The Cobb salad is a main-dish American
garden salad typically made with chopped salad greens (
iceberg lettuce
Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae. It is most often grown as a leaf vegetable, but sometimes for its stem and seeds. Lettuce is most often used for salads, although it is also seen in other kinds of food, ...
,
watercress
Watercress or yellowcress (''Nasturtium officinale'') is a species of aquatic flowering plant in the cabbage family Brassicaceae.
Watercress is a rapidly growing perennial plant native to Europe and Asia. It is one of the oldest known leaf v ...
,
endives
Endive () is a leaf vegetable belonging to the genus '' Cichorium'', which includes several similar bitter-leafed vegetables. Species include '' Cichorium endivia'' (also called endive), '' Cichorium pumilum'' (also called wild endive), and ''Ci ...
and
romaine lettuce
Romaine or cos lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'' L. var. ''longifolia'') is a variety of lettuce that grows in a tall head of sturdy dark green leaves with firm ribs down their centers. Unlike most lettuces, it is tolerant of heat. In North America, ...
),
tomato
The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word ...
, crisp
bacon, fried
chicken
The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adu ...
breast,
hard-boiled eggs
Boiled eggs are eggs, typically from a chicken, cooked with their shells unbroken, usually by immersion in boiling water. Hard-boiled eggs are cooked so that the egg white and egg yolk both solidify, while soft-boiled eggs may leave the yolk, a ...
,
avocado
The avocado (''Persea americana'') is a medium-sized, evergreen tree in the laurel family ( Lauraceae). It is native to the Americas and was first domesticated by Mesoamerican tribes more than 5,000 years ago. Then as now it was prized for ...
,
chives
Chives, scientific name ''Allium schoenoprasum'', is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae that produces edible leaves and flowers. Their close relatives include the common onions, garlic, shallot, leek, scallion, and ...
,
blue cheese, and red-wine
vinaigrette
Vinaigrette ( , ) is made by mixing an oil with a mild acid such as vinegar or lemon juice (citric acid). The mixture can be enhanced with salt, herbs and/or spices. It is used most commonly as a salad dressing, but can also be used as a marina ...
.
The ingredients are laid out on a plate in neat rows.
Origin
Various stories recount how the salad was invented.
One says that it came about in 1938 at the
Hollywood Brown Derby restaurant, where it became a signature dish.
It is named after the restaurant's owner, Robert Howard Cobb.
Stories vary whether the salad was invented by Cobb or by his chef, Paul J. Posti. The legend is that Cobb had not eaten until near midnight, and so he mixed together leftovers he found in the kitchen, along with some bacon cooked by the line cook, and tossed it with their French dressing.
Another version of the creation is that Robert Kreis,
executive chef
A chef de cuisine (, French for ''head of kitchen'') or head chef is a chef that leads
Lead is a chemical element with symbol Pb and atomic number 82.
Lead or The Lead may also refer to:
Animal handling
* Leash, or lead
* Lead (leg), ...
at the restaurant, created the salad in 1929 (the year the Brown Derby's Hollywood location opened) and named it in honor of Robert Cobb.
The same source confirms that 1937 was the reported date of the version noted above, with Cobb making the salad.
Another version of events is that the salad was hastily arranged from leftovers by owner Bob Cobb for showman and theater owner
Sid Grauman
Sidney Patrick Grauman (March 17, 1879 – March 5, 1950) was an American showman who created two of Hollywood's most recognizable and visited landmarks, the Chinese Theatre and the Egyptian Theatre.
Biography
Early years
Grauman was the s ...
. It was chopped fine, because Grauman had just had dental work done, and couldn't chew well.
Authentic versions of the Cobb salad are prepared using four varieties of greens: iceberg lettuce, watercress, endive and romaine lettuce.
Some recipes include other types of cheese besides Roquefort, such as
cheddar
Cheddar most often refers to either:
*Cheddar cheese
*Cheddar, Somerset, the village after which Cheddar cheese is named
Cheddar may also refer to:
Places
* Cheddar, Ontario, Canada
* Cheddar Yeo, a river which flows through Cheddar Gorge and t ...
or
Monterey Jack
Monterey Jack, sometimes shortened to Jack, is a Californian white, semi-hard cheese made using cow's milk, with a mild flavor and slight sweetness. It has been called "an American original" and "as a vestige of Spanish rule in the early nineteen ...
, or no cheese at all.
See also
*
List of foods named after people
This is a list of foods and dishes named after people.
A
* Poularde Adelina Patti – named for 19th-century opera singer Adelina Patti.
* Woodcock salmis Agnès Sorel – one of the dishes Agnès Sorel (1422–1450) is reputed to have ...
*
List of salads
Salad is any of a wide variety of dishes including: green salads; vegetable salads; long beans; salads of pasta, legumes, or grains; mixed salads incorporating meat, poultry, or seafood; and fruit salads. They often include vegetables and fruits. ...
*
*
Cuisine of California
The cuisine of California reflects the diverse culture of California and is influenced largely by Hispanic American roots (Mexican, Latin American, Spanish), alongside Eastern Asian and Oceanian influences ( Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, ...
*
Chef salad
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cobb Salad
American poultry dishes
American salads
Bacon dishes