, dried basil and oregano and a little salt and lay the squares out evenly on a parchment lined tray.
Bake in the oven for around 15 minutes (turning over halfway through) until perfectly crispy. If they’re not super crispy after 15 minutes, leave them in for a little bit longer. You want them nice and crispy so that they hold up in the salad well, and don’t get soggy.
How To Make Vegan Caesar Salad
Add chopped romaine lettuce, parsley and vegan parmesan cheese to a salad bowl. Add the croutons on top.
Toss it all together.
Mix up your vegan caesar dressing and you’re ready to serve a deliciously impressive salad.
Make Ahead and Storing
Make ahead. If you need to make it ahead, then you can prepare all the different components, but keep the croutons and the dressing separate. When you’re ready, add croutons, pour over dressing and serve.
Storing. If you think there are going to be leftovers, then only add dressing to the portions that are being served right away. Once the salad has been dressed it won’t keep well because of the tendency for the croutons to become soggy, so it’s best served immediately.
More Vegan Salad Recipes
- Vegan Kale Salad
- Vegan Couscous Salad
- Vegan Potato Salad
- Vegan Pasta Salad
- Vegan Sweet Potato Salad
- Vegan Quinoa Salad
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Vegan Caesar Salad
Ingredients
For the Homemade Croutons:
- ½ Loaf Bread Sturdy type of bread, slightly stale
- ¼ cup Olive Oil (60ml) plus more for drizzling
- ¼ tsp Salt
- ½ tsp Oregano
- ½ tsp Dried Basil
For the Salad:
- 1 Large Head Romaine Lettuce Finely chopped
- 1 cup Parsley finely chopped
- ¼ cup Vegan Parmesan Cheese
For the Dressing:
- 1 Recipe Vegan Caesar Dressing
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
- Cut the bread into squares. Add the olive oil, salt, oregano and basil to a large bowl. Add in the bread cubes and toss so that they are all lightly coated. Transfer to a parchment lined baking tray. Drizzle on a little extra olive oil.
- Bake for 15 minutes, turning over once halfway. If the croutons are not yet crispy enough after 15 minutes, leave them in for a few minutes longer.
- While the croutons are baking, chop up your romaine lettuce and parsley and add to a salad bowl with the vegan parmesan cheese.
- When the croutons are nice and crispy, add them to the salad bowl and toss together. Serve in a salad bowl or on a salad platter, topped with vegan caesar dressing.
Video
Notes
- If you prefer not to make your own croutons, you can just use a store-bought variety. The quantity does not have to be exact for this recipe, so you could just eyeball it for the right amount of croutons for the salad if you are going with a store-bought option.
- Nutritional information is for the salad only and does not include the vegan caesar dressing. Nutritional information for the dressing can be found on that separate linked recipe.
Made this for Christmas Eve tea and again for Christmas Day lunch as a side option with the nut roast and roasted vegetables and it was just so good. I’d eat this every day! Made the dressing and croutons a few days before and was a breeze to put together on the day. Actually everyone loved it! I did not feel deprived at all so thank you for making my vegan Christmas,
Awesome! Thanks so much Marit!
Excellent, easy and very tasty! I had it for lunch today with a faux chicken salad sandwich. I made the croutons with left over french bread. Subbed white vinegar for apple cider vinegar. I had all the other ingredients. Worked out really well! Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Cheryl!
Hubby & I enjoyed last night but I also added some vegan “chicken” (soy) strips. Delicious! I will be making this again very soon!
Oh awesome, that’s a perfect addition! Thanks for sharing Kelly!
Tried this recipe a few months ago & now its one of our go to salads. SO tasty & yummy! It’s been a hit with our friends & family, the perfect salad to bring to any family lunch (we just double the recipe & add add tofu & avocado). YUM
That sounds super delicious! Thanks so much for sharing and the great review! 🙂
Haven’t tried it yet but it looks amazing.
Always loved caesar salad in my pre-vegan days so was awesome to make this in my post-vegan days. It was really tasty and definitely didn’t feel like anything was missing. Thanks for the great recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the great review! 🙂