Jump to recipeSalad · Wedge Salad

Steakhouse Wedge Salad

A cold, crisp steakhouse wedge gets its richness from bacon and blue cheese, then its balance from tangy dressing, tomatoes, and quick-pickled onion.

Four iceberg wedge salads with tangy blue cheese dressing, crisp bacon, tomatoes, pickled red onion, chives, and blue cheese.

A wedge salad succeeds by preserving contrast: the lettuce should be icy and dry, the bacon loudly crisp, and the dressing rich enough to settle into the leaves without becoming heavy. This version keeps the familiar steakhouse generosity while brightening each bite with a sharp, quick-pickled red onion.

Mayonnaise gives the blue cheese dressing body, while sour cream, buttermilk, and lemon keep its flavor clean and tangy. The result is a spoonable dressing that coats the iceberg rather than burying it.

Keep the iceberg cold and dry

Cut through the core so every wedge stays intact and offers a sturdy base for the toppings. If the lettuce needs rinsing, dry each fold carefully; surface water turns the dressing thin and dulls the crisp texture.

A small sharp counterpoint

The quick-pickled onion is ready while the bacon cooks, and its light acidity cuts through blue cheese and rendered bacon fat. Drain it before scattering so the platter stays neat and the dressing retains its creamy consistency.

Deeply browned thick-cut bacon crisps in a single layer on a foil-lined sheet pan. — Bacon bakes in a single layer until rendered, mahogany brown, and ready to crisp as it cools.

Bake bacon until fully rendered

Starting with bacon spread across a sheet pan gives its fat room to render and lets the heat circulate around each strip. Wait for deep browning and vigorous bubbling, then drain it on towels; it reaches its final brittle crunch as it cools.

Creamy, not heavy

Blue cheese is folded into a base of mayonnaise, sour cream, buttermilk, and lemon rather than used as the dressing's only source of richness. That combination keeps the flavor savory and rounded while the tang stays forward enough for a salad course.

A close wedge salad bite shows crisp iceberg, blue cheese dressing, bacon, tomato, pickled onion, chives, and pepper. — Blue cheese, cracked pepper, chives, tomato, and crisp bacon bring layered texture to each iceberg leaf.

Dress at the table's edge

Arrange the cold wedges and spoon on the dressing only when the meal is ready. Finish with bacon, pickled onion, tomatoes, chives, extra blue cheese, and cracked pepper so every forkful retains the salad's signature contrast.

Steakhouse Wedge Salad

4 side servings

48 minutes total

Ingredients

• 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt, divided
• 8 oz thick-cut bacon
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 2 tbsp buttermilk
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 large iceberg lettuce
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 2 tbsp chives
• 4 oz blue cheese, divided

Method

Quick-pickle the onion
Combine the sliced red onion, apple cider vinegar, granulated sugar, and 1/4 tsp salt in a small bowl; press the onion under the liquid and set aside for at least 10 minutes.
Look for: The onion softens slightly and turns a vivid pink at the edges.
Heat the oven
Set a rack in the middle of the oven and heat it to 400 F while you arrange the bacon in a single layer.
Look for: The oven is fully preheated before the bacon goes in.
Arrange the bacon
Lay the thick-cut bacon in a single layer on a foil-lined rimmed sheet pan, leaving a little space between strips so hot air can crisp their edges.
Look for: The bacon lies flat without overlapping or curling around another strip.
Bake the bacon crisp
Bake the bacon for 16 to 18 minutes, rotating the pan once, until the strips are mahogany brown and bubbling vigorously; drain on a paper-towel-lined plate, where they will firm further.
Look for: The bacon is deeply browned, rendered, and crispens audibly as it cools.
Whisk the blue cheese dressing
Whisk the mayonnaise, sour cream, buttermilk, lemon juice, remaining 1/4 tsp salt, and half the blue cheese until smooth but still flecked with cheese; add a spoonful of water only if needed to make it pourable.
Look for: The dressing is creamy and tangy, and flows slowly from the whisk rather than sitting in a heavy mound.
Prepare the lettuce
Remove any bruised outer leaves from the iceberg lettuce, trim the stem, and cut it through the core into four equal wedges; rinse only if needed, then dry every crevice thoroughly.
Look for: Each wedge holds together at the core and the leaves feel cold, dry, and crisp.
Finish the garnishes
Halve the cherry tomatoes, finely chop the chives, and crumble the cooled bacon into large bite-size pieces so its crunch remains distinct on the finished wedges.
Look for: The tomatoes are juicy but not crushed, and the bacon breaks into crisp irregular shards.
Dress the wedges
Place the iceberg wedges cut sides up on a chilled platter and spoon the blue cheese dressing over their ridges, leaving some lettuce visible for contrast and crunch.
Look for: The dressing clings in creamy ribbons without flooding the platter.
Garnish and serve
Scatter the bacon, tomatoes, drained pickled red onion, remaining blue cheese, chives, and generous cracked black pepper over the wedges; serve immediately while the lettuce and bacon are crisp.
Look for: Every wedge has bacon, blue cheese, tomatoes, onion, chives, and cracked pepper across its surface.