This recipe is: dairy freeegg freegluten freenut free
Skip the heavy, creamy dressing and make this easy, Caesar vinaigrette instead. This homemade caesar salad dressing recipe only takes a few minutes and it’s egg and dairy free.
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This is the best Caesar salad dressing recipe
I have a major love-hate relationship with salad. I’m not sure why, but I go through major phases of wanting to eat salad everyday to avoidingit like the plague. I seriously can’t decide how I feel about it. Though, I will say that I think dressing is a major contributing factor.
I’m pretty against bottled dressing even though it’s inevitable that I’ll have to use one every now and then, and I’m really picky about having my salad dressed. I’m not a fan of putting my dressing on at the table. I know it seems like there isn’t much of a difference, but it seems huge to me.
So I try to make homemade dressing whenever I can. It’s not all that hard, and it makes such an impact on the flavor of a salad.
Here’s what you’ll need to make it
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Why you’ll love this caesar dressing
- Now, I know caesar dressing can be a bit controversial. There’s so many stances you can take on the subject – creamy vs. non-creamy, anchovies or not, and is there seriously supposed to be raw egg in this.
- I’m actually onboard with all of them (I’m not about to do the whole raw egg thing just out of laziness). But, I have to say, a caesar vinaigrette with anchovies is by far my favorite.
- And, it’s so easy to make. The secret is anchovy paste. Ok, it’s not actually a secret, but it’s quite a time saver and gives you the flavor you’re looking for from the anchovies without having to actually chop up those squishy little filets.
This recipe makes enough for 1 really big salad or two average sized ones.
Everything you need to know about recipe name
What can I substitute for anchovies in Caesar dressing?
I like to use anchovy paste to add this particular flavor to caesar dressing. This is easily kept in the fridge and can be added to all sorts of things for adding salty, fishy flavor. Whole anchovy fillets can be pureed, Worcestershire sauce, fish sauce or even capers can be substituted as an alternative to anchovy paste.
Do all Caesar dressings have anchovies?
Traditionally Caesar dressing does include anchovies or anchovy paste, and you won’t quite get the flavor right without it.
More salad dressing recipes:
- Dijon vinaigrette
- Homemade ranch dressing
- Thousand island dressing
- Ginger dressing
- Cilantro dressing
Caesar Salad Dressing
5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star
4.7 from 6 reviews
Skip the heavy, creamy dressing and make this easy, Caesar vinaigrette instead. This homemade caesar salad dressing recipe only takes a few minutes and contains no raw egg. Plus, it’s healthy, dairy free and paleo friendly so you can enjoy it whenever you want.
- Author: Melissa Belanger
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: about 2/3 cup 1x
- Category: Salads
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
Scale
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 – 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon anchovy paste
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Whisk together dressing ingredients until the oil has emulsified.
- Use immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 week.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 176
- Sugar: 0.4 g
- Sodium: 498.7 mg
- Fat: 19 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 1.6 g
- Fiber: 0.1 g
- Protein: 1 g
- Cholesterol: 2.6 mg
Published: June 8, 2020. Updated: October 10, 2022.
Melissa Belanger
Melissa Belanger is the founder and food-obsessed visionary behind Simply Whisked, where she creates dairy free recipes with simple ingredients. She lives in Wisconsin with her milk-allergic husband and two kids. Melissa's experience in developing dairy free recipes is unparalleled and she strives to make dairy-free living accessible and enjoyable. In addition to running Simply Whisked, Melissa also manages two other publications: Another co*cktail Blog, a co*cktail recipe website, and The Pasta Twins, a joint venture with her twin sister.
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I’m the exact same! SO picky about dressings, and they have to be dressed before they come to the table. Otherwise you end up trying to poke through an already packed bowl of salad trying to coat everything in dressing.. yeck. This sounds awesome because we could whip it up at any time, without having to go through all the steps of a traditional Caesar!
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Did have anchovy paste, so used worcestershire sauce instead (not the same, but ok). I used half the oil, and added water and a little bit of honey as I found the lemon to be overwhelming. Otherwise, yummy!
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Not a Caesar salad dressing
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It is a great CAESAR SALAD DRESSING – same thing without the egg. Not everyone likes a goopy dressing.
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Where do you find anchovy paste in the store usually?
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I usually find it by the canned fish, like tuna and salmon. If it’s not there, check near the Italian stuff where tomato and garlic paste are located!
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I just made this dressing – DELICIOUS!
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I’m so glad you liked it!
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Great dressing. I added some parm in and it tasted great!
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How many calories are in this per tbsp? Is it really 0???
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Good flavor, I used canned anchovies is oil and created the paste myself. It was a little too tart. I will scale back on the lemon juice next time around. Otherwise, the kids enjoyed it initially. Thanks!
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Hi! I’m very excited to try making this today, I came upon vinaigrette Cesar dressings from a little cafe a while back. My question is, how much anchovies should be used in place of the paste? I couldn’t find it at the store.
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You should use about 6 anchovy filets!
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Made this tonight and it’s good! But gosh, it’s really salty. I definitely would have cut the added salt by at least half
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In place of anchovy paste is use capers and then blend the dressing. A little bit of Worcestershire helps.
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Very good basic dressing, who can wrong with oil, mustard, and lemon. Used fresh anchovies instead, added Romano cheese….yum!
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Im sure adding some cheese would be delicious, not so dairy free though!
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This was so good! I haven’t been able to have a Caesar salad in like 15 years because of various dietary restrictions, but finally found a way around them and this recipe was a part of it. It was better than any Caesar I ever remember having. So good!
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I’m going to try using Thai FISH SAUCE instead of the anchovy paste which I don’t have. The dressing looks good. Thanks. Just found your nice website today.
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I’m a Caesar dressing aficionado!! I’m thrilled with this recipe -it’s the very best, short of doing the old recipe with raw egg. Thanks alot. I’m glad to find your website.
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It a little heavy on the lemon and not creamy enough
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This is more of a vinaigrette recipe, and it’s not meant to be super creamy. Sorry you didn’t love it!
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I haven’t made this yet but I THINK THIS IS THE DUPE I’VE BEEN LOOKING FOR!!!! Trying this tonight, trying to get away from vegetable oil and I loved the Ken’s Lite Caesar dressing and I tried my hand at it but I think this will be the perfect recipe! Can’t wait to try it!!!!!! Subscribing!
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This is one of the easiest and tastiest Caesar salad dressings ever! I always get complements about it when I make it for guests.
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I’m so happy to hear that you liked the recipe! Thanks for the review!
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I just made this (with pureed anchovies instead of anchovy paste). It’s very good, but I may add less lemon juice next time as it’s a bit overwhelming!
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Hi Melissa,
This recipe looks really tasty! One tip to share bc simply shaking an already separated dressing doesn’t *fix it*. Once a dressing is separated, it’ll continue to separate the instant the shaking stops. The only way to solve this is by preventing the separation. To do so, combine all the non-oil ingredients first – THEN pour the oil in a thin stream into that mixture while simultaneously whisking it. It’s that thin, gradual stream of oil while whisking that helps the ingredients incorporate better without separating. 😉Reply
