Made by lovers

Vegetarian · Serves 30 · Side salad

Shredded
radicchio
salad

White miso, capers, toasted breadcrumbs, and sieved egg turn bitter greens into the thing everyone reaches for twice.

Overhead view of shredded burgundy radicchio with golden breadcrumbs and sieved egg in a white bowl
Original recipe photograph by Carolyn Gratzer Cope / Umami Girl, enhanced and recropped.
Yield30side portions
Active time55minutes
Make ahead24hours
Final toss10minutes before serving
01

Why this one

A salad built around bitterness—not afraid of it.

The structure comes from Judy Rodgers’ shredded radicchio salad in The Zuni Café Cookbook. This version changes the source of umami while preserving the original dish’s logic: bitter, bright, savory, rich, and crisp in every bite.

A

Bitter

Radicchio stays the lead. Thin ribbons make its intensity elegant rather than blunt.

B

Savory

White miso supplies fermented depth; capers bring the briny edge anchovies normally provide.

C

Bright

Red wine vinegar sharpens the leaves and gently pickles the shallots.

D

Mellow

Olive oil and finely grated egg soften the edges without turning the dressing creamy.

E

Crisp

Deeply toasted fresh breadcrumbs add crunch that reaches every forkful.

“It eats like a sophisticated Caesar, but looks unmistakably its own.”

Why it scales

Every component is made ahead and held separately. There’s no last-minute roasting, grilling, or individual plating for 30.

Why guests get it

Vinaigrette, egg, and breadcrumbs create familiar Caesar-like pleasures while burgundy leaves keep it distinctive.

Why miso + capers

Together they restore salt, fermentation, umami, and briny complexity without fish.

02

Ingredients

Shopping list

Buy one extra head of radicchio as insurance against damaged outer leaves.

Salad
Miso–caper vinaigrette
Toasted breadcrumbs
03

Method

Five moves. Three bowls. One last-minute toss.

  1. 01

    Prepare the radicchio

    Remove damaged outer leaves. Quarter the heads, cut away the cores, and slice crosswise into ⅛-inch ribbons. Wash and spin exceptionally dry.

  2. 02

    Build the vinaigrette

    Combine the vinegar, shallots, miso, capers, and optional brine. Rest 20 minutes to mellow the shallots. Slowly whisk in 1 cup olive oil, then add pepper and begin with 2 teaspoons salt.

  3. 03

    Toast the breadcrumbs

    Heat the oven to 400°F. Toss the crumbs with ½ cup olive oil and 1½ teaspoons salt. Divide between two sheet pans and bake for 8–12 minutes, stirring several times, until deeply golden. Cool completely before storing airtight.

  4. 04

    Make the egg confetti

    Keep the peeled eggs whole and chilled until close to service. Press them through a fine-mesh sieve or grate them on the small holes of a box grater.

  5. 05

    Toss just before serving

    Divide the radicchio among three large bowls. Add about 75% of the vinaigrette and toss from the bottom. Taste several leaves before adding more dressing or salt. Fold in three-quarters of the crumbs and egg, transfer to three broad platters, then finish with the rest.

04

Game plan

Do almost everything before anyone arrives.

Boil and peel the eggs. Refrigerate them whole in a covered container.

Prepare and dry the radicchio. Make the vinaigrette. Toast and cool the breadcrumbs.

Bring the dressing to room temperature. Set out three bowls and three broad platters. Sieve the eggs.

Toss in three batches, taste, platter, garnish, and serve immediately.

05

Don’t miss

The details that keep it great.

  • Don’t dress it early. The leaves can wait; the breadcrumbs cannot.
  • Don’t use every drop automatically. Radicchio heads vary in size and bitterness.
  • Season on the leaves. Miso and capers are already salty.
  • Use broad platters. A deep bowl compresses the salad and buries the garnish.
  • Refresh a buffet. Hold back crumbs and add them halfway through service.
VegetarianFish-freeContains eggContains soyContains gluten*

*Use gluten-free bread and certified gluten-free miso if needed.