A homemade Italian dressing recipe that tastes so much better than store bought and is ready in just 5 minutes. Use it on pasta salad, as a chicken marinade, and more!
Italian dressing is the one I always reach for at the grocery store because it's such a crowd-pleaser. Kids and grown-ups alike love the tangy, savory flavors!
I am making an effort to make our salad dressings from scratch, and this Italian dressing recipe is made in five minutes, without the preservatives or weird additives you'll find in store bought.
And maybe because it's made fresh, but it tastes SO much better! With tangy white wine vinegar, parmesan cheese, and herbs, this Italian dressing recipe is perfect on salad, or used as a chicken marinade.
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We love this Italian dressing recipe because
- it is ready in 5 minutes
- there are no additives or preservatives
- it tastes better than store bought!
How to make it
For this recipe, you will need a few ingredients, but these are all part of my pantry staples list, and ingredients that I always have in my pantry and fridge.
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- extra virgin olive oil- I like to use a good quality oil in salad dressings.
- white wine vinegar- for a nice tangy touch. You can swap for red wine vinegar if you'd prefer!
- dijon- which emulsifies the dressing aka: keeps the oil and vinegar from separating immediately.
- honey- for a teeny tiny bit of sweetness
- herbs- because it's Italian dressing and needs that Italian flay-vah!
- parmesan cheese- trust me on this one. Necessary for this homemade Italian dressing to taste like....Italian dressing ๐
Shake it all up and you're good to go!
How long does Italian dressing keep? It's good in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Can I make it low carb? Sure, leave out the honey.
Vegan? You can leave out the parmesan cheese but you may want to add some nutritional yeast to give it that cheesy flavor. Swap the honey for maple syrup at 1:1.
Use your dressing
This is such a great all-purpose salad dressing that it works well on so many different types of salad.
- on a chopped chicken salad with crunchy romaine, perfect baked chicken breast, and lots of veggies (plus some extra parmesan for good measure)
- on a spinach salad with hard boiled eggs and bacon
- on a quinoa salad (like this one!)
- on a pasta salad (like this one!)
- used as a chicken marinade (bet it would work well as a freezer chicken marinade!)
Tips & equipment
- I used ยฝ pint jar
but you could use this salad dressing shaker - I recommend a good quality extra virgin olive oil
- Looking for more salad dressing recipes? Check out this Homemade Ranch Dressing, thisย Green Goddess Dressing, and thisย Asian Salad Dressing
but you could use this 
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
Homemade Italian Dressing
Ingredients
- ยผ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- ยผ teaspoon onion powder
- ยผ teaspoon garlic powder
- ยฝ tablespoon parmesan cheese
- ยฝ teaspoon basil
- ยฝ teaspoon oregano
- ยผ teaspoon dijon
- 1 teaspoon honey (or maple syrup)
- ยผ teaspoon salt
- โ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Shake together all ingredients.
- Enjoy immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 week.
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Nutrition Information
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Debra says
I love this dressing!! I love knowing what's in my dressing!! It's delicious!!!
Paulette says
Hi Denise,
I often make this dressing. It is tasty and not too strong. I don't always add the parmesan cheese as I don't always have it on hand and will sometime substitute white wine vinegar for the red, but it is still just as delicious.
Thank you!