This delicious Paprika Seafood Caesar Salad appetizer is inspired by the Anime Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid (Season 1, Episode 8). You can find this recipe and countless others in “The Anime Chef Cookbook” by Nadine Estero.
Kobayashi and Tohru compete in a three-round match to see who will make Kanna’s bento (lunch) for the school field trip. In the salad round, Kobayashi offers a couple of cherry tomatoes while Tohru makes extravagant seafood and paprika Caesar salad.” Though Tohru’s salad is magnificent, the judges end up choosing Kobayashi’s cherry tomatoes because the Caesar salad is much too large to fit in a bento box. Though Tohru lost, we’re the true winners who get to enjoy this unique, delicious dish!
Paprika Seafood Caesar Salad
Servings Yield: 8
Minutes Prep: 15
Minutes Cook: 25
Minutes Marinate: 15
Special Tools: Spice Grinder
Ingredients:
Crispy Garlic Parmesan Croutons
– 1 medium-size Italian crusty bread loaf, chopped into 1⁄2-inch (12 mm) cubes
– 1/4 cup (25 g) grated Parmesan
– 3 tablespoons olive oil
– 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
– 1/4 teaspoon salt
– 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Paprika Seafood Seasoning
– 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
– 4 bay leaves
– 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
– 1/2 tablespoon smoked paprika
– 1/2 tablespoon celery seed
– 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
– 2 teaspoons onion powder
– 1 teaspoon black pepper
– 1⁄2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Smoky Paprika Seafood
– 1 pound (454 g) black tiger shrimp, peeled and deveined
– 1/2 pound (227 g) calamari, cut into 1⁄4-inch-thick (6 mm) rings
– 2 tablespoons olive oil
– 1⁄2 to 1 lemon, for squeezing
Caesar Dressing
– 3 anchovies in oil, rinsed if salted
– 3 cloves garlic
– 1/2 teaspoon salt
– 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
– 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
– 2 egg yolks (from pasteurized eggs)
– 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
– 1 cup (240 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
– 1/4 cup (25 g) grated Parmesan
For Assembly
– 2 large heads Romaine lettuce, chopped into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces
– Grated Parmesan, to taste
– 1 small red bell pepper, sliced into 1⁄4-inch-thick (6 mm) rings
– 1 small yellow bell pepper, sliced into 1⁄4-inch-thick (6 mm) rings
– 4 hard-boiled eggs, cut into wedges
– 1 lemon, cut into wedges
– 2 scallions, trimmed and sliced in half lengthwise
Directions:
1 To make the crispy garlic Parmesan croutons: Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C; gas mark 8). Line a baking tray with foil.
2 In a medium bowl, mix all the crouton ingredients together to evenly coat the bread cubes and spread the cubes on the prepared tray. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden and crisp, flipping the croutons halfway through the baking time. Remove from the oven and let cool on the pan.
3 Meanwhile, make the paprika seafood seasoning: Add all the seasoning ingredients to a spice grinder and blend until finely ground.
4 To make the smoky paprika seafood: In a medium bowl, combine the shrimp, calamari rings, and 2 tablespoons of the paprika seafood seasoning. Toss to coat the seafood and let marinate for 15 minutes.
5 In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, then cook the shrimp and calamari for 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and squeeze some fresh lemon juice to taste on top. Set aside.
6 To make the Caesar dressing: In a medium bowl, crush the anchovies, garlic, and salt together with a fork to make a paste. Using a whisk, incorporate the lemon juice and Dijon mustard to loosen the paste. Add the egg yolks and whisk until incorporated, then add the black pepper. Drizzle in the extra-virgin olive oil in a slow, steady stream with one hand and whisk vigorously with the other to emulsify the dressing until it is creamy, thick, and pale yellow. Lastly, add the Parmesan and stir.
7 To assemble: In a large salad bowl, toss the lettuce with the Caesar dressing to taste (don’t use all of it, as you will add more in the next step) and sprinkle with Parmesan. Top with the pepper rings, smoky paprika seafood, hardboiled- egg wedges, and crispy garlic Parmesan croutons.
8 Set the lemon wedges around the inside of the bowl. Place 2 scallion halves sticking out of the top left of the bowl and the other 2 scallion halves sticking out of the top right to resemble Tohru’s horns. Drizzle with more Caesar dressing to taste and serve immediately.
Note: The dressing for this recipe calls for 2 raw egg yolks, which may contain Salmonella (1 in 20,000 pasteurized eggs contain it) and make you ill. Make sure to use only pasteurized eggs and that you understand the risk of eating raw egg yolks.
