This homemade Caesar dressing recipe beats any store-bought salad dressing I've tried. With a mayo base, it's creamy, tangy, and easy to make.
A great Caesar dressing is the secret to a great Caesar salad! This Caesar dressing recipe is my favorite.
I love it because it’s easy and delicious. Unlike a traditional Caesar dressing, which is made with an emulsion of raw egg yolk and oil, this one has a mayo base. It’s super simple to stir together (and it doesn’t contain raw eggs!).
Still, it’s rich, creamy, and packed with tangy, savory, umami flavor. Try it on your next Caesar salad, and you’ll never get a store-bought Caesar dressing again! Trust me, this homemade version is so much better.
Caesar Salad Dressing Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this homemade Caesar dressing recipe:
- Mayonnaise – It gives this dressing a delicious creamy texture.
- Extra-virgin olive oil – It adds rich, fruity flavor to the dressing and loosens the mayo.
- Fresh lemon juice and Dijon mustard – They make the dressing tangy and bright.
- Garlic – For sharp, savory bite.
- Worcestershire sauce and Parmesan cheese – They add salty, umami flavor.
- And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!
A note for vegetarians: Worcestershire sauce traditionally contains anchovies. Seek out an anchovy-free brand to make this recipe vegetarian (I like Annie’s and 365). You should also look for Parmesan that’s specifically labeled as vegetarian, as most is made with animal rennet. I like BelGioioso’s vegetarian Parm!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Caesar Dressing
This Caesar dressing recipe is super simple to stir together—no food processor or blender required!
Just whisk together the mayo, olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Then, stir in the Parmesan cheese and season to taste.
- Tip: Use finely grated Parmesan so that it melds into the creamy dressing.
If the dressing is too thick, add water, 1 teaspoon at a time, to thin it to your desired consistency. That’s it!
How to Store Caesar Dressing
This recipe makes a fairly large quantity—about 1 1/2 cups. That’s enough for about 2 large salads. Find more serving suggestions in the callout below!
Store leftover dressing in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It keeps well for up to 5 days.
How to Use
- Toss it with romaine lettuce, croutons, and shaved Parmesan cheese to make a classic Caesar salad. I love it on this kale Caesar salad too!
- Try it on a wrap or sandwich like these healthy lunch wraps.
- Enjoy it as a dip for chips or veggies.
- Drizzle it over roasted veggies like roasted broccoli or roasted Brussels sprouts.
How do you like to use this dressing? Let me know in the comments!
More Favorite Salad Dressings
If you love this recipe, try one of these easy salad dressings next:
Homemade Caesar Salad Dressing
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- Pinch sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese*
Instructions
- In a large liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and several grinds of pepper until smooth. Stir in the cheese and season to taste. If the dressing is too thick, stir in water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until it reaches your desired consistency.
- Use on a Caesar salad, or try another of the serving suggestions in the blog post above. The dressing keeps well for about 5 days in an airtight container or jar in the fridge.
Notes
best homemade caesar dressing ever!!! I’ve used this over and over again and everyone loves it every time ^_^
best homemade caesar dressing ever!!! I’ve used this over abd over again and everyone loves it every time ^_^
Easy to whip up with ingredients I typically have on hand. 👍🏻 👍🏻
Doesn’t really taste like Cesar, has an awful mayonnaise after taste.
Delicious and so easy, I’m never buying Caesar dressing again
Ok. Attempt #2. Like others, I wanted to add anchovy so I added a fillet to the recipe, blended it, and it fell apart. Ingredients separated. As I stated in my previous comment, DO NOT EVER PUT THIS IN A BLENDER! This time I followed the directions to the letter and just mixed it with a whisk. The flavor is spot on. You actually don’t miss the anchovy, but you could always just top your tossed romaine with a filet or two if you really want it. The dressing was a touch thick so I found her tip of adding a bit of water (tsp at a time), until you reach your desired consistency. It was perfect. This is the best Caesar dressing I’ve ever tasted. AND I’VE TRIED MANY!
Whatever you do don’t put it in blender. For some reason it completely fell apart and separated. Will have to give this another shot just mixing it like she states in the directions. (Duh).
Love this recipe make it all the time.. the only change I make is I add several anchovy fillets. Can’t have Caesar dressing without anchovies!
My husband has asked that we make the Caesar salad a few times a week. All due to this dressing!
I’m so happy it’s been a hit!
Can you add anchovies?
Hi Linda, yep! You could if you wanted to.
What happened to the old Caesar salad recipe with the chickpeas and radishes? And the Greek yogurt based dressing? My family loves that recipe from the cooking challenge a few years back and I’m not finding it. Thank you!
Hi Jessica, we updated this post so that we’d have a more classic Caesar salad on the site. I’m glad you loved the old one! You can find the Greek yogurt dressing here: https://dailycove.info/healthy-caesar-dressing/%3C/a%3E. Otherwise, the salad just had roasted chickpeas, radishes, pine nuts, and chives in addition to the ingredients here. I hope this helps!
I made this and only added some extra parm (freshly grated). This recipe is D I V I N E. It is actually the best Cesar dressing I’ve ever tasted (I usually have to try 4-6 recipes before I find one I like). It’s PERFECTLY balanced.
I’m so glad you loved it, Christine!