Copycat Recipe: Chipotle Mexican Grill’s Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette
I love Chipotle’s Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette so I came up with this copycat version by fiddling around with the ingredients listed on the Chipotle website. It tastes almost identical to the original and is delicious over romaine lettuce, beans, corn, avocado, grilled meats or any combination.
The key ingredient in the recipe is canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce: dried and smoked peppers (usually red jalapeños) that come in a spicy tomato sauce. You can find them in the Latin section of most supermarkets.
To make the vinaigrette, you simply combine all of the ingredients in a blender or mini food processor.
And process until smooth. Enjoy!
Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 2 small garlic cloves, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients in a blender or mini food processor and process until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 2 tablespoons
- Calories: 180
- Fat: 17g
- Saturated fat: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 8g
- Sugar: 8g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 0g
- Sodium: 301mg
- Cholesterol: 0mg
Reviews & Comments
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My coworkers and I are OBSESSED with this dressing. Went through an entire double batch in a day. Thank you!!!
This dressing is outstanding! Thank you so much for the recipe.
Jenn, you saved me from bland! I ordered a steak salad from Chipotle and AFTER I paid, they said they were out of dressing! Whaaaat???? I made your version and me and my family LOVED it! Thank you!
Ha! That’s happened to me before too — or sometimes they just forget to give to you. Good to have this as a backup!
If you are a fan of Chipotle’s salad dressing, as I am, you must try this. I keep it in the refrigerator, and I broil sliced onions and green peppers and add them to my salad for the perfect salad bowl.
Amazing!
Amazing recipe!!! Taste very close to Chipotle’s Vinaigrette dressing.
Delish!
This stuff is amazing!!! Thank you so much for this recipe!
Wow! This vinaigrette is delicious and very easy to make. I didn’t have red wine vinegar and added rice vinegar instead. It worked deliciously as well!
Love it!
how long is this good for in the refrigerator???
Hi Bruce, It keeps well in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
This is one of the best salad dressings I’ve ever had. Delicious and easy!
There’s a Mexican restaurant in Visalia, California that had this amazingly delicious “chop-chop” salad. I wanted to recreate it at home, so I looked for a recipe for a similar “chipotle vinaigrette”. I found this recipe, and it was spot on! I love it!
I am a fan, Jenn!
I’ve been living in Australia for almost 10 years (I’m originally from the Bay Area in California) and I’ve been finding myself using your website a lot recently. All of your recipes I’ve tried have totally hit the spot for all my “American” food cravings (THANK YOU). Funny enough, I have only been to a Chipotle once and did not have this dressing but when I saw your recipe I had to make it, as it’s got those beautifully smoky chilies in it. I’m not a huge fan of sweet dressings, I prefer more of an acidic flavor, so I halved the honey and threw in an extra tablespoon vinegar for good measure. Wow!!! This is DELICIOUS!! It can be hard to get chipotles here in Melbourne but I’m seeing them more and more. I will make sure to stock up next time I see them so I will always have the ingredients for this. Thank you again for making me that little bit less homesick and thank you for sharing your treasures with us!!
It came out perfect. I like mines with a little more heat so I added an additional pepper. Its was so simple to make. It goes perfect with my homemade southwest salads. This recipe is a keeper!.
Can I sub out the vegetable oil for olive oil or similar?
Hi Rainee, I prefer vegetable oil for this dressing as it’s more neutral tasting than olive oil, but a number of readers have used olive oil and have been happy with the results. Hope you enjoy!
IM OBSESSED! Made some yesterday and I had so much salad I used it all. Had to make more tonight and have steak salad for dinner. I seriously can’t get enough!!!!!
THIS IS AMAZING!! It tastes exactly like chipotle’s vinaigrette, and it’s so simple to make! Wow!
Tried it, loved it! Used it on a salad with romaine, pork carnitas, seasoned rice and beans and grilled peppers, onion and garlic.
