Get ready to whip up the BEST homemade Italian dressing in just 5 minutes!
Nothing beats the taste of good homemade Italian dressing and this recipe has the perfect balance of flavors!
Superior flavor aside, making your own homemade Italian dressing has additional benefits. Virtually ALL store-bought Italian dressings are made with either soybean/vegetable oil (bad news) or canola oil (not much better) (see our comprehensive guide to cooking oils), and then of course there are usually additional ingredients, additives, preservatives that are better left on the shelf.
With this recipe you get an Italian dressing that not only tastes fabulous but is healthy and takes just 5 minutes to whip up! That’s a win-win. Really there is just NO good reason to use store-bought!
Tasty Ways to Use Italian Dressing
Besides its classic use for tossed salads, Italian dressing has a ton of tasty uses – your imagination is the limit!
Use Italian dressing for pasta salads, as a marinade for chicken, beef, pork, shrimp and fish, on burgers, shish kebabs, vegetables, salads, fish tacos, sandwiches, wraps, marinated olives, a variety of antipasto selections, and more!
Let’s get started!
Place all of the ingredients in a blender and blend for about 30 seconds. Flecks of Parmesan cheese will remain.
Pour into a jar or dressing dispenser and store in the refrigerator. Will keep for a couple of weeks.
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Don’t forget to check out our BEST Homemade Ranch Dressing!
Best Homemade Italian Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons honey (vegans: use liquid sweetener)
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon Hungarian sweet paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/8 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1/16 teaspoon celery seeds
Instructions
- Place everything in a blender and blend for about 30 seconds (small of flecks of Parmesan will remain). Pour into a jar or dressing dispenser and refrigerate. Chill for at least 4 hours before using. Will keep for up to 2 weeks.
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Carrian says
Homemade is always soooooo much better!! This looks awesome!!
Jaide says
This looks so yummy! I am adding this to my recipes!
Beth K. says
I love tossing Italian dressing on my pasta salad. I look forward to trying this recipe.
Amanda says
This is a fantastic recipe! Who doesn’t love italian dressing!
Jamielyn says
Looks delicious! Making soon!
Delaney | Melanie Makes says
I would love to make my own Italian dressing!
Toni | Boulder Locavore says
Homemade dressing is really hard to beat! I can’t wait to give this a try!
Andie Thueson says
I love finding good from scratch recipes! I love Italian dressing!! Pinning for later!
Paula says
Homemade dressings are so good!
Krista says
I am saving this for my next salad! Love it!
Des says
This dressing has stolen my heart.
Amy says
I can see why this is the best! It looks and sounds great!
grayslady says
Made up the dressing this past weekend for a vegetable salad. It was great! The addition of fresh parmesan is especially nice. I did add one extra tablespoon of oil, but that may have been necessary due to the quality of red wine vinegar used (okay, but not top of the line since I don’t use red wine vinegar all that often). Next time I will leave out the rosemary. Even the smallest amount of rosemary can upset an otherwise perfect balance of herbs and spices. Thanks.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Wonderful, grayslady, thanks for the feedback!
DEE says
OMG… I read the recipe for this salad dressing, please realize I didn’t bother to make this dressing. I can’t speak from my experience, eating this dressing.
I read recipes and give them 5 star’s if they sound good, because I don’t cook. I merely read recipes.
Wise up, expectation folks, is for you to actually prepare a recipe, then give a rating after you’ve consumed the product.
I did prepare and consumed this dressing.
I loved each note the multitude of spices provided.
This recipe provides more complexity than my previously go to Good Seasons copycat recipe for Italian dressing.
I marinated tomatoes, parmesan cheese, fresh basil and bacon in this dressing.
Delicious.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Dee, I’m so glad you enjoyed this and appreciate the feedback, thank you!
BRIAN Winks says
Could I freeze part of this recipe ?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Brian, I haven’t tried it but generally you can freeze oil-vinegar based items but with varying results depending on the other ingredients (i.e. the Parmesan cheese). I’m not sure how the texture will be impacted. Keep in mind though that this dressing will keep for a couple of weeks and likely longer.
Shelley says
I made this dressing and used as many fresh herbs as I could it was delicious. Now I crave it. It’s a keeper in my book.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Shelley, I’m so glad, thank you!
Taylor Nash says
Fantastic recipe, fantastic dressing! I add a teaspoon of brown mustard and 3 tablespoons of water to spice it up a bit but not have it too thick.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Awesome, Taylor, thank you!
Anonymous says
I don’t normally leave reviews, but this is the best! I was just looking for a quick recipe to supplement the remaining store-bought dressing I had for marinating chicken, but never again will I buy it from the store. This was phenomenal, thank you so much for sharing! I can’t wait to make more!!!
Kim Seghers says
Your homemade dressing looks delicious. I need to make soome to use in our salads for dinner.
Dorothy Reinhold says
Homemade dressings are always SO much better than store bought. I love knowing exactly what is going in the mix!
Cathy says
Wow does this sound like it would be flavorful!!
Catalina says
Oh my goodness! This looks absolutely amazing! Yummy!
Melanie Bauer says
Homemade dressings at it’s finest! So much better than store bought!
Sara Welch says
This was such a great salad dressing with our pasta salad dish last night! Highly recommend; delish!
Beth Pierce says
Such a flavorful recipe! Definitely making this to have on hand for dinner tonight!
Deb Snyder says
I don’t have a blender- would it work to just whisk all ingredients together or put them in a jar and shake really well?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Deb, the issue will be the chunks of whole seeds and herbs in the dressing. I would try crushing/grinding them as much as you can before adding them to the liquid.