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Skip the bottle and learn how to make the original Caesar salad dressing recipe; it’s bold, creamy, and made with simple pantry ingredients in just 5 minutes!
If you’ve ever wondered what gives a Caesar salad its bold, tangy, umami flavor, you’re in for a treat. Forget the bottled versions; making Caesar dressing from scratch is surprisingly simple and absolutely worth it.
Whether you’re tossing it with crisp romaine, using it as a dip for veggies, drizzling it on roasted vegetables, or spreading it on a sandwich or wrap, this classic Caesar dressing packs a punch of flavor. It blows the bottled stuff out of the water!
What Is Classic Caesar Salad Dressing Made Of?
Before we dive into how to make Caesar salad dressing at home, let’s rewind to where it all began.
The original Caesar salad dressing recipe was created in the 1920s by Caesar Cardini, an Italian-American restaurateur running a popular restaurant called Caesar’s in Tijuana, Mexico. As the story goes, on a particularly busy Fourth of July weekend in 1924, Cardini was short on ingredients and threw together a salad using what he had on hand. The result was a garlicky, lemony, umami-packed dressing that quickly became iconic.
Unlike many modern variations, the traditional recipe doesn’t include mayonnaise. Instead, it relies on simple, high-quality ingredients to build depth and richness.
And interestingly, the original Caesar salad dressing recipe didn’t include anchovies. Instead, its deep savory flavor came from Worcestershire sauce, which already contains anchovies. Over time, however, actual anchovies became a common addition, prized for their rich, salty depth. I include anchovies in this recipe, but what you do in your kitchen is your business! You can leave them out if you prefer, and just add an extra splash of Worcestershire.
In Julia’s Kitchen Wisdom, Julia Child even recalled eating the original Caesar salad as a child in California and later featured her own version in her cookbooks.
Today, recipes for Caesar dressing vary slightly, but most stick to the beloved basics: egg yolk, fresh lemon juice, Dijon mustard, garlic, anchovies, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, and Parmesan cheese.
(You can read more about the history of this famous salad dressing in The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink by Andrew F. Smith.)
What Worcestershire Sauce Adds to Caesar Dressing
1. Umami Boost
Worcestershire contains anchovies, fermented soy, and other umami-rich ingredients. Even in small amounts, it enhances the savory backbone of the dressing, especially when anchovies aren’t added separately.
2. Tangy Complexity
It also includes vinegar, molasses, and tamarind, which contribute a sweet-sour element that rounds out the sharpness of lemon and the saltiness of Parmesan.
3. Depth of Flavor
It acts as a sort of flavor bridge between the bright citrus and the rich egg yolk and oil. It deepens the flavor without overpowering the delicate emulsion.
Ingredients
Breaking It Down
Ingredients Explained
In this section I explain the ingredients and give substitution ideas where applicable. For the full recipe (including the ingredient amounts), see the recipe card below.
- Egg yolk – Adds rich creaminess. Egg yolk is the most powerful emulsifier in this dressing. It contains lecithin, a natural compound that helps bind oil and water together, creating that creamy, stable texture that Caesar dressing is known for. For food safety reasons, the FDA recommends using pasteurized egg yolks if they’ll be eaten raw.
- Garlic – For pungent depth.
- Anchovies – Anchovy adds savory, umami complexity.
- Fresh lemon juice – Lemon juice is primarily added for acidity and brightness, but it can also contribute slightly to emulsification due to its water content and acidity. However, on its own, it isn’t strong enough to hold an emulsion; it needs support from something like egg yolk or mustard.
- Dijon mustard – While not always found in the original recipe, Dijon mustard is commonly added in modern versions. Also with egg yolk and lemon juice, Dijon also helps stabilize the mixture.
- Worcestershire sauce – For restaurant-quality dressing, don’t skip this pantry ingredient! It packs a punch of flavor and lends a ton of complexity.
- Salt and black pepper – To season the dressing.
- Extra-virgin olive oil – Use good quality oil here because you’ll be able to taste it. If you want to use this dressing as a dip, reduce the oil from 1/3 cup to 1/4 cup.
- Parmesan cheese – Freshly-grated Parmesan is important here. It lends rich, salty, nutty notes to the dressing.
Pro Tip: If you’re hesitant about anchovies, don’t worry! They don’t make the dressing taste “fishy.” They just add salty, umami depth of flavor. Be open-minded and give it a try!
How to Make Caesar Salad Dressing
- Add the egg yolk, garlic cloves, anchovies, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and black pepper to a food processor.