This recipe is 5 star worthy! I love Chipotle’s dressing – will not eat my bowl or salad without it. I made this and now I’ll never have to go without it again! I also used Grapeseed oil instead of the vegetable. The oil’s flavor was undetectable and the dressing tasted great! Thank you so much for sharing this. It’s delicious and will remain in my rotation of recipes for years to come!
absolutely perfect! only used one pepper and used grapeseed oil. could not taste the oil and the heat was perfect on my fresh green salad! thanks for sharing the recipe!
Made this last night for a homemade salad bowl with chicken, black beans, corn and cheddar cheese. I tossed iceberg and white cabbage that I shredded fine in the food processor in this dressing and added the other ingredients right in top. Wife loved it! Would make again, thanks!
I loveeeeeddddd this recipe! The step by step instructions, the pictures, the taste. I went to a chipotle that was out of dressing and was determined to eat my chicken bowl WITH chipotles dressing. It was very inexpensive and fast. No prepping necessary. I’d give this recipe 6 stars if I could. Thanks so much!
This is a great dressing! I typically use this on a southwest salad I make of roasted corn, black beans, tomatoes, green chiles, and chicken. I mix up the dressing and add it to my salad mix and store it all mixed together for when I want it. I then add scoops of the veggie/chicken/dressing on top of the salad. Always a crowd pleaser for gatherings you are traveling to, or a great easy prep lunch.
This is by far my favorite receipe on this website. No substitutions needed…it’s perfect as is. It’s an incredibly close copy-cat to the dressing at the Chipotle Restaurant. It’s very spicy but not too much. The can of chipotle peppers usually has 6 – 8 peppers so I usually freeze the leftovers in plastic baggies for future use…2 per baggie as that’s how many the recipe calls for. No worries about freezer burn. You’ll make this often enough for that not to happen! Such a simple but delicious recipe. Aside from the chipotle peppers, you should have all the other ingredients on hand. Highly recommended.
This is without a doubt the best salad dressing!!
I have used this for a variety of salads in addition to a mexican one and it has been delicious each time. I have also shared this recipe with family and friends.
thanks
It’s delicious. I used safflower oil and some of the Adobe sauce from the peppers for a little more kick. Awesome! Took some to work and it was a big hit
I used this to dress a kale quinoa corn sweet potato salad and also use it as a marinade for chicken thighs. My husband requests chicken in this marinade once a week. I like that it’s made with pantry ingredients.
I love this recipe and make it often for our Mexican night. It always makes more than we can use in a week. Can we freeze half of it to use at another time? Thanks!
Hi Liza, Glad you like the dressing! I honestly don’t know how this would freeze, so I can’t say for sure. If you do freeze it, I’d love to hear how it is when you defrost it! (And, you’ve probably considered this, but feel free to halve the recipe if you’re finding you have too much left over.)
The dressing froze beautifully 🙂
I make this dressing often and use it to drizzle on my lunch bowls. The bowls usually consist of brown rice and several types of organic veggies. Although I grew up on Mexican food and love spicy dishes, using two Chipolte Peppers in the dressing boosted the heat a little too much for my taste .Use one pepper and you will still taste the Chipolte flavor without being overpowered by it.
Tastes exactly like the Chipotle salad dressing. I now make this for every taco night. Thank you Jenn!
Can you use olive oil in place of the vegetable oil?
Hi Lori, Personally, I prefer vegetable oil for this dressing as it’s more neutral tasting than olive oil, but a number of readers have used olive oil and have been happy with the results.
Hi Jenn,
I love this and ALL your recipes!! …but was wondering if there was a way to come up with this other amazing steak topper from one of our local restaurants here,…. “Angus Beef top sirloin marinated in chipotle Tabasco and roasted garlic, with goat cheese butter” They say it is a marinade on their website but it actually comes as a dolup on top of the steak. To me it just seems like they cooked the steak and put a dolup of this chipolte goat cheese topper on top and that’s it.
Any chance you have any ideas on how this could be concocted?
Hi Jenn, That sounds delicious. Have you tried blending a canned chipotle chili pepper with goat cheese in a food processor? If you have a photo you could send me, I might be able to see better what it is.
How do I get a thicker consistency (less watery)?
