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French · Alsace

Salade de Gruyère Alsacienne

Salade de gruyère is the Alsatian cheese salad that appears alongside the salade de cervelas on every winstub menu: cubes or strips of Gruyère cheese (the term encompasses both French Gruyère and Swiss Emmentaler in Alsatian usage) dressed in a mustard vinaigrette with onions, cornichons, and fresh herbs. This salad was born from practicality — using the ends and rind-adjacent pieces of cheese wheels that were too irregular to slice for the cheese board — and has become a beloved preparation in its own right. The cheese (400g for 4 portions) is cut into neat strips (julienne, 5mm × 5mm × 40mm) or small cubes (1cm). The dressing is a more robust version of the cervelas salad vinaigrette: 3 tablespoons grapeseed oil, 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, a generous teaspoon of Dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and a pinch of paprika. Thinly sliced white onion rings, sliced cornichons, and optionally diced tomato are combined with the cheese and vinaigrette. The salad is tossed gently (to avoid breaking the cheese strips), finished with generous chopped parsley and chives, and allowed to marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature. The cheese absorbs the vinaigrette and softens very slightly around its edges, becoming more flavourful with each passing minute. This salad is often combined with the cervelas salad as an assiette alsacienne (Alsatian platter) alongside bread, butter, and a basket of pretzels. The choice of cheese matters: use a well-aged (12+ months) Comté or Swiss Gruyère for the best flavour, avoiding the young, rubbery industrial versions that lack character.

‹Swipe for the next dish›
ServesFour portions
Total45 minutes (including 30-minute marinade)
Sourced2of 12 in BC
Cook
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I

The Market List

The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.

400 g
Gruyère or Comté (12+ months aged)
cut into julienne strips 5 mm × 5 mm × 40 mm, or 1 cm cubes; brought to room temperature before cutting
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 small
white onion
thinly sliced into rings
Your own market
6–8
cornichons
thinly sliced
Origin · FranceLekker · Vancouver →
1 medium
tomato
diced; optional
Origin · ItalyBosa Foods · Vancouver →
For the vinaigrette
3 tbsp
grapeseed oil
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2 tbsp
white wine vinegar
Your own market
1 generous tsp
Dijon mustard
Your own market
1 pinch
paprika
Your own market
1 tbsp
double cream
optional; added to the vinaigrette for a creamier dressing
Your own market
to taste
fine salt and freshly ground black pepper
Your own market
To finish
1 small bunch
flat-leaf parsley
coarsely chopped
Your own market
1 small bunch
chives
coarsely chopped
Not yet stocked in British Columbia

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II

The Method

1
Allow the cheese to rest at room temperature for at least 20 minutes before cutting — cold cheese crumbles and will not hold a clean julienne. Cut into neat strips of 5 mm × 5 mm × 40 mm, or into 1 cm cubes. The pieces should be uniform so they absorb the dressing evenly. The cut is correct when each strip holds its edge without crumbling.
2
Whisk together the white wine vinegar and Dijon mustard until combined. Add the grapeseed oil in a thin stream, whisking continuously, then add the pinch of paprika and season with salt and pepper. If using cream, whisk it in last. The vinaigrette is ready when it is emulsified, slightly thickened, and the mustard is assertive on the palate — this is where the dish lives or dies: a timid vinaigrette will not penetrate the cheese.
From the canon — A vinaigrette is oil and acid — two liquids that do not naturally combine — temporarily dispersed into an emulsion by mechanical force. Vinaigrette (and the Emulsified Dressing Family) →
3
Combine the cheese strips or cubes, onion rings, and sliced cornichons in a wide bowl. Add the diced tomato if using. Pour the vinaigrette over and fold gently with a large spoon or spatula — do not toss vigorously. The motion is done when every piece is coated and no vinaigrette pools at the bottom, but no strip is broken.
4
Scatter the chopped parsley and chives generously over the salad and fold in once more. Leave the bowl uncovered at room temperature for 30 minutes. At the end of the marinade the cheese will have softened very slightly at its edges, deepened in colour where the vinaigrette has penetrated, and the herbs will have wilted fractionally into the dressing. The salad is ready when the cheese smells of mustard and herbs rather than of plain dairy.
5
Serve at room temperature — do not refrigerate before or after dressing. Plate alongside bread, butter, and pretzels, or combine with a cervelas salad for the classic assiette alsacienne.
III

Quality Hierarchy

01
Reserve — A wheel-aged Comté of 18–24 months, or a Swiss Gruyère of comparable age: crystalline, complex, with long finish. These carry the vinaigrette and still assert themselves.
02
Estate — A 12-month Comté or Swiss Gruyère from a named fromagerie: clean, nutty, with enough structure to hold the julienne without crumbling.
03
Market — A standard French Gruyère or Emmentaler from a reputable affineur, aged at least 6 months: acceptable character, reliable texture for cutting.
04
House — Young industrial Emmentaler or pre-sliced supermarket Gruyère: rubbery, bland, without the fat content to absorb dressing. This is the principal fault of the dish.
IV

Sensory Tests

◇Touch. The cheese strip holds its edge cleanly under the knife; if it crumbles or bends without resistance, the cheese is either too cold or too young.
◇Sight. After 30 minutes the cut edges of the cheese show a faint darkening where the vinaigrette has penetrated; no pool of dressing remains at the bowl's base.
◇Smell. The rested salad smells of mustard, herbs, and vinegar ahead of plain dairy — the signal that the marinade has done its work.
◇Touch. The cheese yields very slightly at its outermost edge when pressed, softer than a freshly cut piece, but still firm at the core.
◇Where it lives or dies. The vinaigrette must be bold — mustard forward, properly seasoned, and well emulsified; a timid or under-mustarded dressing cannot penetrate the cheese and the salad will taste of nothing.
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VI

What to Pour

The pairing
Bushmills Malt 10 Year Old
Old Bushmills Distillery · County Antrim — Bushmills Distillery
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Whisky
From British Columbia
Fort Berens Riesling
Fort Berens Estate Winery · Lillooet
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Wine
Without alcohol
GT's Synergy Organic Kombucha — Gingerade
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Non-alcoholic

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The whole pairing
Pillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
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Sourced through Provenance

The hands behind the plate.

Lekker
Vancouver · cornichons
→
Bosa Foods
Vancouver · tomato
→
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