- Pulse until the mixture is creamy and well-combined, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. With the motor running, very slowly drizzle in the olive oil, starting with just a drop at a time until you’ve drizzled in at least 2 tablespoons of it, and then drizzle it in a thin stream.
- Once all the oil is added, add the parmesan.
- Pulse a couple times to incorporate it into the dressing. Transfer the dressing to a glass jar with a lid and chill until serving.
Can I Make Caesar Dressing Without Raw Egg?
Yes! If you’re concerned about using a raw egg yolk, you can:
- Use a pasteurized egg yolk.
- Substitute with 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise for a more modern twist.
Storage
Store this salad dressing in a covered glass jar in the fridge for up to 2 days. If you have the time, let it chill for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour before serving so the flavors can blend and the dressing can thicken.
Pro Tips For the Best Caesar Salad Dressing Recipe
- Use room temperature egg yolks. Egg yolks blend better and help emulsify the dressing when they’re at room temp. If you forget to take them out of the fridge, just submerge the whole egg in warm tap water for about 5 minutes.
- Drizzle the oil very slowly. When blending or whisking, start with just a couple drops at first, and work up to adding the oil in a thin stream. This step is crucial for emulsifying the dressing into a creamy, cohesive texture.
- Skip the shaky cheese. Freshly-grated Parmesan adds nutty richness. Pre-shredded or powdered varieties just won’t give the same depth of flavor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store-bought dressings often contain preservatives, added sugars, and lower-quality oils. When you make your own, you control the flavor and the ingredients. Plus, this only takes 5 minutes to whip up in a food processor!
Not at all! The anchovies add complexity, not a strong fishy flavor.
You can skip them, but you’ll lose some of the signature flavor. An extra splash of Worcestershire (about 1/2 teaspoon or so) can help compensate.
Caesar Cardini, the Italian-American chef credited with creating the Caesar salad in the 1920s, prepared the dressing tableside using a wooden bowl, a fork, a whisk (or spoon), and a lot of arm power. The ingredients—like egg yolk, olive oil, garlic, anchovies, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and grated Parmesan—were emulsified by hand into a creamy dressing.
Food processors didn’t become household staples until decades later, so traditional preparation relied on manual emulsification techniques to blend oil with the other ingredients. While food processors and blenders make things faster today, many purists still prefer the hand-whisked method for its authenticity and slightly more textured, rustic finish.
In this recipe, we use an easy trick to make the dressing a bit more textured. Simply pulse the freshly-grated cheese in at the end, instead of adding it at the beginning along with the egg yolk, garlic, and anchovies. On the other hand, if you want the end result smoother, you can add the cheese at the beginning instead.
More Restaurant Copycat Salad Dressing Recipes
- Japanese Carrot-Ginger Dressing (Hibachi Style)
- Italian Salad Dressing (Olive Garden Copycat)
- Chipotle Honey Vinaigrette (Chipotle Copycat)
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Original Caesar Salad Dressing Recipe
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 large egg yolk see Notes
- 2 large cloves garlic peeled
- 3 anchovies or more if desired; see Notes
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 ounce parmesan cheese freshly-grated (about 1/2 cup)
Instructions
- Add the egg yolk, garlic cloves, anchovies, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and black pepper to a food processor, and pulse until the mixture is creamy and well-combined, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary.
- With the motor running, very slowly drizzle in the olive oil, starting with just a drop at a time until you’ve drizzled in at least 2 tablespoons of it, and then drizzle it in a thin stream.
- Once all the oil is added, add the parmesan and pulse a couple times to incorporate it into the dressing. Transfer the dressing to a glass jar with a lid and chill until serving. TIP: If you have the time, let it chill for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour before serving so the flavors can blend and the dressing can thicken.
Notes
- Raw Egg Yolk: For food safety reasons, the FDA recommends using pasteurized egg yolks if they’ll be eaten raw.
- Anchovies: If you’re hesitant about anchovies, don’t worry! They don’t make the dressing taste “fishy.” They just add salty, umami depth of flavor. However, if you prefer, you can skip the anchovies and add an extra splash of Worcestershire (about 1/2 teaspoon).
- Texture: In this recipe, we use an easy trick to make the dressing a bit more textured (similar to how it would be if made by hand using traditional methods). Simply pulse the freshly-grated cheese in at the end, instead of adding it at the beginning along with the egg yolk, garlic, and anchovies. On the other hand, if you want the end result smoother, you can add the cheese at the beginning instead.
- Recipe Yield and Serving Size: This makes about 3/4 cup of dressing, which is 6 (2-tablespoon) servings.
- Storage: Store this salad dressing in a covered glass jar in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximate.
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I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
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