In my weekly meeting with Cassie from Wholefullys we have talked time and time again about what is most important when it comes to all aspects of our online businesses and blogs. Time and time again we have come back to the idea that it’s most important for us to be as useful to you, dear reader, as we can be. Killer recipes, slices of real life, and helpful posts on different things are a great start and I’ve been doing that for years. I think there’s a lot of power in giving you a lot of bang for your click. In other words, no matter how you got here, I want to make sure that you don’t go away with out getting some great information/inspiration. If you chose to click over to my blog I want to make your time worthwhile.
That being said I have some real power house posts heading your way. I started by showing you how to make the best chicken breast ever (plus 4 different says to cook said chicken breast) and today I’m sharing 9 homemade salad dressing recipes you should know how to make. I’m not reinventing the wheel on any of these posts, but that’s what I hope makes them so useful. I want to give you some great information on how to make some really basic things, arm you with some solid recipes that you can come back to often, and teach you some basic kitchen skills that will make your life not only more delicious, but easier too. I have some really fun posts for everything from popcorn to pancakes coming your way.
Here’s what I want from you in return though. If this post speaks to you, you think someone else might like it, or you want to save it for later, by all means share it on your social media platforms. Pin it, facebook it, throw a picture up on Instagram and tag me. All of those things are incredibly helpful to me and the more sharing that happens the more I’m able to turn this hobby into a job that helps my family (and my house building project). There is so much power in your sharing, you literally have no idea how important that is for me.
Thank you!
And now onto some awesome, simple, delicious salad dressing recipes.
Want all 9 recipes in one easy printable? You can get it for free here!
I didn’t start making my own salad dressings until a few years ago when I read a book that had a chapter about MSG (Monosodium glutamate) in it. It scared me to death and so I stopped purchasing things with MSG in them. That included normal bottled ranch dressing, canned soups, and canned “cream of’s”. So the first dressing that I started making on my own was ranch because who doesn’t love a nice classic ranch? My kids sure do! After that I realized that I could make all kinds of really simple dressings quickly and easily. I actually like making my own dressing now because I like to make a small amount (all of these recipes makes between 3/4 of a cup and 1 cup of salad dressing) which means my already tiny fridge isn’t filled with a bunch of condiment bottles. I also like that I can control the ingredients. Making dressing just isn’t hard and there’s no need to have a mile long list of ingredients in them. You can have more variety when you make your own, and you’ll quickly learn what flavors you love together.
When it came time to narrow down the 9 homemade salad dressing recipes I had a tough time deciding what should go in the mix. Here’s what I decided on and I know you are going to love them all. I went for a little bit of everything on the list and you are going to find the perfect dressing for just about any salad or dish you are making.
9 Staple Salad Dressings You Should Know How to Make:
Creamy Italian
Ranch
Classic Vinaigrette
Roasted Garlic
Honey Mustard
Honey Poppy Seed
Asian Sesame
Peanut Lime
Creamy Blue Cheese
In the world of salad dressing, this is going to be a list you come back to again and again.
Classic Ranch
Classic Ranch: whisk 1/3 cup buttermilk, 1/3 cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons each chopped parsley and chives, 1 teaspoon dried dill weed, 1/4 teaspoon each kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. (You can sub 1 tablespoon each of dried parsley and chives for the fresh) Once you start making homemade ranch, you’ll never go back to the store-bought stuff again. SO GOOD! This is perfect for cob salads, to dip fries in, over chicken salads, and most any other salads with romaine and other leaf lettuces as the base.
Creamy Italian
Creamy Italian: Blend 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoon each sour cream and olive oil, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, 1 clove garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt in a blender. Stir in 1 tablespoon chopped parsley.
Classic Vinaigrette
Classic Vinaigrette: Whisk 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and pepper to taste. Gradually whisk in 1/3 cup olive oil.
Roasted Garlic
Roasted Garlic: Slice the top off 1 head garlic; drizzle with olive oil, wrap in aluminum foil and roast at 400 degree until tender, about 35 minutes. Cool and then squeeze out the cloves. Blend the roasted garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, 3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, 1/3 cup olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and pepper to taste in a blender. I’m obsessed with this one. SO good! Make a double batch and use part of it for a marinade for chicken breast. It’s also amazing on roasted vegetables. I made my freezer to slow cooker Spaghetti and Meatballs and served it with a simple side salad and this dressing last night and I couldn’t get enough. Super easy, healthy, delicious, whole food meal the whole family loves.
Honey Mustard
Honey Mustard: Whisk 2 tablespoons each of honey, Dijon mustard, and white vinegar and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper to taste. Gradually whisk in 1/4 cup olive oil. So easy, super classic, I love honey mustard dressing on all the things.
Honey Poppy Seed
Honey Poppy Seed: Whisk 2 teaspoon black poppy seeds, 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Gradually whisk in 1/3 cup olive oil. This one I have around most of the time because it always hits the spot. This is great on salads with berries and other sweet fruits in them, it compliments them nicely.
Asian Sesame
Asian Sesame: Whisk 2 tablespoons cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 1/2 teaspoons grated peeled ginger, 2 tablespoons sesame oil, 1/3 cup vegetable oil (or other neutral oil), 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and pepper to taste, and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder. This dressing is also excellent on Asian inspired noodle recipes and chicken salads.
Peanut-Lime
Peanut-Lime: Blend 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter, 2 tablespoons water, the juice of one lime, 1 tablespoon each rice or white vinegar, chopped peeled ginger, soy sauce, and honey in a blender. This dressing is awesome on “quinoa” bowls (roasted veggies/protein/quinoa) and it’s also excellent on fish.
