Best Caesar Salad Dressing
Give your salads and wraps the best flavor when you make Homemade Caesar Dressing recipe! It’s incredibly quick and easy to make and it’s so much better than the store-bought stuff. You’re going to love the fresh flavor created by lemon juice, freshly shredded parmesan cheese and more!
Homemade Caesar Dressing
Put down that factory made bottle of Caesar dressing… You deserve so much more than that! Next time you’re craving a seriously good Caesar salad or wrap, this is the recipe to turn to. It can make any basic bed of greens and croutons taste like it’s from a nice restaurant! When you use fresh ingredients to make your salad dressing, you really do your salad the biggest favor.
Let’s talk about those fresh ingredients, shall we? Authentic Caesar Dressing is made with raw eggs but I like to make my dressing without raw eggs so fresh ingredients make all the difference here.
Fresh lemon juice and zest add the best tangy kick, so make sure to not use bottled lemon juice (it just doesn’t have the same acidity). There’s also parmesan cheese, which I highly recommend shredding right off the block for the best flavor. And yes, there’s anchovy paste! Don’t fear it if you’re not a fan of anchovies – when you add just the right amount, it creates that signature salty flavor without any fishiness.
Other than the flavor, the best thing about this recipe is just how easy it is! You simply toss everything into a food processor and blend until smooth. Then, you can feel free to serve it immediately or store for later. Once you start making this quick and easy salad dressing and keeping it stocked in your fridge, you’ll never go back to those lackluster store-bought options again!
Ingredients You Need and Substitutions
- Mayonnaise – Instead of starting with raw egg yolks, I simplified the recipe to use mayonnaise which makes it easier to whip up a smooth, creamy dressing.
- Garlic – Fresh garlic cloves add a peppery bite without being overpowering. You can add more or less depending on how garlic-y you want your dressing.
- Anchovy Paste – Classic caesar dressing recipes call for whole anchovies but I like anchovy paste to add a great depth of flavor. You can skip it if you have allergies. It doesn’t taste overly fishy and just adds a nice umami flavor to the dressing.
- Mustard – I love the flavor of dijon mustard and it helps make the dressing ethereally smooth.
- Worcestershire Sauce – I love adding Worcestershire sauce to level up creamy dressings. You can substitute with soy sauce, coconut aminos or fish sauce.
- Lemon – The lemon juice and lemon zest freshen up the creamy dressing.
- Cheese – Freshly grated parmesan cheese adds to the creamy factor and makes this dressing the best ever.
- Seasoning – Keeping it simple with kosher salt and fresh black pepper, you can add your favorite seasonings like garlic powder or onion powder to enhance the flavor.
- Olive oil – Use a high quality extra-virgin olive oil for the best flavor or substitute with avocado oil.
For the full ingredient list and instructions, see the recipe card below.
How to Make Homemade Caesar Dressing
Blend, enjoy, repeat! It doesn’t get much easier than this homemade caesar dressing. Just plug in that food processor and let it do all the work for you!
- Blend it. Add everything (except for the olive oil) to a food processor and blend. As you’re blending, slowly pour in the olive oil until incorporated. Stop and scrape the sides as needed. If you don’t have a food processor, you can use a blender or immersion blender.
- Enjoy! You can either enjoy the salad dressing right away or store it in a mason jar the fridge for later use.
How to Store Leftover Caesar Dressing
In an airtight container in the fridge, homemade Caesar dressing will stay fresh for about 4-5 days. Give the dressing a good stir before serving again, just in case any of the ingredients have separated in the fridge. I don’t recommend freezing Caesar dressing.
How to Use Caesar Dressing
The most obvious way to use this dressing is of course on a homemade caesar salad! Simply toss your Caesar dressing with chopped romaine lettuce, homemade croutons, and shaved parmigianno reggiano cheese for a quick and easy side dish. You can add some sliced chicken breast to bulk it up if you’d like. Also, all of these salad ingredients taste great when tossed together and served in a wrap for lunch! Some people even use Caesar dressing as a dip for their pizza.
There are so many uses for this classic salad dressing! You’ve also got to try my favorite chicken Caesar pasta salad recipe with this dressing – it’s the best.
Substitution for Anchovy Paste
There are plenty of options to choose from. You can always add just a little more salt, or choose something a bit more flavorful like soy sauce, coconut aminos or worcestershire sauce. In my opinion, the closest substitute to anchovy paste is fish sauce. Essentially, fish sauce is just fermented anchovy paste, so the flavors are very similar. You can typically find fish sauce in the Asian section of the grocery store.
Serve the best salads every time when you make homemade salad dressings!
- Homemade Thousand Island Dressing
- Ranch Dressing
- Creamy Poppy Seed Dressing
- Catalina Dressing
- Italian Dressing
- Easy Hot Bacon Dressing
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Get the Recipe: Homemade Caesar Salad Dressing Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 garlic cloves
- 3/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- Juice and zest of 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Equipment
- 1 food processor
Instructions
- Add the garlic, mayonnaise, anchovy paste, Worcestershire sauce, dijon, lemon juice and yes, cheese, pepper and salt to the bowl of a food processor or blender.
- Blend until almost smooth.
- While running the food processor on slow, stream in the olive oil until well incorporated.
- Transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 10 days or use on your favorite salad greens, sandwiches and more.
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