California Cobb Salad with Bacon Croutons and Basil Vinaigrette

A California Classic

Everyone thinks that Southern Californians eat a lot of salads, and we do. And we’re always thinking of new ways to make them fun and exciting. It may be based on a traditional salad, but this California Cobb salad with bacon croutons is anything but basic. Between the creamy avocado, salty bacon, crunchy croutons, funky gorgonzola cheese, and tangy basil vinaigrette, this salad is loaded with lots of bold flavors and interesting textures. If you’re someone who doesn’t usually crave salads because they’re boring, this one will change your mind.

Why We Love This California Cobb Salad

• It’s full of California flavors. When we think of California food, we think of bright and fresh flavors, with ingredients like citrus, avocados, herbs, leafy greens, tomatoes, and anything locally grown. This California Cobb salad highlights all of those things while also adding depth with a unique vinaigrette and bacon flavored croutons.
• It’s fit for a crowd or just a few hungry, salad-obsessed adults. The standard recipe makes 6 entree-sized servings, but it’s easy to scale up or down. If you’re serving it as a side dish or bringing it to a potluck with lots of other options, it’ll feed more people.
• The basil vinaigrette is bright and herby. Red wine vinaigrette is traditional in Cobb salads, but we like the fresh lemon and basil flavors in this version. It’s tangy and herby with just a little sweetness from the honey.
• Two words: bacon croutons. Do we really need to say more?

Ingredients in This California Cobb Salad

• Basil vinaigrette – this bright green dressing is made with fresh basil, lemon, honey, spicy brown mustard, olive oil, salt, and pepper. It’s tangy and herby with just a little sweetness, which gives some balance to the loaded salad.
• Bacon croutons – made with day-old bread (baguette or ciabatta are our favorites) and rendered bacon fat, they’re crunchy, savory, and very, very good. 
• Romaine lettuce – romaine lettuce works best here. It’s leafy with just the right amount of crunch.
• Rotisserie chicken – we use rotisserie chicken to keep things easy, but any cooked chicken works.
• Bacon – we recommend using pork bacon, but if you don’t eat pork, turkey is another good option. Just note that, due to its lower fat content, turkey bacon won’t produce much oil, so you will need to use olive oil for the croutons instead of the bacon fat, if using turkey bacon.
• Gorgonzola cheese – we love the milder blue cheese flavor of gorgonzola in this salad. You can also use blue stilton, Danish blue, or roquefort. 
• Avocado – creamy avocados give the salad some richness and that quintessential California flavor.
• Tomatoes – any tomato will do, but we like using cherry or grape tomatoes for their size and sweetness.
• Green onions – for a mild allium flavor without the bite of red or yellow onions.
• Hard-boiled eggs – for extra protein and rich flavor.

How to Make This California Cobb Salad

1. Cook the bacon. Place the bacon in a cold frying pan and turn the heat on to medium. Cook for about 8 to 12 minutes for thick cut bacon (if using thin cut, it’ll take less time), flipping over every couple of minutes. Remove the bacon from the pan and place it on a paper towel-lined plate. Save the rendered bacon fat for the croutons. Once the bacon has cooled, roughly chop it.
2. Make the bacon croutons. While the bacon cooks, preheat the oven to 400°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the bread into cubes and toss with the rendered bacon fat (or olive oil, if not using pork bacon). Arrange the bread on the baking sheet and bake for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly golden brown and crisp. 
3. Make the basil vinaigrette. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, honey, mustard, basil, salt, and pepper to a blender. Blend until smooth.
4. Assemble the salad. Add the romaine, rotisserie chicken, chopped bacon, tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, gorgonzola, avocado, green onions, and bacon croutons to a large bowl or platter. You can arrange everything in sections (like we did for our picture), or scatter the ingredients. Drizzle with your desired amount of basil vinaigrette and toss to combine. Serve right away.

How To Serve And Store California Cobb Salad

This Cobb salad with basil vinaigrette is best served soon after it’s assembled, especially once the avocado and dressing are added.

if you’re making it ahead of time

If you’re making it ahead, you can prep most of the individual ingredients early and store them separately. You can also make the dressing ahead of time and keep it in the refrigerator. Just shake it up when you’re ready to use it. We don’t suggest making the croutons ahead of time, but you can crisp up the bacon, save it and the bacon fat in the fridge (in separate containers), then let the rendered bacon fat come to room temperature before tossing it with the cubed bread for the croutons when you’re ready to bake them. 

If you’re serving it to guests

If you’re serving this at a party or potluck, you can also arrange all of the ingredients on a large platter and serve the dressing on the side. This will keep the lettuce from wilting and the croutons nice and crunchy.

What to Serve with this cobb salad

We like to serve this salad as a main dish, with Strawberry Mint Lemonade or Easy Parmesan Cheese Bread on the side.

How To Store It

If you don’t finish the salad, leftovers can be stored in the fridge. Salad that’s dressed will last about a day in the refrigerator, but salad that’s not dressed should last longer. The croutons may get soft in the fridge, however.

Don’t Skip Those Bacon Croutons

A Cobb salad is already a pretty great combination of ingredients, but we think the basil vinaigrette and bacon croutons make this version worth making. It’s fresh, filling, and full of outstanding flavors and fun textures. And if you’re using real bacon, please don’t skip the bacon croutons. They’re worth the extra step!