Creamy Blue Cheese
Creamy Blue Cheese: Whisk 1/4 cup each butter milk and sour cream, 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese, the juice of 1/2 a lemon, and salt and hot sauce to taste. Here’s a little secret, if blue cheese is too strong for you, you can actually make this with crumbled feta for a more mild dressing that is still wonderfully creamy and cheesy. Dip everything in this including hot wings.
The Dijon mustard in these is a must because it acts as en emulsifier between the vinegar and the oils. Whisk up the mustard/vinegar/whatever else and then slowly add the oil while you are whisking. This will help the oil to not separate out of the dressing. Store any extra dressing in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
The dressings store so well in wide-mouth half-pint mason jars. These lids are also really nice to have on hand!
If you need some salad inspiration to put your new dressings on, I’d start here.
I hope you LOVE this post and use it often. Let’s hear it, what homemade salad dressing recipes are you going to try first?!
Pinning! I can’t wait to try these 😀
Thanks girl!!!
Have you tried to make the salad dressing recipes more calorie friendly by using light mayo, sour cream, buttermilk etc?
Nope, but you’re free to give those a try!
I just want to say that I am so happy that these dressings only make about a cup!!! I hate making a quart of dressing that just sits in the fridge and then goes bad before I can use it all up, especially for more ‘special’ dressings like a vinaigrette or asian one (we always use up all the ranch, haha). I know I could do the math and scale it back…but thanks for doing it for me!
I made all these the same day and had a salad with some pasta for dinner. The kids and Boyfriend plowed through the ranch and then were miffed when I didn’t have any more. I had EIGHT OTHER KINDS!!! LOL it was funny and ridiculous. Long live Ranch!
Homemade dressings are the best! When I buy a store bought bottle, we never use it all before it expires. I think it’s because we like so many different flavors so we have to many big bottles at once. I like the portion sizes you give because it’s just enough! These will get used up before they go bad! Pinning!
Agree! And if you are having a party, double the batch… easy!
These look great- I will give some of them a try. How long will they stay good in the fridge for? Also, when you say dijon is it the old fashioned kind?
Hmmm… I have no idea? It’s not the stone ground or deli or spicy or brown, all of those are different but I’ve never heard of an old fashioned kind. One of the more popular name brand Dijon mustards is called Grey Poupon if that helps!
This post is a keeper!! Thanks for taking the time to put it together!!
About how long do they keep?
Depends on the dressing. The creamy ones about a week and the ones that are oil and vinegar based will last a couple of weeks in the fridge.
How does someone print your recipes with all the pages and pages of what’s on the screen? I’m fairly new to Pinterest and can’t find a print button.
I didn’t plug them into a recipe thing so they won’t print with just a button (I’ll look into fixing that!), I would just copy and paste the recipes into a word processor and print from there! Hope that helps, enjoy!
Just an FYI… Pinterest doesn’t allow copying from an iPad. But up at the top I found a box with a diagonal arrow. If you click that you can open this link in Safari (it’s browser). From the browser you can copy…which I did. Thank you for your recipes.
Great to know! Thanks! I had been wondering about that, too.
I’m trying to eat gluten and refined sugar free. These recipes fit both those requirements! So glad I found these, thanks for sharing!
These dressings look soo good but I would have to substitute the salt for the Himalayan salt and olive oil for coconut oil.
And that is your choice.
Cannot wait to try these! Thank you for sharing!
so excited to try these! I am trying to avoid processed foods, and love making simple things from scratch. I will definitely be trying the Peanut Lime, Ranch, and Creamy Italian. thanks for sharing!
These look great! Thank you for posting them. Do you happen to have a raspberry vinaigrette? I am trying to eat more natural and these will fit the bill nicely.
This recipe from Food Network is the one I use! Enjoy friend! Red Raspberry: Blend 2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar, 1 chopped shallot, 1 teaspoon each honey and dijon mustard, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt in a blender. Gradually blend in 1/3 cup olive oil; add 1/2 cup raspberries and pulse to combine.
I’ve been wanting to make some salad dressings.
Thanks for the recipes!
thank you so much for your site and sharing your receipes.
Is there any substitute for the Dijon mustard? I really don’t like mustard!
Thank you so much for this post! I’m absolutely in love with the classic vinneagrette and the honey mustard (I had to have a second salad at dinner tonight because that honey mustard is so awesome!). I can’t wait to make the others!
no recipe for french dressing?
Homemade salad dressings are the best! Can’t wait to try the Asian Sesame
I’ve made the creamy Italian twice and we really love it. Been doubling the recipe! Thanks!
Yay! Have you tried the roasted garlic yet??? They have similar vibes, I really like that one over rice with veggies and chicken too, so much flavor!
I have tried the ranch although it tastes great . it was very thin . is that the way it is supposed to be?
No, it should be about as thick as the traditional bottled ranch dressomg. I bet your mayo is a little different than mine, you just need to add a little less buttermilk and it’ll be thicker and still taste the same! Hope that helps. Or you can add a little more mayo to thicken it. Both things will work. Enjoy!
These look amazing! Can they be frozen?
Thank you so much
How long can these be stored?
I keep mine in the fridge for about a week if they are creamy and 2 if they are just oil and vinegar… they store well, but because they only make about a cup I haven’t kept them around super long to tell you when they might spoil. So not as long as a store bought dressing, but long enough to get used. Does that help at all?