Southern Wilted Lettuce with Hot Bacon Dressing Recipe

Name: Southern Wilted Lettuce with Hot Bacon Dressing
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 8 min
Total time: 18 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: For the Salad:; 8 cups shredded lettuce ( iceberg or romaine); 3 to 4 green onions (chopped); Kosher salt (to taste); Freshly ground black pepper (to taste); 5 strips bacon; For the Dressing:; 2 tablespoons bacon drippings (melted); 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (or white vinegar); 1 tablespoon sugar

Prep: 10 mins

Cook: 8 mins

Total: 18 mins

Servings: 4 to 6 servings

302 ratings

Write a Review

Add a comment

This wilted lettuce is also known as "killed lettuce" or "kilt lettuce" because the greens soften under the hot, tangy dressing. You might have fond memories of this famous Southern salad, or perhaps it's brand new to you. It may seem like a curious idea to intentionally wilt salad greens with a warm dressing, but a wilted lettuce salad is a lovely way to use fresh-from-the-garden spring lettuce and green onions.

Where Did Wilted Lettuce Originate?

Wilted lettuce salad likely came from Eastern Europe, since there are versions of wilted lettuce salad Poland and other countries. The dish probably traveled to America with immigrants, with Southerners putting their own spin on wilted lettuce.

What Goes Into Wilted Lettuce Salad?

In terms of the best lettuce for this salad, iceberg and romaine lettuces are very sturdy and will keep some of their crunch, but you can use any kind of green you like, from more bitter ones such as spinach and dandelion to sweeter choices like red or green leaf lettuces.

The Ultimate Guide To Lettuce and Salad Green Varieties

A variety of different types of lettuce on a marble surface

A dressing made with warm bacon drippings wilts the lettuce and gives the salad its fabulous flavor along with sugar and apple cider vinegar. You can omit the sugar or reduce it if you prefer a less sweet dressing, or double the bacon drippings and vinegar for a saucier salad. You can fry the bacon as directed or bake it; you'll use the drippings and the bacon itself in the salad.

Tips

You can use leftover bacon grease to make this dressing. Reheat it in a pan until it liquifies, add the other dressing ingredients, and simmer.

How to Serve Wilted Lettuce

Because the dressing wilts the greens, this salad is really best the day it's made. If you have extra greens and dressing, set aside some of the lettuce and the dressing and leave it undressed, storing everything in the fridge separately and reheating the dressing before serving. Enjoy this wilted lettuce with freshly baked cornbread or cornbread muffins.

What You'll Need to Make This Wilted Lettuce Salad Recipe

A Cast Iron Skillet

A Sharp Chef's Knife

A Small Saucepan

"This salad is loaded with flavor and with minimal ingredients! I personally prefer iceberg to romaine but I'm sure there will be the perfect amount of crunchiness with either of them. It's fast and easy to make and it would be an amazing side dish for BBQ!" —Tara Omidvar

Southern Wilted Lettuce Salad With Hot Bacon Dressing

For the Salad:

8 cups shredded iceberg lettuce, romaine, or leaf lettuce
3 to 4 green onions, chopped
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
5 strips bacon

For the Dressing:

2 tablespoons bacon drippings, melted
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (or white vinegar)
1 tablespoon sugar

Gather the ingredients.

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
Combine the shredded lettuce and chopped green onions in a large bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
In a cast-iron or other frying pan, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until the desired doneness.

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
Remove the bacon to paper towels to drain and reserve 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings.

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
Combine the bacon drippings, vinegar, and sugar in a saucepan and heat until it boils.

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga
Pour over the shredded lettuce mixture. Toss to mix. Crumble the bacon and add it on top. Serve at once.

The Spruce Eats / Diana Chistruga

6 Delicious Wilted Lettuce Salad Variations

Replace the lettuce with spinach.
Add bits of diced browned ham.
Omit the sugar for a less sweet dressing.
Add a garnish of sliced hard-boiled eggs to the salad or top with one fried egg per serving.
Add thinly sliced fresh spring radishes.
Replace the green onions with about 3 tablespoons of chopped sweet onions.

More Ideas for Cooking Lettuce

Because of its crisp, delicate texture, lettuce is usually eaten raw in salads and other dishes. However, lettuce is perfectly safe to cook. Heartier varieties like romaine take well to a quick trip on the grill, such as in grilled Caesar salad, and adding chopped lettuce to a stir-fry or sauté is a good way to use up excess greens. Note that the veggie is mostly water and will shrink in size considerably when fully cooked. That's one of the reasons that recipes like this one, in which the lettuce is just barely cooked, work so well.

Grilled Romaine Hearts Recipe

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
109	Calories
8g	Fat
6g	Carbs
4g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 6
Amount per serving
Calories	109
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 8g	10%
Saturated Fat 3g	14%
Cholesterol 14mg	5%
Sodium 231mg	10%
Total Carbohydrate 6g	2%
Dietary Fiber 1g	5%
Total Sugars 4g
Protein 4g
Vitamin C 4mg	21%
Calcium 26mg	2%
Iron 1mg	4%
Potassium 206mg	4%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.