Homemade Caesar Salad Dressing

There are two food groups I could happily live on: salads and beans. My food pyramid doesn’t follow FDA guidelines and I’m all the better for it. Since we’re heading into spring, I’m letting my bean luvva take a back seat to my salad obsesso. And with the daffodils and robins out in force, I’m definitely springing into my fill of this Caesar salad dressing. No eggs or mayo required!

Classic Caesar salad dressing is a thing of beauty that punches you in the snoot with its combo of anchovy, lemon, garlic and Parmigiana Reggiano, and then coddles your tongue with the creaminess of the olive oil and egg yolks. Crispy croutons add texture and slivers of even more parmesan make this relatively plainly adorned dish a classic favorite in the lettuce – and therefore my – world.

However, yes, there’s always a however …. unless I know that both my eggs are super fresh and I can get the nice Italian anchovies that are packed in salt, I stick with this tried and true recipe for, let’s call it, Caesar-adjacent salad dressing. And if we’re going off script anyway, why not grill the lettuce to give it a bit more oomph (is it umami? or umami-adjacent?) and shake things up. Totally optional but not to be missed.

My dressing is a mash-up of ones I’ve had for years from Martha and another from Todd English, neither of which use mayonnaise. While I’m not a mayo-phobe, I am not in the condiment’s camp either. There’s always a time and place so I won’t say never but … just not here.

This recipe gets the richness that would normally come from eggs from emulsifying the oils, of course, but keeps the Caesar flavor going with the mustard and capers. The floof-ton of real parmesan cheese alongside the lemon, garlic and anchovies maintains the lux-i-ness of the original recipe.

CAESAR SALAD DRESSING INGREDIENTS

CHEESE

Parmigiano-Reggiano is the king of parmesan cheeses and is perfect in this dressing. It’s also pretty pricey so really any of the hard cows milk cheeses of the Parma region (eg, grana padana) will work. I do use the real thing; it’s a big flavor component of the dressing but you don’t need a ton. If you go further astray from the Parma region, the flavor may not be right for this dressing but if you like it, you like it.

BONUS CHEESE CAVEAT (aka beating that drum again): Calling that stuff in a green can cheese is an offense to all things actually cheese. Please don’t use it. Also not a good option is the refrigerator already-grated or -shredded cheeses that have anti-clumping agents which actually will create globs in this dressing. You don’t need a lot of cheese here so the best you can find is well worth it.

This is true for the cheese in the dressing as well as the cheese you grate or sliver onto the salad.

GARLIC

Fresh only. Carry on.

ANCHOVIES

I use anchovy paste – a nice Italian variety – because it keeps in the tube in the fridge for easy access and tastes great in this dressing. And pasta puttanesca … but I digress. However, if you can get hold of some nice whole anchovies or fillets packed in salt, go for it. Just rinse them first.

LEMONS

Fresh only. Carry on.

CHALLENGE: If you can recommend a brand, any brand, that actually tastes like fresh lemons without that odd (I can’t explain it but it tastes fake) flavor, I will gladly rescind this fresh only requirement. After a quality assurance test, natch.

FLAVORINGS

Use a real Dijon mustard (I use Maille or Grey Poupon because they’re readily available and taste good).

Dry mustard powder heat/intensity can run the gamut. Coleman’s is reliable and usually available in the grocery store. I generally have a jar/pouch from The Spice House so I use that. Their spices never disappoint and when there is an issue, their customer service is top-notch.

OILS

Because of the sheer quantity of oil in this recipe and the flavors competing with it, I split my oil between a good neutral vegetable oil (canola usually) and a tasty Italian olive oil from Olio2Go. You could use 100% olive oil but, for me, that’s too pricey for a salad dressing. I’d imagine if you use a grocery store extra virgin olive oil that you like, that would work and not be too spendy.

Do not use 100% vegetable oil though. You need that olive oil flavor that you can only get from… well, olive oil.

CAESAR SALAD DRESSING TASTE TEST

Final word on this Caesar salad dressing … or any dressing really. It’s a matter of taste so … taste. As you go. Understanding that flavors will get stronger as they sit in the fridge, you still can get an idea of where your dressing is going and correct as necessary. Like it lemonier? Add more. Saltier? Try more anchovy. It’s all a matter of taste so make it your own. And use a lettuce leaf for testing! It gives a more accurate taste than dipping in a spoon and giving a lick.

SALAD CONSTRUCTION

Wash the romaine well (it can hold gritty bits at the stem end) and drain dry. Either cut length-wise into halves to serve as a single unit or tear into large bite-sized pieces.

Toss with a bit of the dressing… taste. Add more if necessary. Don’t drown the lettuce in dressing.

Sprinkle with croutons and top with parmesan (either grated or vegetable-peeled) and serve.

LETTUCE

Romaine is the standard. But this is your salad so have at it. I’ve used iceberg (gasp! forsooth and forsook!) which gets the crunch but lacks the flavor. It does provide the conveyance necessary to get the dressing, croutons and cheese into your mouth so objective met if not supremely.

To grill or not to grill?! We love grilled Caesar salad. At high heat for just a minute per side (if that) oiled, salted and peppered romaine gets a lovely smokey flavor that pairs nicely with it’s accouterment. Add some grilled shrimp, scallops or even chicken and ooh la la! Bliss!

However, and isn’t there always a however, if you do not like soggy salad, grilling – which you should try at least once no matter the however I throw at you – does steam bits of the romaine that give a textural difference of the soft variety if you let it sit. I LOVE wilted salads so this is my jam. If you don’t, it may not be your favorite.

CROUTONS

The croutons are my mother’s version using butter and oil, crisping them up to golden brown crunchy bits with enough garlic, herbs and salt to be a perfectly acceptable snack on their own. Please do not use the store-bought variety in the box. They are … not good. I have, however, found that Trader Joe’s croutons (or crisps they may be called) are a very good option if you don’t have time to make your own. If neither are possible, please pass on the stale bready bits in the dressing aisle. You. Have. Been. Warned.

A FINAL THOUGHT ON CAESAR SALAD DRESSING (aka pasta salad)

I also use this dressing as a pasta salad dressing. Cook a bag of grocery store cheese tortellini per instructions, drain and toss into a large bowl right after draining with this Caesar salad dressing. Stir in any and all vegetables (chopped), bits of cheese, maybe deli meats (think salami, salty ham). Cover with plastic wrap and park in the fridge for a few hours. Lordy… bits and bobs elevated to dinner plate status.

I’d love to hear from you! If you make this dressing, have comments or questions, or just want to say hi, feel free to comment below. I can also be found on Instagram @piecrustandpasta #piecrustandpasta.