Hi Tyler, Not sure if you used a food processor or a blender, but a blender will definitely give you a thicker finished product. I wouldn’t recommend any real changes to the recipe other than that. Hope that helps!
Hi! I made this and it was delicious! The brand of peppers I got was “Embassa” from Safeway, and had about 6 peppers so I made a big batch with the whole can. For anyone else planning on doing this I would definitely NOT recommend putting the remaining sauce in. It changes the flavor a bit, I think, and makes the sauce so much spicier. Aside from our burning lips, we loved it and can’t wait to have it again!
I loved this recipe. I used it in my own take on Chipotle’s burrito bowl here: https://heyujasblog.wordpress.com/2016/06/01/tried-and-true-recipe-2/. -Jas
I just made this twice now, and will be making it again for my family this Sunday! Followed recipe as is and it was perfect!! I also made the other Chipotle-related recipes to make my salad bowls and all were superb as well! Thank you for sharing this, I am officially a fan of your blog and will be trying other recipes soon.
Super great!!! Love love love this!!!
Delish! Would you have any suggestion on how the dressing might be lightened up? Thank you!
Hi Jessica, you could cut back on the oil a bit. I noticed in the comments that one reader did that and was still happy with the results. Hope that helps!
This is awesome!! Chipotle is pretty stingy with their dressing (you have to remember to ask for it when ordering a salad at the store near us). I’m so glad I can make it myself now. I tried it today and it was perfect. Thank you!!!
Holy cow I could drink this! I used canola oil and apple cider vinegar because that’s what I had on hand, but followed everything else exactly. This is spot on. I have chicken breast marinating in it as I type.
Just wanted to stop by and tell you I love this recipe. I crave salads just so I can eat it. It is so good! I made it as written the first time and have since played around with different oils (grapeseed, avocado) and vinegars (half red wine and half apple cider). It all comes out delicious.
The Chipotle salad dressing is on point! Taste exactly like the one you get at Chipotle restaurants, one of my most favorite dressings that now I can make at home? Thank you for sharing!
I give it a 5 star!
Hi, I’m excited to make this recipe as Chipotle’s vinaigrette is my absolute favorite! I ask for extras to take home and use it on chicken, meats, veggies, everything! Anyway, I was wondering – can I substitute olive oil or grapeseed oil instead of the vegetable oil? Would appreciate your reply!
It’s a good copy recipe. The Actual dressing however doesn’t have garlic in it. Instead all wet ingredients (adobo paste, oil, water and vinegar) are mixed. Then fresh oregano and black pepper are stirrred in.
This is honestly the closest copy cat recipe that I have ever seen though! I think it’s brilliant!
This dressing is better than Chipotle.
I’m always concerned that the copycat recipe wouldn’t taste as good as the real thing. But this one is spot on!!
Wow … this is delicious. Tastes just like the dressing at Chipotle. I used 2 chipotle peppers. I thought it was tangy but not overly spicy. Thank you for the recipe. It’s a keeper. My family loved it.
Thank you for the recipe…it tastes just like Chipotle. Awesome!! I would definitely pass this on
Another Hit! I am starting to get into the salad mason jar groove. It’s a great idea for my three tween/teen sons to grab a mason jar for an afternoon snack. It also avoids the nightly “I don’t want peppers/cucumbers/tomatoes in my salad.”
Jenn have you considered making an Amazon list for what you endorse? For instance, I need new knives and have no idea which ones to buy to get the best bang for my buck. Or which ones I definitely need. I have often thought to buy a product, because I have seen it in your step-by-step pictorials. You have built an exciting brand that emphasizes quality calories. I have learned from you that I don’t have to ban all sugar and junk food from my kids, but rather choose my recipes. Thank you for that. My focus now is to add wholesome foods, not to just deny food.
Hi Elizabeth, So glad you enjoyed the dressing and thank you for your feedback. I actually do have an Amazon list; it’s just hard to find. I will work on that! Here’s the link: http://astore.amazon.com/onupach-20
I forgot to add that I did a fourth of the vinegar. I didn’t want it to be too vinegary and not be able to adjust. This is a keeper. I had all of the ingredients on-hand, and it took just a few minutes to make.
