Our 10 best lettuce recipes

Radish and mixed greens salad

Delicious as a vegetarian starter with a hunk of good bread, or alongside barbecued mackerel for a sophisticated summer supper.
Rosie Reynolds, rosiereynolds.co.uk

Serves 4
450g radish, trimmed, large ones halved
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp runny honey
3 heads of chicory – we used red and white
1 round lettuce, leaves separated
1 cos lettuce, chopped
1 avocado, chopped

For the dressing
1 shallot, finely diced
½ garlic clove, crushed
A handful of dill, finely chopped
A handful of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
A handful of mint, finely chopped
6 tbsp olive oil
Juice and zest of 1 lemon

1 Heat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Put the radishes on a tray and drizzle with the oil, season with plenty of salt and pepper, then cook for 35-40 minutes, stirring halfway though, until tender and starting to blister. Remove from the oven, spoon over the honey and allow to cool.

2 Mix the dressing ingredients together, taste and season. Set aside.

3 Lay the leaves out on a platter or serving plates, scatter with avocado, then drizzle with dressing. Scrape the radish off the tray with any juices and gently toss with the leaves. Finish with more dressing and serve.

Frisee aux lardons

A classic French bistro salad that never goes out of fashion. Serve with extra bread to mop up the yolks.
Balthazar Cookbook (Absolute Press)

Serves 6
6 slices of stale brioche
4 frisee (endives), cored, and torn to pieces
225g streaky bacon, cut into 1cm lardons
4 shallots, peeled and finely chopped
130ml sherry vinegar
125ml olive oil
Salt and black pepper
3 tbsp fines herbes
6 eggs

1 Heat the oven to 190C/375F/gas mark 5. Trim the crusts from the brioche and cut into 1cm dice. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, until golden. Shake the baking sheet halfway through to toast evenly. Combine the croutons with the endives in a large bowl.

2 In a dry frying pan, brown the lardons over a medium heat for about 10 minutes. Add the shallots and cook for 2-3 minutes, until softened and lightly browned. Add 120ml vinegar to the pan. Bring to the boil, using a wooden spoon to scrape the surface of the pan. When the vinegar has reduced by half, which takes about 3 minutes, turn off the heat. Add the olive oil, salt, and pepper, then stir well to combine.

3 Pour this warm vinaigrette with bacon into the bowl of endives and croutons, along with the fines herbes. Toss well to combine. Divide the salad between 6 plates, piling it in small heaps.

4 Fill a wide, straight-sided frying pan with water (about two-thirds full) and add the remaining vinegar – about 1 tbsp. Bring to a gentle simmer, then adjust the heat to maintain it. Crack the eggs, one at a time, into a small saucer and then slide them into the simmering water. Poach for 4 minutes, for a set white and a cooked, but runny, yolk. Scoop out the poached eggs, drain, and put on top of each pile of endives. Season, then serve immediately.

Sirloin steak lettuce wraps with Korean chilli and sesame dip

This spicy Korean dish makes an ideal low-carb, midweek dinner. The chilli paste and shiso leaves can be found in Asian supermarkets and grocers.
Ross Shonan, Flesh and Buns, fleshandbuns.com

Serves 4
4 sirloin steaks
20-25 shiso leaves
4 spring onions, sliced
2 sweet red peppers, sliced
2 heads of butter lettuce leaves

For the marinade
3 garlic cloves, grated
5 tbsp cooking sake
1 red chilli, finely chopped
1 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp mirin
5 tbsp olive oil

For the dipping sauce
2 tbsp gochujang (Korean chilli paste)
2 tbsp white sesame paste, or tahini
5 tbsp clear honey
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp apple vinegar

1 Whisk all the marinade ingredients in a bowl. Marinate the steaks in this mixture for at least 10 minutes in the fridge.

2 To make the dipping sauce, whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl until smooth.

3 Remove the steaks from the marinade, but leave some sauce on them. Fry in a searing hot pan with a little oil for about 2 minutes a side for medium-rare, or grill over hot coals until cooked as desired. Rest the steaks for 5 minutes on some kitchen paper, then cut into 2-3cm chunks.

4 Serve with the shiso leaves, peppers, spring onions and dipping sauce on the side. To eat, use a lettuce leaf to wrap the meat with some spring onions, peppers and shiso leaves.

