[Cobb salad topped with a poached egg] Great meal salad for a zero-carb lunch

I have been busy posting my trip to France. :) I'm still not done. I still have about half dozen posts left, to complete our latest trip.

But, as it has been a month since I posted a recipe, I decided to alternate my posts between recipes and travelogue, so that I will not be so behind in recipe-posting.

 I must have mentioned a few times that I love salads.

I have no problem having meal salad twice a day for two weeks.

I mean meal-sized salad here is a substantial salad that contains enough nutrients and density to serve as a meal by itself.

I love all kinds of salads and try many different ingredients in my salad.

If I have a salad as  a meal, I want, at least, one or two main protein or fat source(s) in it.

One of my favorite protein ingredients is egg and my adored choice of fat would be cheese.

A digression - even though there are 101 reasons why I cannot ever become a vegan, the top and second top reasons would be, without any hesitation, egg and cheese. 

I am not against the veganism, at all.

I rather admire them for their courage and noble practice.

Nonetheless, egg is such a versatile food that I eat every other day, if not everyday.

Cheese is one ancient food that I always indulge and I can't ever have enough of.

This cobb salad with poached eggs has everything I like, prepared by my preferred cooking method, i.e. poaching.
I can tell you how to make perfect poched eggs.

 

 

Just in case you might be wondering what a cobb salad is~, 

Cobb salad is a main-dish salad first made at Brown Derby restaurant in Hollywood, California in early 1930s, named after the owner of the restaurant, Robert H. Cobb.

(Reference: Dining Chicago. Chicago's Restaurant & Entertainment Guide)

 
This is a slightly twisted cobb salad as the eggs are poached here instead of being hard-boiled and avocado is not added.

Most common cobb salad includes avocado in its recipes. You are more than welcome to throw chunks of avocado in this recipe.  I usually do. I didn't have a ripe avocado when I made last time.



Here goes the recipe:
(Adapted from Everyday Food) 



Ingredients
(2-3 servings)

1 head Bibb lettuce, leaves separated and torn
4 warm Easy Poached Eggs
1/2 - 1 cup shredded cooked chicken
4 strips crisp cooked bacon, crumbled
2-3 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Coarse salt and ground pepper

Directions
1. First, have eggs poached.
In a skillet, heat 2 inches water and 2 teaspoons of white vinegar(optional) to boil before reducing the heat to medium. Vinegar will make the egg white to firm quickly, but it gives a bit of odd flavour.


Crack each large egg into a separate small bowl.


When a few bubbles have broken the surface of the water, gently pour each egg into the pan, leaving room between them.

2. Cook eggs, undisturbed, for 3 to 4 minutes, until egg white is just set. Use a rubber spatula to gently release eggs from the bottom of pan, if necessary.
 3. Using a slotted spoon, remove eggs from water.


Leave aside.
As I love poached eggs, I reserve two eggs for myself. :)


4. Meanwhile, cook bacon strips crispy.


Wait until the bacon cools and crumble~


5. Cut cooked chicken into strips or small pieces.


6. In a small bowl, whisk together oil, vinegar, and mustard. Season dressing with salt and pepper.


7. Divide lettuce between three plates and add chicken, bacon, and cheese.
Top each salad with a poached egg. Serve with dressing on the side.

  

If you want to have a healthy lunch,

this is what you must be looking for!

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

Cobb Salad topped with s Poached egg