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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Easy and delicious! The only way to make this better is homemade mayo or gambling and using raw egg. 5 stars. Thanks for the recipe!
what about egg yoke?
Hi Al, No egg yolk is needed in this recipe.
I make this all the time. love it. thank you.
Hi Jenn,
You are my girl. Literally… my family knows – when I say, oh I got this recipe from my girl… they know who I’m talking about. I have made so many of your recipes I can’t even count. Pre ordered your cookbook and then bought a couple more to have on hand to give as gifts.
Was thinking you might like this sandwich: We re-created from restaurant in Napa – well Yountville, called: R&D Kitchen. (they do everything GREAT). Its their ding ding crispy chicken sandwich.
We use basic hamburger buns/sesame seed. slather both sides with mayo.
then goes on the fried chicken breast, which I pound thin and marinate in buttermilk with salt pepper and some kind of hot sauce (siracha lately), then dredge in a even mix of seasoned breadcrumbs and panko, then a huge heaping of slaw (small cut cabbage and kale with jalapeno and honey mustard)
then a really good slice of tomato and two (not one) slices of baby swiss.
its soo good. we have driven up just to have for lunch.
anyways – keep on what you are doing. LOVE YOU!!
Alicia
Sounds like a delish sandwich – I may just have to try to duplicate it – thanks for thinking to share it with me!
And so glad you enjoy the recipes – thank you for being so supportive! ❤️
Easy & Tasty — winning combination! At the last minute I decided to make a salad with dinner and google led me to this recipe — fortunately I had all ingredients, except the anchovies, on hand so I was able to throw it together. I did substitute part of the mayo with Greek yogurt (half yogurt, half mayo) and a dash of EV olive oil since my husband has some dietary concerns. The dressing retained some of the richness from the mayo and the Greek yogurt had a slight tang and it’s thickness gave it body so the olive oil helped thinned it out. It was yummy and even my picky teenage daughter endorsed the dressing. I will get some anchovies for the pantry so I can do the recipe completely next time.
Delicious!!! Best one I’ve made at home and one of the best I’ve had ever. I whisked in a lil extra virgin olive oil at end to thin the dressing out a lil bit but that’s just my liking.
This recipe rocks! Caesar dressing is my husband’s favorite dressing, and he thought it was amazing too! I halved the recipe and used Duke’s (the BEST) mayo. I also used higher-end already grated parmesan cheese. My husband doesn’t like mayo, and he thought it was a great consistency and flavor. The anchovy paste is key – I found it at Fresh Market for $2.50, and the tube will make many, many batches. Thank you for this!
Fantastic recipie! I have never tasted better! My friends and family can’t get enough!
Absolutely one of the easiest and best tasting caesar dressings that I’ve had the good fortune in finding. Have made it several times and most recently I substituted roasted garlic for the fresh and a must try.
I’m guilty of being that person who changes up the ingredients in a recipe. This is one my go tos that make exactly as written.
I just made this dressing using garlic powder and already grated Parmesan. Washed, rinsed, dried and shredded the romaine.. Then added the dressing and good shave parm. Boom this is way to quick easy and tastes like classic Caesar to me. This is a keeper thanks!
Mmmm such an amazing rich flavour and veryyy easy. Took 5 minutes with maximum reward 🙂 I made this for part of my husband’s birthday dinner. Thank you for posting