How to Make Homemade Salad Dressing – 9 Easy Recipes!
on Apr 13, 2016, Updated Oct 11, 2024
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Here are simple recipes for salad lovers wanting to learn how to make salad dressing. You will love making and eating these homemade salad dressings! Each recipe only makes about a cup of dressing—so you don’t have to commit to eating it for a month—and because there are 9 recipes in one post, you’ll find something for every salad!
Making healthy salad dressing isn’t hard, and they’re made with very basic ingredients. You can have more variety when you make your own, and you’ll quickly learn what flavors you love together.
Here’s to making all kinds of easy salad dressing recipes at home so that you never get sick of eating your veggies. You could try a new one each week, and you’ll have months’ worth of great salad dressings. I can’t wait for you to make them!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love These Recipes
- Almost all ingredients for these dressings are shelf-stable and probably already located in your kitchen.
- Homemade dressings are as simple to make as combining the ingredients in a mason jar and giving it a good mix.
- Fresh salad dressings are so much tastier than anything available at the grocery store. You’ll never go back to buying store-bought dressings!
- Learning how to make your own dressing will help convince you and your family to eat more salads—there’s a salad dressing flavor for every taste!
Recipe Ingredients & Substitutions
These simple salad dressing recipes can all be made at any time by keeping these staples on hand! Seriously, you’ll never add the words “salad dressing” to your grocery list again.
Pro Tip: For herbs, garlic, and ginger, dry and fresh are interchangeable; just season to taste. You will need less of the dried versions than if the recipe calls for fresh. A quick and easy way to get a new flavor is to use fresh garlic or fresh herbs!
Herbs & Seasonings
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Garlic powder
- Parsley
- Chives
- Dill weed
- Italian seasoning
Vinegars & Juices
- Red wine vinegar
- White vinegar
- Apple cider vinegar
- Rice vinegar
- Lemon juice
- Lime juice
Oils & Emulsions
- Olive oil
- Sesame oil
- Vegetable oil (or other neutral oil
- Peanut butter
- Dijon mustard
Other Flavorings
- Garlic
- Honey
- Poppy seeds
- Ginger
- Soy sauce
- Hot sauce
How to Make Homemade Salad Dressing
Making your own salad dressing is so simple, and it’s a great way to get your kids to help make dinner.
- Add all ingredients to a jar, bowl, or container for a blending device.
- Shake, whisk, or press the button to blend until well combined.
For dressings containing cheese, you can decide how smooth you’d like the final dressing consistency. Blend with the cheese in the mixture until it’s as thin as you’d like. For thicker, chunkier cheese dressings, blend all other ingredients together and then add the cheese; finish blending just a bit until it’s the consistency you like.
Recipe FAQs
Store any extra dressing in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Sometimes, the oil will firm up in the fridge. If this happens, just let it rest at room temperature for a few hours before serving (or give it a quick zap in the microwave). Always shake or whisk the dressing again before serving.
The Dijon mustard in these is a must because it acts as an emulsifier between the vinegar and the oils. Whisk up the mustard/vinegar/whatever else and then slowly add the oil while you are whisking. This will help the oil to not separate out of the dressing.
The dressings store well in wide-mouth half-pint mason jars. These lids are also really nice to have on hand! Each recipe only makes about a cup, which is great if you ask me.
Expert Tips
- Use Jam for Flavors: Have a bit left in a jam jar that you don’t want to waste? Mix your DIY dressing in the jar for a new flavor!
- Mix it Up: As you get comfortable with making basic salad dressings, you can start being creative with different types of vinegar or dairy products and new herbs for bold flavors. Try anything that sounds good to your taste buds!
- Make Ahead: All of these dressings are great to make ahead of time and will keep for at least a couple of weeks in the fridge.
- Quick Prep: Using a food processor will make quick work of mixing up a homemade dressing. Pulse just a few times for a thicker consistency or more times for thinner.
Easy Salad Recipes to Consider
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How to Make Homemade Salad Dressing – 9 Easy Recipes!
Ingredients
Classic Ranch Salad Dressing
- 1/3 cup buttermilk
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons each chopped parsley and chives
- 1 teaspoon dried dill weed
- 1/4 teaspoon each kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder
Homemade Creamy Italian Salad Dressing
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoon each sour cream and olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Classic Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup olive oil
Roasted Garlic Dressing
- 1 head garlic
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper to taste
Honey Mustard Salad Dressing
- 2 tablespoons each of honey, Dijon mustard, white vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Honey Poppy Seed Dressing
Asian Sesame Dressing
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 1/2 teaspoons grated peeled ginger
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil (or other neutral oil)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Peanut-Lime Dressing
- 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons water
- juice of one lime
- 1 tablespoon each rice or white vinegar, chopped peeled ginger, soy sauce, and honey
Creamy Blue Cheese Salad Dressing
- 1/4 cup each buttermilk and sour cream
- 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
- 1/2 a lemon
- and salt and hot sauce to taste
Instructions
1. Classic Ranch Salad Dressing
- Whisk 1/3 cup buttermilk, 1/3 cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons each chopped parsley and chives, 1 teaspoon dried dill weed, 1/4 teaspoon each kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. (You can sub 1 tablespoon each of dried parsley and chives for the fresh) This is perfect for cob salads, to dip fries in, over chicken salads, and most any other salads with romaine and other leaf lettuces as the base.
