Homemade Caesar Salad Dressing
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This homemade Caesar salad dressing is rich, creamy, and so much better than store-bought. Toss it with crisp romaine, crunchy croutons, and plenty of Parmesan for a classic Caesar salad everyone loves.
There are countless Caesar dressing recipes out there, but this is the version my whole family loves. It’s rich and creamy, and not too garlicky or too fishy—it’s just right.
Unlike traditional Caesar dressing, which is made with olive oil and thickened with raw egg, this version has a mayonnaise base, making it perfect for anyone who’d rather not eat raw eggs. My kids love it so much that they’ve learned to make it themselves. They don’t even wait for me to make a salad; while I’m cooking dinner, they’ll sit at the kitchen table with a big heart of romaine and dip the leaves right into the dressing.
“Without a doubt, this is the best Caesar salad recipe I have found and I’m 73 years old!”
What You’ll Need To Make Caesar Salad Dressing
- Anchovy paste: Instead of whole anchovies, paste makes the recipe easy, especially if you’re squeamish about anchovies (just hold your nose and add it in; the dressing needs every last bit to taste like the real deal!)
- Mayonnaise: Used in place of the raw egg and oil found in traditional Caesar dressing; gives this version a rich, creamy texture. Use Hellmann’s or Duke’s.
- Parmigiano-Reggiano: You can always tell if it’s authentic from Italy by looking at the rind, which is embossed with the name over and over. If the cheese is already grated, it should be labeled “Parmigiano-Reggiano,” not “Parmesan.”
- Fresh lemon juice: This brightens the rich dressing and balances the Parmesan and mayonnaise. Freshly squeezed makes a noticeable difference.
- Garlic: Caesar dressing needs garlic, but it can easily take over. This recipe uses just enough to give the dressing a little bite without overpowering the other flavors.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Caesar Dressing
Begin by whisking together the garlic, anchovy paste, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, and Worcestershire sauce. Next, whisk in the mayonnaise, Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt, and pepper. That’s all there is to it! The dressing will keep well in the refrigerator for about a week. Keep in mind that it will thicken as it chills; if it’s too thick, simply whisk in a teaspoon or two of water until it reaches your desired consistency.
How to Make Caesar Salad
Place chopped romaine in a large bowl and add just enough dressing to lightly coat the leaves. Toss well, then add homemade croutons and freshly grated or shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano. Serve it as is, or turn it into a main course by topping it with grilled chicken, salmon, steak, or shrimp.
Video Tutorial
More Salad Dressings You’ll Love
Homemade Caesar Salad Dressing
Ingredients
- 2 small cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon anchovy paste (see note)
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, from one lemon
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (I like the brand Maille)
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann's or Duke's
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the garlic, anchovy paste, lemon juice, Dijon mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Add the mayonnaise, Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt and pepper and whisk until well combined. Taste and adjust to your liking, then serve or refrigerate until ready to use.
Notes
- Anchovy paste can be found near the canned tuna in the supermarket.
- Storage: The dressing will keep well in the refrigerator for about a week and will thicken as it chills. If needed, whisk in a teaspoon or two of water to thin it to your desired consistency.
- To make a Caesar salad: Toss chopped romaine with enough dressing to generously coat the leaves. Add homemade croutons and freshly grated or shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano, and toss again. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Killer recipe ! I’ve worked at posh restaurants that did table side ceasar salad. They never tasted this great! The recipe is perfectly balanced. I can’t wait to serve this salad to my family on Christmas !!!
You should give recognition to whover gave you the recipe. My mom has used this exact recipe for years. She found it in the Blackhawk cook book back in the 90s. You’ve shared the exact same recipe, word for word and you made it sound like you came up with it. I think whomever you learned this from deserves some credit. It’s an amazing recipe and whoever came up with it deserves at least a mention.
Hi Melisa, Glad you enjoyed the dressing. I’m not familiar with the Blackhawk cookbook but this recipe is adapted from Gourmet magazine (as cited on the recipe card), which sadly isn’t around anymore.
This is an amazing site with AMAZING recipes – it makes me sad to see people be critical before checking facts. Jenn always gives credit as to where recipes originate. Also, the site is FREE.
I have made so many of her recipes and they are always WINNERS. I have given her cookbooks as gifts as I know they will soon become family treasured recipes.
Horrible … Taste like mayo. Go old school and make with eggs.
What do you think mayo is?
At its basic, Oil and egg. What does your JAR say for ingredients? And there in lies the difference. Helmans is going to taste like a helmans base(or whatever your tastebuds are used to). It’s hard to mask an extremely familiar flavor from a jar. You’ll notice. “What do you think mayo is?”is just not the right answer unfortunately. If it works for you, that is great. But as a base, those flavor combinations in the jar are just too noticeable. They’re a bit of a science behind a bland mayo carrying the additional flavors and making them shine. It’s a bit harder to do with “flavored” jar mayo. And that’s the over all point. I hope you understand, now, that that is what people are saying.
Fabulous! Easy and delicious.
Soooo good! Used anchovies instead of paste & blend in blender, Yummy!
I have anchovies on hand. Can I smash them up to form a paste? If so, how many?
Thanks.
Sure – I’d start with 2. Enjoy!
Thanks for your speedy reply!
Excellent and easy!
This dressing was so good! My husband said “entertainment worthy”. I love how you can take simple romaine lettuce and make a delicious salad and therefore meal with this dressing. As always, thanks Jenn!
Love this recipe, however, this particular recipe doesn’t have a switch for metric measurements. Can this be added?
Glad you like it – I just added the metric measurements. 😊
Yes…Mayo….and use a Name Brand for best resultsl! Totally worth it…could even call it bathe-able!😜 but we will pass on the bathing and just crawl into the jar to live!😍 Thank you for the perfect recipe! 🙏🏽