Chez Panisse Mesclun Salad with Seasonal Vegetables
Alice Waters built her philosophy at Chez Panisse around the salad bowl: a changing composition of young, tender leaves foraged or grown nearby, dressed with the simplest possible vinaigrette. This recipe — one of the foundational dishes in American cooking — asks nothing more than exceptional ingredients and a properly made red wine vinaigrette. The mesclun (from the Niçois mescla, “mixture”) is dressed at the last possible moment so each leaf stays vivid and crisp.
Ingredients (serves 4)
| Ingredient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Mixed mesclun (arugula, frisée, mâche, oak leaf, radicchio, chervil) | 180 g (about 6 oz) |
| Radishes, thinly sliced | 4 small |
| Cucumber, peeled, halved, thinly sliced | ½ medium |
| Cherry tomatoes, halved (in season) | 8 |
| Young spring onion or chive tips | 2 tbsp, chopped |
| Edible flowers (nasturtium, borage) optional | small handful |
| Alice Waters Red Wine Vinaigrette | 4–5 tbsp |
| Fleur de sel | to finish |
Method
- Wash the mesclun in two changes of cold water, lifting the leaves gently so any grit sinks. Spin very dry — any water left on the leaves will dilute the dressing and make it slide off.
- Wrap the dried greens in a clean kitchen towel and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes. Cold, dry leaves hold the dressing far better than room-temperature ones.
- Prepare the vegetables: slice the radishes paper-thin on a mandoline or with a sharp knife; halve the cherry tomatoes; slice the cucumber. Keep each component separate.
- When ready to serve, place the greens in a large, wide bowl (the bowl should feel too big — crowding kills a salad). Scatter the radishes, cucumber, and cherry tomatoes over the top.
- Drizzle about half the vinaigrette around the edges of the bowl, then toss gently with clean hands or two large spoons, lifting from the bottom. The goal is to coat every leaf without bruising it. Add more dressing if needed — leaves should glisten, not pool at the bottom.
- Taste a leaf. Adjust with a pinch of fleur de sel. Scatter the chives and any edible flowers over the top.
- Serve immediately on cold plates.
Notes
- Waters insists on tasting the vinaigrette on an actual leaf before dressing the whole bowl — acidity and oil ratios vary by season and by the bitterness of the greens.
- In autumn, add thin slices of raw fennel and a few shavings of Parmigiano. In winter, replace cherry tomatoes with blood orange segments.
- The salad changes every day at Chez Panisse based on what arrives from the farm. Treat this as a template, not a fixed formula.
- Use the best extra-virgin olive oil available — it is the backbone of the dressing and there is nowhere to hide.
- If mesclun is unavailable, combine roughly equal parts baby arugula, torn butter lettuce, and a small amount of something bitter (radicchio, endive).
Dressing: Alice-Waters-Red-Wine-Vinaigrette