Salade de pissenlits au lard (dandelion salad with bacon) is the defining spring salad of Alsace-Lorraine: wild dandelion greens dressed with a hot bacon vinaigrette that wilts the leaves slightly and creates a remarkable interplay of bitter, smoky, sharp, and rich flavours. This salad appears in March and April when dandelion rosettes emerge in meadows and field edges before flowering — it is one of the most eagerly anticipated seasonal preparations in the region, signalling winter’s end. The dandelion greens (pissenlit, from the plant’s diuretic reputation) must be harvested young, before the flower stalk develops, when the leaves are tender and their bitterness is gentle rather than aggressive. They are washed meticulously in several changes of cold water (they grow close to the ground and harbour grit), then spun completely dry. In a heavy pan, 200g of lardons fumés (smoked bacon cut into small batons) are rendered slowly until golden and crisp, yielding their fat. A finely sliced shallot is added to the rendered fat and cooked briefly, then 3 tablespoons of red wine vinegar are poured into the hot pan — the sizzling deglaze is one of the great sounds and aromas of French cooking. The hot vinaigrette (rendered bacon fat, shallot, vinegar, the crisp lardons, and a teaspoon of Dijon mustard whisked in off heat) is poured immediately over the dandelion greens in a warm salad bowl and tossed rapidly. The heat of the dressing wilts the greens just slightly, taming their raw bitterness while preserving their freshness. Some versions add a poached egg on top, whose runny yolk enriches the dressing when broken at table. Hard-boiled egg quarters or diced Gruyère are alternative additions. The salad must be served immediately — it cannot wait, as the greens continue to wilt and the lardons lose their crispness.
Young dandelion greens harvested before flowering. Wash thoroughly, spin completely dry. Render smoked lardons until crisp. Deglaze with red wine vinegar directly in the pan. Pour hot dressing over greens immediately and toss. Serve at once — does not hold.
To reduce bitterness for those unaccustomed, blanch the greens for 5 seconds in boiling water, then shock in ice water before dressing (purists consider this sacrilege, but it makes the salad more approachable). Add croutons rubbed with garlic for textural contrast. The poached egg version (salade Lyonnaise) is the most satisfying as a light main course.
Using mature, flowering dandelions (too bitter). Greens not dry, diluting the dressing. Bacon fat too cool, failing to wilt the greens. Using mild vinegar (the assertive acid is essential to balance the bitterness). Adding the dressing too far in advance. Substituting cultivated greens for wild dandelion.
La Cuisine Alsacienne (Simone Morgenthaler)