This recipe is wonderful!!! I added a bit more honey plus xanthan gum (for thickness). Thank you for sharing!!!
Update: I only used xanthan gum the first time. I have made this dressing several times now – usually when Chipotle has run out of theirs, and I don’t need xanthan gum.
I also make this dressing to go on lightly fried wings that I bake. They are really good the next day!
I LOVE THIS STUFF!
This is the 1st time I made this and I could drink it! It is so good! The only change I made was cutting back on the salt to 1/2 tsp or so. I don’t know what the original Chipolte dressing tastes like but it doesn’t matter because this tastes great!
Omigosh, this recipe is even better than the restaurant’s dressing!
I’ve made this recipe several times now. First time I made it as written. It was amazing. Lately because I don’t have the chipotles on hand I’ve been using chili powder and a little ketchup or tomato paste, and I’ve also been using olive oil for the health benefits. Thank you so much for posting this recipe.
I made this recipe with all the same ingredients and it just didn’t taste the same to me as Chipotle. It tastes way too vinegary. It just seems like it’s missing something. Any advice?
Hi Lily, Hmmm, this is not a very sharp dressing. Did you add all the oil and honey?
My husband and I LOVE this recipe. We sub olive oil and noticed that it congeals when placed in the fridge. Is there any reason it cannot be stored at room temp?
Hi Stephanie, Room temp is fine 🙂
Chipotle uses rice bran oil in everything which is the distinct taste that most people are missing from this recipe. And also the cumin. Other than that it’s great. I used rice bran oil not and the cumin and it is perfect.
How much cumin did you use?
A teaspoonful. I stored it on the counter not in the fridge.
How longdoes this keep in the fridge?
Hi Al, I would say about a week.
Canned chipotle pepper in adobo can be frozen. Freeze the extras – 2 peppers / ice cube tray and then next time you want to make the dressing – toss in a cube!!!
Fabulous recipe.
Wondering if Olive Oil would be a good substitution for Vegetable Oil?? Thanks
Hi Hope, I prefer vegetable or a neutral tasting oil for this dressing; olive oil might be too strong.
I used olive oil and it tasted great!
This dressing is absolutely delicious! I am trying to make our dressing for salads and stay away from store bought. This is great on thinly sliced spinach and cabbage salad with leftover BBQ’d chicken!
This dressing was delicious! I love Chipotle’s dressing and was excited to try it. From the minute I smelled it while blending my mouth started watering. I have made it multiple times with no substitutions. I used it with the black bean and corn salad on the website and have also used it for my regular salads at work. It is fantastic!
As a daily (sometimes two times a day) visitor to Chipotle – the only cheap/decent food place around my campus, I have grown pretty addicted to their vinaigrette. This recipe is spot on! It tastes a little stronger than Chipotle’s since it in a smaller batch but it’s still delicious (and super easy to make too). Thanks so much for sharing!
Great recipe! Rather than use red wine vinegar I used 6 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar and 1.5 teaspoons of granulated sugar. I also used Mexican Oregano, double the amount of what is called for in the recipe above and salted to taste. Turned out fantastic and the family said it was better than the original.
Greatly appreciate this recipe base!
Do you have other uses for the chipotle peppers in the can? I always buy ingredients for recipes and then throw away the rest because I have no use for them. How long will they last once the can is opened? Also, can you substitute parsley for cilantro in recipes? Not a fan of the taste!
Hi Linda, Yes, several! Click on this link and check out the search results: http://www.onceuponachef.com/search?q=chipotle
Re. the cilantro, parsley isn’t always a great substitute; depends on the recipe. A lot of the time, you can just leave it out.
I love Chipotle’s house dressing so when I saw this I HAD to try it. I made it in under ten minutes and it is delicious! I look forward to eating a salad at lunch now! I put it over avocado, pasta, etc. I can’t stop eating it! LOL!
