Ingredients
8 slices thick cut Apple Smoked Bacon
12 jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 teaspoons Tony Chachere’s or Zatarain’s Cajun Seasoning, more or less to taste
1 firm head iceberg lettuce
4 scallions, trimmed and sliced
2 tablespoons Balsamic Glaze
1/4 cup Everything Bagel Seasoning, or more to taste
For the Dressing
4 ounces good quality blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup mayonnaise, Hellmann’s or Duke’s
1/4 cup full fat sour cream
1/4 cup buttermilk
Juice of half a lemon
1/2 teaspoon Louisiana Crystal hot sauce, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, or half as much Morton’s
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Place the bacon in a large cast iron skilled and cook over medium heat, turning frequently, until completely cooked, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the bacon to paper towels to drain and crisp up.
- Season the shrimp with salt, pepper and Cajun Seasoning on both sides. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the shrimp to the skillet with the rendered bacon fat. Cook on each side for about 90 seconds. Remove the shrimp to a plate and reserve.
- Remove the core from the lettuce and cut into 4 equal wedges. Place 1 wedge on each of two plates. Reserve the rest for another use.
- Prepare the dressing by adding the blue cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream and buttermilk to a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Add all of the remaining dressing ingredients and stir to combine well. Taste and adjust for spice, lemon and seasoning.
- Crumble the cooked bacon equally over each wedge of lettuce. Divide the shrimp between the two plates. Liberally dress each wedge. Sprinkle the scallions on top and drizzle with the Balsamic Glaze. Generously sprinkle the Everything Bagel Seasoning over everything.
Notes
If you don’t have Everything Bagel Seasoning, you can make your own with equal parts of sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried minced garlic and dried minced onion along with some coarse sea salt. Just mix it all up in a bowl. I usually make my own in bulk and keep it in an airtight container in my pantry. It keeps for quite a while!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 13 minutes
- Category: Salad, Dinner, Lunch
- Method: Sautéing
- Cuisine: Cajun
