Eclectic Red Barn: Do you know what a Pittsburgh Salad is?

Sunday, September 3, 2017

Do you know what a Pittsburgh Salad is?

When I lived in Pittsburgh, PA they had a salad called the Pittsburgh Salad. You could find it on most menus and it was one of my favorites.

When I go to other parts of the country, you might be able to find something similar but not the way it is prepared in Western PA.

So what is so different about a Pittsburgh Salad. Well, it's about how it's created.

Eclectic Red Barn: Pittsburgh Salad with steak and fries and cheese

You start with a normal salad: lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and what ever else you like. Next comes the pieces of steak. Well, you might say that you can get a steak salad were you live and so can I. It is what comes next that most salads won't have - french fries and melted cheese.

Eclectic Red Barn: Pittsburgh Salad with steak and fries

Typically, I use cheddar cheese but this time I used mozzarella, because that's what I had.

What I usually do is when I make steak, I cook two - one we share for dinner and the other I use for steak salads. I will slice it and then saute it in a pan for a minute or two just enough to heat it.

Meanwhile I make french fries in the oven. I assemble the salad, add the steak, put the fries on top and immediately sprinkle with cheese. (Sometimes I have even sprinkled the cheese on the fries in the oven and let them melt and then add them.) Now you have your Pittsburgh Salad.

I was telling some of my friends while camping last week about how I make my Pittsburgh Salad and they had never heard of it. Have you?

Do you have something like this salad where you live? If not, this makes a great meal and is easy to create. You can use chicken but there is just something about the steak.