Do-it-yourself Italian Dressing – Sally’s Baking Habit

January 10, 2025

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This vinaigrette-style home made Italian dressing is zesty, brilliant, and filled with daring, recent taste. It takes solely about 5 minutes to organize with a mixture of pantry staples and some recent elements. Making your individual Italian dressing is extremely straightforward and way more scrumptious than something store-bought.

I initially revealed this recipe in 2015 and have since added new pictures and extra success ideas.

pouring homemade Italian dressing over a green salad.

Earlier than you attain for store-bought dressing the subsequent time you make a salad, let me present you ways easy it’s to make recent, zesty home made Italian dressing from scratch. I do know it sounds odd to have a salad dressing recipe on a baking web site, however that is considered one of my most favourite “dipping sauces” for home made breads like artisan bread and ciabatta bread, and clearly pairs properly with home made croutons. 😉

It’s definitely simpler and extra handy to select up a bottle of dressing from the shop, however I promise this fast recipe delivers far superior taste in only some minutes. With a handful of easy elements, and not one of the unpronounceable components, this home made Italian dressing will elevate your salad to the subsequent degree.

I’m assured when you attempt it, you’ll all the time desire a jar on the prepared in your fridge.

colorful fresh salad with homemade Italian dressing and croutons.

Right here Are the Elements You Want & Potential Substitutions

Don’t let the prolonged ingredient record make you nervous! Most of those elements are in all probability already in your pantry or spice drawer. You’ll want:

Additional Virgin Olive Oil: I all the time use additional virgin olive oil right here for its superior taste, however you should use avocado oil, grapeseed oil, or sunflower oil if that’s what you’ve got.
White Wine Vinegar: Vinegar is an apparent necessity for any vinaigrette-style dressing. I like to make use of white wine vinegar, however pink wine vinegar additionally works. These are the one two vinegars I like to recommend right here; different vinegars will lack the flavors crucial for traditional Italian dressing.
Parmesan Cheese: Freshly grated Parmesan cheese is most popular. You’ll need the finer particles of cheese somewhat than the lengthy shreds. Parmesan will be pricey, so for those who don’t really feel like selecting it up OR if you wish to maintain the dressing dairy free, you possibly can go away it out.
Pink Bell Pepper: A little bit little bit of chopped pink bell pepper is often included in Italian dressings as a result of it provides taste and a little bit of freshness. You’ll want to cube it into very small items in order that they’ll evenly disperse in your salad dressing.
Dried Parsley, Basil, Oregano, Garlic Salt, and Pepper: The large taste makers! I often attain for dried herbs and spices for ease, however you should use recent for those who desire. See recipe Notes for precise quantities.
Minced Onion (Dried or Contemporary): Once more, I usually use dried minced onion for ease, however be at liberty to make use of recent minced onion or shallot for those who desire. I additionally use dried minced onion on everything-style home made bagels.
Lemon Juice: Only a splash of recent lemon juice helps brighten and steadiness the flavors.
Honey or Sugar: This provides a touch of sweetness and balances the flavors within the dressing. Don’t go away it out—the dressing can style bitter with out it. You should use honey or common granulated sugar.

ingredients on marble surface including dried herbs, olive oil, fresh parmesan, and red bell pepper.

whisking olive oil mixture in large liquid measuring cup.

Use Your Do-it-yourself Italian Dressing in These Recipes:

What’s one of the best ways to retailer Italian dressing?

This recipe yields about 1 cup of dressing, so that you’ll want an air-tight container with no less than 1-cup capability. Ideally, one thing barely bigger is greatest so that there’s sufficient room when shaking the elements collectively. A easy canning jar works (and listed here are some nifty tops to make pouring a breeze), or you should use a salad dressing shaker like this or this.

How lengthy does Italian dressing final?

As soon as combined, the dressing lasts for as much as 2 weeks within the fridge. For longer storage, you possibly can freeze it for as much as 3 months. Thaw in a single day within the fridge earlier than utilizing. (Tip: You should use a silicone ice dice tray to freeze small, individual-sized parts of dressing. Freeze the dressing within the ice dice tray, then switch to a zipped-top bag for storage.)

Can I double this Italian dressing recipe?

Sure, this recipe can simply be doubled (or additional multiplied) for big batches.

jar of homemade Italian dressing with a spoon.

Extra Contemporary Salads & Do-it-yourself Sauces/Toppings:

When you see how straightforward it’s to make home made Italian dressing, you’ll love having this recent, flavorful possibility within the fridge. Listed below are a number of extra of my favourite salads and different from-scratch sauces and toppings:

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