Roasted Beet Salad at Tujague’s

Roasted Beet Salad
Shared By: Executive Chef Gus Martin 
Executive Chef Gus Martin of Tujague’s, the second oldest restaurant in New Orleans, shares a classic roasted beet salad recipe. Delight in the crunchy texture of the pecans to the creamy goat cheese. This innovative salad is a testament to Chef Gus’ culinary skills.
*The recipe is not available at the restaurant. 

Bacon Vinaigrette 

• 8 strips of thick cut bacon diced and rendered (save bacon fat)
• ½ TBS dry mustard
• ¼ cup minced shallot
• 1 cup oil blend 
• ¼ cup red wine vinegar
• ½ tps black pepper
• ½ tps kosher salt

Method:

1. Place shallots and dry mustard in a bowl.
2. Slowly whisk rendered bacon fat (about ¼ cup) into bowl.
3. Whisk in red wine vinegar and then slowly add oil blend 
4. Add in black pepper and salt and whisk until everything is well combined. 

Pickled Red Onion

• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 cup red wine vinegar 
• Peel of 1 medium orange
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• ½ tbs kosher salt 
• 2 medium red onions julienned 

Method:

1. Add all ingredients except for red onions into a pot and bring to a boil. 
2. Add onions to the pot and let them cook until tender (about 15 minutes). 
3. Remove from heat and transfer to a container. 
4. Remove the rosemary and orange peel. 
5. Refrigerate overnight. 

Spiced Pecans

• 1 cup pecan halves
• 1 tbs honey
• 1 tbs egg whites
• 1.5 tbs of creole seasoning

Method:

1. Toss all ingredients on a cookie sheet.
2. Bake at 300 degrees for about 20 minutes. 

Roasted Beets

• 3 red beets (size of baseball)
• 3 golden beets (size of baseball)

Method:

1. Roast beets whole on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees about 30-35 minutes. 
2. Check it like a baked potato to make sure its easy to run your knife through it. 
3. Allow the beets to cool.
4. Peel and dice into ¼ inch cubes. 

For the Salad

• 12 oz of mixed greens
• 4 oz red beets
• 4 oz golden beets
• 2 oz pickled onions
• 2 oz spiced pecans
• 2 oz goat cheese
• 2 oz rendered bacon
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 oz of bacon vinaigrette

Method:

1. In a large bowl, toss lettuce with vinaigrette.
2. Place on a serving dish or platter.
3. Sprinkle roasted beets and pickled onions around the salad.
4. Sprinkle bacon bits, crumbled goat cheese and spiced pecans on top of the greens. 
5. Drizzle a little more of the bacon vinaigrette over the beets.