Pork laab salad

This classic Thai dish is great for sharing, and highly addictive – it's definitely worth making more than you need.
Tommi Miers, Wahaca and DF/Mexico, wahaca.com

Serves 4
70g long-grain white rice
1 tsp vegetable oil
500g minced pork
300ml chicken stock
3 makrut lime leaves
4 sticks lemongrass, finely chopped
1 tsp Turkish (Aleppo) chilli flakes
1 tsp caster sugar
3 banana shallots, very finely sliced
Juice of 2 limes, plus a little extra
6 tbsp fish sauce
A large bunch of coriander, roots and leaves separated, roots chopped
A large bunch of mint, leaves picked
1 large iceberg lettuce or 1 Chinese leaf cabbage, leaves separated
A couple of crushed dried chillies, to serve
A bowl of hoisin sauce, to serve

1 Dry-toast the rice in a frying pan for a few minutes, stirring, until it starts turning golden and smells nutty. Grind to a fine powder.

2 Stir-fry the pork in oil over a medium-high heat for a few minutes, breaking it up with a spoon before adding the stock, lime leaves, lemongrass, chilli, sugar and half the shallots. Simmer gently heat for 10 minutes, breaking up the pork into tiny crumbs.

3 Add the lime juice, fish sauce and rice powder, then stir to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt, lime juice or fish sauce. Stir in the rest of the shallots and the coriander roots.

4 Serve the pork in the middle of the table alongside bowls of picked mint and coriander leaves, chillies and sauce. Use the lettuce leaves to make a pork wrap with all the trimmings.

Ranch wedge salad

Crunchy, creamy and dreamy. Put any extra dressing on the table for people to help themselves.

Brad MacDonald, The Lockhart, lockhartlondon.com

Serves 4
1 large head of iceberg lettuce, quartered
125g streaky bacon, diced and rendered over a low heat until crispy
6 eggs, hard boiled, peeled and roughly chopped
1 bunch chives, finely chopped
Salt and black pepper

For the dressing
500g buttermilk
375g mayonnaise
½ tbsp garlic powder
½ tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp finely chopped dill
1 tbsp finely chopped chives
Salt and black pepper

1 First, whisk the ranch dressing ingredients together, then dress each lettuce wedge in a shallow bowl with a generous drizzle of the dressing. Divide the bacon, eggs and chives evenly over the wedges, season, then serve.

Firehouse caesar salad

Nuno Mendes of Chiltern Firehouse soups up an old classic. You can prepare the bread, chicken, dressing and emulsion in advance, then assemble at the last minute. Time-consuming, but worth it.
Nuno Mendes, Chiltern Firehouse, chilternfirehouse.com

Serves 4
8 very thin slices of old sourdough
Extra virgin olive oil, for brushing
1 whole free-range chicken skin, fat removed (optional)
4 romaine hearts, cut into bite-size pieces
200g parmesan, shaved
8 anchovies, cut in half lengthways (Brindisa do great anchovies)

For the dressing
1½ garlic cloves, grated
5 fillets brown anchovies
2 egg yolks
75ml red wine vinegar
2 tsp dijon mustard
240ml grape seed oil

75g parmesan, shaved
Juice of ½ lemon

Salt and black pepper

2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
1 dash tabasco sauce

For the emulsion
240g little gem lettuce
1 tsp dijon mustard
200ml grape seed oil
100ml water
Salt, to taste

1 Brush the bread with oil and season with salt and black pepper. Bake at 160C/325F/gas mark 3 until golden and crispy. Break the bread into bite-size pieces then set aside.

2 Next, make the chicken skins. Cut the skin in half. Lay the halves on top of each other on a tray lined with baking parchment. Place another sheet of parchment on top of the skins, and another baking tray on top of that. Bake at 160C/320F/gas mark 3 for 30 minutes, until golden and crisp.

3 To make the dressing, put the garlic, anchovies, yolks, red wine vinegar and mustard in a blender or food processor, then blitz until smooth. While it's still running, slowly start to incorporate the oil to emulsify. Whisk in the remaining ingredients, then check the seasoning.

3 To make the emulsion, blanch the lettuce in a pan of boiling salted water for 2 seconds then refresh in iced water. Drain well. Blitz the lettuce with the salt on a high speed until pureed. Add the mustard. Reduce the speed and slowly add the oil and water, alternating to create an emulsion. Pass through a fine strainer.

4 To assemble, toss the romaine hearts in the caesar dressing. Spoon a little emulsion into the bowls – just enough to cover the bottom of each. Then layer up the dressed leaves with the parmesan shavings, baked bread and anchovies. Finish with another layer of dressing on the top.