2. Homemade Creamy Italian Salad Dressing
- Blend 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoon each sour cream and olive oil, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, 1 clove garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt in a blender. Stir in 1 tablespoon chopped parsley.
3. Classic Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
- Whisk 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and pepper to taste. Gradually whisk in 1/3 cup olive oil.
4. Roasted Garlic Dressing
- Slice the top off 1 head garlic; drizzle with olive oil, wrap in aluminum foil and roast at 400 degree until tender, about 35 minutes. Cool and then squeeze out the cloves. Blend the roasted garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, 3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, 1/3 cup olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and pepper to taste in a blender. Make a double batch and use part of it for a marinade for chicken breast. It’s also amazing on roasted vegetables.
5. Honey Mustard Salad Dressing
- Whisk 2 tablespoons each of honey, Dijon mustard, and white vinegar and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper to taste. Gradually whisk in 1/4 cup olive oil.
6. Honey Poppy Seed Dressing
- Whisk 2 teaspoon black poppy seeds, 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Gradually whisk in 1/3 cup olive oil. This is great on salads with berries and other sweet fruits in them; it compliments them nicely.
7. Asian Sesame Dressing
- Whisk 2 tablespoons cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 1/2 teaspoons grated peeled ginger, 2 tablespoons sesame oil, 1/3 cup vegetable oil (or other neutral oil), 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, pepper to taste, and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder. This dressing is also excellent on Asian-inspired noodle recipes and chicken salads.
8. Peanut-Lime Dressing
- Blend 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter, 2 tablespoons water, the juice of one lime, 1 tablespoon each rice or white vinegar, chopped peeled ginger, soy sauce, and honey in a blender. This dressing is awesome on “quinoa” bowls (roasted veggies/protein/quinoa), and it’s also excellent on fish.
9. Creamy Blue Cheese Salad Dressing
- Whisk 1/4 cup each buttermilk and sour cream, 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese, the juice of 1/2 a lemon, and salt and hot sauce to taste. Here’s a little secret: If blue cheese is too strong for you, you can make this with crumbled feta for a more mild dressing that is still wonderfully creamy and cheesy. Dip everything in this including hot wings.
Video
Notes
- See recipe instructions for notes on each dressing.
- I can’t calculate nutritional information for all 9 recipes, so use an app like MyFitnessPal to calculate for individual dressings as needed.
- All of these dressings are great to make ahead of time and will keep for at least a couple of weeks in the fridge.
- Add more or less flavorings to get each dressing exactly to your taste preferences.
I have tried the ranch although it tastes great . it was very thin . is that the way it is supposed to be?
No, it should be about as thick as the traditional bottled ranch dressomg. I bet your mayo is a little different than mine, you just need to add a little less buttermilk and it’ll be thicker and still taste the same! Hope that helps. Or you can add a little more mayo to thicken it. Both things will work. Enjoy!
I’ve made the creamy Italian twice and we really love it. Been doubling the recipe! Thanks!
Yay! Have you tried the roasted garlic yet??? They have similar vibes, I really like that one over rice with veggies and chicken too, so much flavor!
I just made the roasted garlic today! I made it specifically to use as a marinade, so I doubled it. I tasted it, and wow. There are so many flavors packed into it that I keep tasting it. I don’t know how I would like it on a salad, but as a marinade this is gonna be great!
Homemade salad dressings are the best! Can’t wait to try the Asian Sesame
no recipe for french dressing?
Thank you so much for this post! I’m absolutely in love with the classic vinneagrette and the honey mustard (I had to have a second salad at dinner tonight because that honey mustard is so awesome!). I can’t wait to make the others!
Is there any substitute for the Dijon mustard? I really don’t like mustard!
thank you so much for your site and sharing your receipes.
I’ve been wanting to make some salad dressings.
Thanks for the recipes!
These look great! Thank you for posting them. Do you happen to have a raspberry vinaigrette? I am trying to eat more natural and these will fit the bill nicely.
This recipe from Food Network is the one I use! Enjoy friend! Red Raspberry: Blend 2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar, 1 chopped shallot, 1 teaspoon each honey and dijon mustard, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt in a blender. Gradually blend in 1/3 cup olive oil; add 1/2 cup raspberries and pulse to combine.
so excited to try these! I am trying to avoid processed foods, and love making simple things from scratch. I will definitely be trying the Peanut Lime, Ranch, and Creamy Italian. thanks for sharing!