This recipe is as close as being at Chipotle
This salad dressing tastes amazing!! I was looking for a copycat version of Chipotle’s salad dressing, and this is extremely close! It’s so good! My family and I thank you! 🙂
What is the nutritional value of this fabulous dressing?
Hi Linda, The nutritional data has been posted underneath the recipe. Hope that helps!
Thank you. I didn’t see it. I had only viewed the copy I was printing.
5 stars this was amazing . satisfied my soul
I was asked to bring a salad to a Mexican themed New Year’s Eve party tonight and stumbled across your blog and this recipe. I had all ingredients on had so I just whipped it up and WOW is it yummy! It’s only 10:00 in the morning and I can’t wait until I can have a salad for lunch! Thank you so much for sharing and you’ve got a new fan!
Love love love this recipe! My husband and I live almost 2 hours from the closest chipotle and this salad dressing is spot on. I def will be using this! Yummy !
Hi. How long will this dressing last in the refrigerator?
Just found your website from the Huffpost article and I love it.
Thanks!
Hi Michele, Thank you and welcome to the site! The dressing keeps well for about a week.
Ha! I imagine it WOULD keep about a week in the fridge..if it had even the slightest chance of lasting that long without being devoured! Not the case in my household! Excellent dressing!
Although not exactly the same as Chipotle’s dressing, it’s pretty darn close. I used olive oil instead of vegetable oil. Also I found I had to use as much honey as recommended to get the right balance of flavors. Great recipe! Thanks for uncracking the code 🙂
Your recipes are most DELICIOUS and easy to read and prepare. I love getting e-mails from you to see what you have come up with! I especially love the Honey Chipotle Dressing. Scrumptious!
This salad dressing will make picky salad eaters do a happy dance. The flavors are soooo good. I get so tired of boring regular salads. This makes nutrition fun! I love to add it to corn, greens, peppers, onions, and cilantro. It also gives a good flavor boost to rice for taco night!
I fell in love recently with Chipotle salad vinaigrette. I noticed that they don’t give a lot of it in the containers so i had to figure out the recipe to make. I did use all of the ingredients except for oregano because i didn’t have anymore. However i used thyme and it came out excellent. Even better than Chipotle. I actually used a little more than recipe called for just because i wanted to taste perfect. Chipotle flavor with a honey taste.
Copy cat chipotle dressing. This dressing is simply terrific. I don’t like too much salt on or in my food and I did not think this dressing was salty in the least. I think it tastes better than the one at the food chain! I did use one chile pepper and used one garlic clove, but other than that I followed it to a “tee.” Yummy.
Made it exactly the first time and it was close so the second time I used only 1/2 cup oil, I let the food processor chop the garlic, and a little more chipotle to cancel out a bit of the sweetness. Perfect! Thanks for posting!
I have a question for the chipole pepper adobo sauce is that 2 cans tbsp or tsp
Hi Grace, It’s two whole peppers from the can.
Pretty much spot on. Compliments to the chef! The ingredients are common and I keep most of this on hand so whipping up a batch is a cinch. Nice work Jenn.
Thank you, Michael! So glad you enjoyed the dressing.
I’m not going to try and compare this to the original, but just say that I made the best salad I ever ate in my life….I am not kidding. I made this dressing exactly as written. Black beans from a can cooked with half an onion, 2 cloves garlic, oregano, and sauted in 8 oz of chicken broth until dry. Added in cooked corn off the cob (I live in Ohio where this is a delicacy right now). Chop some romaine, mix in some Mexican cheese blended shredded cheese, dice an avocado, mix in the corn and black beans, and add the dressing. AMAZING!!!! I marinated some chicken with adobo rub, and some of the leftover sauce from the can of adobe chiles…cooked it in a skillet and then cooled and diced it. Amazing flavor on the chicken by itself, but add it to the salad and go crazy. I can’t wait for left overs tomorrow!!!
Sorry ladies, this recipe is not the same. I purchase everything to make this dressing prior to seeing this recipe online. I first made my own version per the ingredients listed on Chipotle.com and it didn’t come close. I tried this recipe and it was to salty. It came somewhat close to the original but not close enough. Evidently Chipotle lists most of the ingredients but not all on their website due to copyright issues. I will however use this recipe in the future but use less salt. Thanks for sharing!
