Salad Lyonnaise Recipe

This Salade Lyonnaise recipe brings together crisp frisée lettuce, savory lardons, a warm Dijon bacon vinaigrette, and perfectly poached eggs for a bold French bistro classic. Featured on Dinner in Paris with host Romain Avril, this irresistible salad balances richness, freshness, acidity, and texture in every bite

The Inspiration

Salade Lyonnaise takes its name from Lyon, a French city celebrated for its strong culinary traditions and classic bistro-style cooking. The salad reflects the region’s love of simple ingredients prepared with confidence, turning lettuce, bacon, eggs, shallots, mustard, and vinegar into a dish with remarkable depth.

On Dinner in Paris, host Romain Avril highlights dishes that capture the spirit of French dining while showing how familiar ingredients can be transformed through thoughtful technique. Salade Lyonnaise fits naturally into that approach because every element has a clear purpose.

It is a dish built on contrasts: crisp and soft, warm and cool, rich and acidic, rustic and elegant. That balance has helped make it an enduring French bistro favourite and a memorable recipe for anyone exploring traditional French cooking.

Ingredients

2 heads frisée lettuce, torn
227 g (1/2 lb) raw lardons (pancetta or thick-cut bacon), cut into ½ inch pieces
4 eggs, room temperature
1 large shallot, minced
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
4 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
White distilled vinegar, for poaching

Method

Cook lardons in a pan over medium-high heat until just before crisp.
Remove lardons from pan and place on a paper towel, leaving the fat in the pan.
Add shallots to the pan, cook briefly (1-2 minutes), then deglaze with vinegar.
Cut the heat on the pan. Whisk in Dijon and olive oil to form a warm vinaigrette.
Place frisee lettuce in a mixing bowl and pour the vinaigrette over the top.
Poach eggs in gently simmering water (with a plash of white vinegar) for 2.5 to 3 minutes.
Remove egg from simmering water and place on a paper towel.
Season egg with salt and pepper.
Plate salad and top with lardons and a poached egg.

Serving Suggestions

For a classic French bistro presentation, serve the salad with slices of warm crusty baguette. The bread is particularly useful for soaking up the mixture of warm vinaigrette and runny egg yolk left on the plate. Toasted baguette slices or rustic country bread can provide an additional crisp texture alongside the tender egg and wilted edges of the frisée.

For brunch, the poached egg makes the salad an especially natural choice. The combination of eggs, bacon, greens, and Dijon dressing feels familiar while the French preparation gives those ingredients a more sophisticated character.

When serving the salad as a main course, the portions can be accompanied by additional bread for a more substantial meal. Its balance of protein, greens, and rich vinaigrette makes it satisfying without requiring many additional components.

Final Thoughts

This Salade Lyonnaise recipe showcases the satisfying balance of flavour, texture, and simplicity that defines so much of classic French bistro cooking. Featured on Dinner in Paris with Romain Avril, this recipe reflects the relaxed sophistication of classic French bistro food. It feels special enough for guests while remaining approachable enough for a quick lunch or dinner at home.

This Salade Lyonnaise recipe brings the unmistakable flavours of Lyon to the table through crisp greens, savory pork, tangy Dijon vinaigrette, and a perfectly poached egg—an elegant combination that proves a salad can be every bit as memorable as the main course.

Find more recipes from Dinner in Paris here!