Little gem with speck, thyme and parsley

If you've never tried roasted lettuce before, this will be a revelation.
Petersham Nurseries, petershamnurseries.com

Serves 4
3 heads of little gem lettuce, outer leaves removed and cut into quarters through the stem
Extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
A sprig of thyme, leaves removed
200-250g fresh porcini mushrooms, wiped clean, stems trimmed, cut into 5mm slices
Salt and black pepper
A squeeze of lemon juice
A handful of flat-leaf parsley, washed and chopped
12 slices of speck or coppa di parma

1 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6.

2 Place the quarters of little gem into a shallow sided roasting pan, drizzle with the olive oil and season. Place in the hot oven for 10 to 15 minutes until slightly golden on the outside but still with some crunch in the middle.

3 Fry the chopped garlic and thyme leaves in 2 tbsp oil over a high heat. As it becomes sticky, but before it starts to colour, add the porcini, cook for a few minutes, then turn over and colour the other side. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice, and sprinkle with parsley.

4 Place 3 pieces of the roasted little gem on each plate, drape the speck or coppa di parma through the little gem and divide the porcini between the plates. Eat immediately.

Chargrilled gem, radicchio and gooseberries with hazelnuts

If you want to give meat a miss on the barbecue, this sophisticated summery salad fits the bill.
Tom Hunt, The Natural Cook (Quadrille)

Serves 4 as a side or starter
100g gooseberries
2 little gem, cut into six wedges through the core
1 radicchio, cut into eight wedges through the core, but keep back one whole leaf
Extra virgin olive oil, to taste
A small handful of hazelnuts, toasted, lightly crushed
1 tbsp honey

1 Light the barbecue and let the coals go white-hot then cool a little, or heat a griddle pan on a medium-high heat. Thread the gooseberries on to a skewer. Grill either side for one minute or until they take on some colour. If using a pan, sear the gooseberries all over then remove and put to one side.

2 Put the lettuces in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill on each side for 2-3 minutes until a little charred but still raw. Return them to the bowl.

3 Lay the charred gem and radicchio evenly on a large serving plate, scatter with the hazelnuts and gooseberries. Finely shred the reserved radicchio leaf and scatter over the top, and finish with a drizzle of honey.

Baked hake with lettuce and artichoke gratin

The salty cheese and creamy walnut sauce compliment the hake, but are delicate enough to let the lettuce's clean crunch shine through.
Eve O'Sullivan, the Cook team

Serves 2
2 fillets of skinless hake, sustainably sourced
Salt and black pepper
½ fennel bulb, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
Zest of 1 lemon
Salt and black pepper
½ glass white wine

For the gratin
1 large or 2 small romaine lettuce, stalks removed and cut into 2cm slices
1 small leek, thickly sliced
Olive oil
Salt and black pepper
100g frozen or fresh peas, cooked
½ tin or jar of marinated artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
A small handful of parsley, finely chopped
A large handful of fresh breadcrumbs
Zest of 1 lemon
50g walnuts, toasted
30g pecorino

1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Season the hake fillets well with salt and black pepper.

2 Place the lettuce and leek in a small roasting dish, drizzle with olive oil, season then bake for 20 minutes, until the leek has softened and the lettuce has wilted. Stir through the peas and artichokes and herbs, then drizzle with a little of the oil from the artichoke jar.

3 Once the lettuce is in the oven, place the finely sliced fennel in the centre of a large sheet of parchment or foil, then top with the fish, garlic and lemon zest. Pour over the wine, loosely seal the parcel by scrunching the top together, then bake for 20 minutes, until the fish is firm and opaque and the fennel has softened. Keep the parcel warm while you finish the gratin.

4 Whizz the breadcrumbs and walnuts in a blender until fine but with a little texture. Stir in the pecorino and lemon zest, then scatter over the dish. Flip the oven to grill and cook for another 2 minutes, until golden on top, then serve with the hake.

Raspberry butter leaf frisee and mint salad with creme fraiche and dijon mustard dressing

This combo says "sunshine", but is only to be made with the ripest of raspberries.
Tim Siadatan of Trullo Restaurant trullorestaurant.com

Serves 4
2 tbsp creme fraiche
1 tbsp dijon mustard
50ml olive oil
2 punnets raspberries
1 head butterleaf lettuce
1 head frisée (endive)
50g mint

1 Mix the creme fraiche and mustard together and emulsify with olive oil. Add a tiny splash of water and season to taste.

2 Add ¼ of the raspberries and 1½ tbsp dressing in a bowl. Mash into a puree. Add the mint, then use this to dress the salad leaves.

3 Place the leaves on a large plate and scatter the remaining raspberries on top.