The main differance is they have pre-packaged adobe paste and use sunflower oil or soybean oil. I think the adobe paste is essentially the same as canned chipotle peppers and garlic (some minor seasonings aswell since the chicken marinades in it overnight). So it world be wise to try those oils with this spec setup. Other than that, the recipe is surprisingly spot on.
To the thread poster, your pallet or general culinary knowledge is superb!
Chipotle doesn’t give much dressing and I am in love with it so I had to find out how to make something very similar and came across this recipe. I think I like this more than the original. It’s very delicious. I just made another double batch. Thank you for the recipe!
This is amazing!!! I like it better than Chipotle’s vinaigrette. Thanks for saving me the drive across town, and the money I’d spend buying a salad from them.
I picked up the ingredients this weekend to make this but forgot the fresh garlic. can you substitute with garlic powder?
Curious why vegetable oil instead of olive oil?
Hi Berit, I did test this recipe with olive oil as well but found the flavor too overwhelming. I much preferred a mild-tasting oil.
This is a great dressing!! I like to go a with one chipotle pepper with a little of the juice from the can. I like it spicy, but not too spicy.
This is my new favorite salad. It is a perfect blend of flavors. The dressing seems a bit spicy when you taste it but it calms down once it is mixed in with the veggies and beans. The dressing is perfect! I wanted to use up the chilies so I made an extra batch and used it for fish tacos! Fabulous. And also excellent with chicken breasts! It is super easy to make and adds a southwest flavor to any dish. Also a little bit goes a long way!!
I have been keeping this dressing in my refrigerator ever since I first made it (about 2 months ago). It is delicious and has become my “go-to” salad dressing.
This is a wonderful dressing! I made it exactly as stated in the recipe, but next time I might try adding another chipotle pepper since my family likes food HOT! We used the dressing in a salad with grilled chicken, greens, corn, scallions, avocado, and black beans. Superb! My picky son only eats salad with 2 different types of dressings, and this is one of them. Jen, thanks for helping my son become a salad eater.
Your Copycat Chipotle Vinaigrette recipe was amazing! My husband was so impressed that it tasted so similar to the actual salad dressing. This recipe will now be a family staple. Thank you!
AMAZING! Tastes just like the original! Thanks for the recipe!
This dressing is amazing!! It tastes even better than the original. I made it tonight and flipped when I tasted it. The only change I made was using olive oil in place of vegetable oil. Thank you so much for the recipe! I will be putting this on everything!
Love Love Love it…thank you so much
Oh I love this salad dressing! It is good right away but even better 24 hours later. Thank you!
This dressing is amazing! I made the most delicious salad for dinner: romaine, black beans, fresh corn, avocado and grilled chicken. I can’t wait to make it again – thanks for an awesome recipe!
OMG, I just made this recipe and it is Ssooooooooo good! Thank you thank you!
Side note: I also looked up the ingredients on the chipotle website so I added just a little bit of cumin, but I’m not sure how much it changed the taste.
Wow! I used thid delicious dressing on the cole slaw for fish tacos. Best ever!!!
I am 100% addicted to this dressing.
Yippee! I’ve been searching the web to see if someone had figured it out……and my favorite recipe site/blog has it! YOU! There is nothing you can’t do! I LOVE all of your recipes. Thanks.
Thanks so much, Erin! I hope you like the dressing — I have been putting it on everything 🙂
Thanks, Erin. Let me know how it compares 🙂
Do you drain the peppers or add all of the sauce?
Hi Wendy, Just the peppers; don’t worry if there is some sauce clinging to them but don’t add any additional sauce from the can. Hope that helps!
This looks great… but how spicy is it? I usually use a chipotle chili to flavor an entire roast or batch of black beans, so I’m surprised to see two in this recipe! I don’t mind the spice, but my kids can only handle a small amount.
Hi Monica, It’s spicy but not super spicy; my 10-year-old loves it. But if you’re concerned, definitely start with one pepper and add the second if necessary 🙂