Salade lyonnaise — frisée, lardons, croutons and poached egg
Salade lyonnaise is not simply greens with bacon. Its identity comes from the relationship between bitter-curled frisée, pork lardons, crisp bread, a warm acidic dressing and a poached egg. The plate should arrive with the greens softened only slightly by warmth, not cooked into submission. One egg is reserved for each portion, and the croutons are substantial enough to absorb some dressing without disappearing beneath the lardons.
The lardons are rendered first and their fat is measured rather than treated as an invisible extra. Fifteen grams flavour the croutons and another 10 g go into the warm dressing with red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard and olive oil. This keeps both nutrition and texture reproducible. The vinegar is introduced over low heat because hot pork fat can spit; the dressing needs to become warm and glossy, not boil. The frisée is kept dry and cold until everything else is ready.
Poaching is the final timed operation. Pasteurised eggs allow an explicitly softer-yolk option, while 71 °C at the centre is the conservative firm endpoint. The water should barely simmer so the whites gather rather than shred. Once the eggs are lifted, the frisée is tossed quickly with the warm dressing, divided among four plates and topped with lardons, croutons and one egg each. That sequence keeps the salad recognisably Lyonnaise: warm, sharp and savoury, but still a salad.
