Warm Roasted Lettuce Salad with Poached Egg & Crispy Chorizo

This is warm roasted lettuce salad with poached egg & crispy chorizo of those simple meals that feels far more special than the effort involved. Warm roasted romaine, a softly poached egg, crispy chorizo and crunchy homemade croutons all come together into something comforting, savoury and full of texture. It’s perfect for lunch, a light dinner or even a relaxed weekend brunch.

You can also easily make this vegetarian by swapping the chorizo for roasted chickpeas.

This is basically a very loose interpretation of the ingredients in a Caesar salad without the anchovies.

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Ingredients

• 2 romaine or cos lettuce hearts
• Olive oil
• Sea salt
• 2 eggs
• 100g chorizo sausage, sliced or diced
• Homemade croutons (gluten-free if preferred)
• Chilli oil, to serve

For the croutons

• A few slices of bread
• Olive oil
• Pinch of flaky salt*

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan).

You want to bake your lettuce. This sounds crazy, but I promise it works.

Slice the romaine or cos lettuce hearts in half lengthways and place them onto a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with sea salt. Roast for around 8–10 minutes until the edges begin to char slightly and the lettuce softens while still holding its shape.

Meanwhile, make the croutons. Tear or chop the bread into bite-sized pieces, toss with a little olive oil and salt, then bake in the oven for 8–10 minutes until golden and crisp.

Heat a frying pan over medium-high heat and cook the chorizo until crisp and slightly caramelised. If making the vegetarian version, roast chickpeas with olive oil, salt and smoked paprika until crispy instead.

Bring a saucepan of water to a gentle simmer and lightly poach the eggs until the whites are set but the yolks remain soft.

To serve, place the warm roasted lettuce onto plates, scatter over the crispy chorizo and croutons, then top each plate with a poached egg. Finish with a drizzle of chilli oil if you like a little heat.

Simple, comforting and packed with flavour.