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Classic Caesar Salad Recipe with 2-Minute Creamy Caesar Dressing

Published . Last updated by 27 Comments

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Our 2-Minute Creamy Caesar Dressing brings this tableside classic to your family dinners with ease.

We use a hand blender and it’s done in a snap!

It only takes 30 seconds to blend it up and a minute or so to prep the ingredients.

Romaine lettuce dressed with creamy Caesar dressing in a white bowl over a red striped towel with Parmesan and lemon on a cutting board in the background.

If you’ve had the pleasure of eating a Classic Caesar Salad prepared table-side at a restaurant, you know that no bottled dressing even comes close.

=> Watch the video in the recipe and see how fast it is to make this savory dressing and serve a classic Caesar salad for dinner.

There are always variations, even for the best Caesar—anchovy or no anchovy, egg or no egg, white wine Worcestershire or regular—the delicious part is finding the one that suits you.

The dressing ingredients are common pantry items except for maybe anchovies, so we’ll start there.

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Embracing Anchovies in Caesar Dressing

It’s a food hack thing. Anchovy has long been used to bring the magic of umami to sauces, stews, dips, and dressings.

However, one of the original Caesar salads did not include anchovy in the recipe. The addition of anchovies came later, and in my opinion, creates the distinct depth of flavor we love about this salad.

  • In my experience, whole anchovies taste less intense than anchovy paste.
  • I prefer oil-packed whole anchovies in a glass jar over canned, and choose canned over the paste.
  • The ONLY ingredients should be anchovy, olive oil, and salt.

TIP: If you’re worried about the dressing tasting fishy, the best way to tame the anchovy is to either reduce the amount or increase the amount of lemon juice.

Best Substitutions for Anchovies: 
  • soy sauce
  • kalamata olives
  • bonito flakes
  • miso

Raw Egg, No Egg, and Quick Egg Substitutes for Caesar Dressing

  • The egg yolk is what gives the dressing its rich, creamy texture and serves as an emulsifier—lecithin in egg yolk stabilizes the dressing, keeping it from separating.
  • We appreciate the health benefits of raw pastured eggs, but those avoiding raw eggs due to allergies, immune suppression or pregnancy, may want a substitute.
  • Of course, you can omit the eggs altogether for a less creamy, but still delicious dressing.

Quick Egg Substitutes: 1/3 cup mayonnaise, 3 tablespoons hummus, 2 tablespoons sour cream or Greek yogurt, or 1/4 cup mashed avocado.

TIP => To make consuming raw eggs as safe as possible, buy pasteurized eggs at the store or pasteurize your own (see the recipe for at-home pasteurizing method).

Creamy Caesar dressing running off of a spoon into a glass cup.

Make no mistake, homemade dressing is worth the 2 minutes!

As a savvy shopper who reads ingredient labels, you already know most bottled salad dressings are not a healthy choice because of the cheap, rancid oils they use.

Our former favorite brand of Caesar dressing is an example: (ingredient list taken directly from their label)

Ingredients: Former Popular Favorite

Soybean Oil, Water, Egg Yolk, Salt, White Wine and Distilled Vinegars, Lemon Juice Concentrate, Spices (Including Mustard Seed), Parmesan Cheese (Part-Skim Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes), Garlic (Dehydrated), Onion (Dehydrated), Olive Oil, Xanthan Gum, Molasses, Corn Syrup, Rosemary Extract, Caramel Color, Sugar, Anchovies, Tamarind, Natural Flavors.

We gave up the bottled stuff for this healthier homemade version and are so glad we did!

  • We have control over every ingredient and the flavor cannot be beat.
  • Healthy fats are an important, so we use avocado oil whenever we make this recipe.
  • The neutral flavor of avocado oil is perfect for Caesar salad dressing over the added flavor of extra-virgin olive oil.

Read more about healthy fats and oils in this Healthy Mayonnaise post.

Close-up of Caesar Salad in a white bowl with salad tongs and dressing beside it.

The Best Lettuce for Caesar Salad

Romaine lettuce is the traditional choice of greens with a stout rib in the center of each leaf making it sturdy enough for heavier dressing and providing a pleasing crunch.

In one of the original recipes, the leaves were left whole as a natural cradle for the dressing and could be eaten with your fingers.

The best lettuce beyond the standard romaine: These greens are slightly bitter and less sweet than romaine, so they work best when part of a mix.

  • Belgian endive
  • chicory (curly endive)
  • frisée
  • radicchio
  • flat-leaf spinach
  • kale
  • cabbage

We love the bold, rich flavor of lemon, anchovy, and Parmesan over grilled cabbage wedges too!

 
Grilled Cabbage with classic Caesar Dressing and Crushed Croutons sprinkled on top.

Grilled cabbage wedges with Classic Caesar Dressing and Croutons

Take Caesar Salad Over the Top with Homemade Croutons:

  1. Select quality French bread, we use Sprouted Wheat French Bread whenever possible.
  2. Cut into bite-size cubes.
  3. Toss with 2 tablespoons melted butter mixed with 2 tablespoons olive oil, per 4 cups of cubed bread.
  4. Arrange in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste.
  5. Bake at 400°F for about 10 minutes, stirring halfway through, until golden brown.

Go Grain-Free / Gluten-Free with these Keto-friendly crouton recipes:

Homemade Grain-Free Croutons Recipe
Low-Carb Parmesan Croutons
Easy Parmesan Crisps

Close-up of Caesar Salad in a white bowl with salad tongs and dressing beside it.
Print Recipe

Classic Caesar Salad with Homemade Dressing

Classic romaine lettuce dressed with a quick, 2-minute creamy Caesar dressing highlighting savory anchovy, lemon and Parmesan.
Prep Time20 mins
Total Time20 mins
Course: salads
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 6
Author: Judy Purcell

Ingredients

  • 2 large heads romaine lettuce (about 12 cups) -- washed and dried
  • 1 clove garlic (or rounded teaspoon)
  • 1 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 5 anchovy fillets , chopped -- approx 2 tablespoons
  • 1 *egg , pasture-raised
  • 1 *egg yolk , pasture-raised
  • 1/3 cup shredded Reggiano Parmigiano cheese , plus more of a block to shave for garnish
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard , Annie's GF
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup avocado oil , or extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup croutons (see quick recipe steps in post)
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Chop cleaned and dried lettuce into bite-size pieces. Set aside.

Using a food processor:

  • In a small bowl, stir garlic into lemon juice, set aside. Place anchovies, egg, egg yolk, 1/3 cup Parmesan, 1 1/2 tablespoons mustard, 2 teaspoons Worcestershire, 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a food processor and blend until anchovy is chopped fine.
  • Add lemon juice and garlic; blend again until incorporated. While the processor is running, pour in the 1/2 cup avocado oil in a slow, steady stream until emulsified and incorporated.

Using a hand blender:

  • Place the combined garlic and lemon juice, anchovies, egg, egg yolk, 1/3 cup Parmesan, 1 1/2 tablespoons mustard, 2 teaspoons Worcestershire, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 1/2 cup avocado oil in a tall jar. Blend with a hand (immersion) blender on high for about 30 seconds until emulsified and incorporated.
  • Toss the romaine lettuce and croutons with enough dressing to coat the leaves just before serving. Shave thin pieces of Parmesan cheese from a block with a vegetable peeler for garnish and offer fresh cracked pepper at the table.

Video

Notes

*Raw egg is not recommended for infants, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems. To minimize the risk of salmonella, use pasteurized eggs available in some supermarkets or easily pasteurize eggs at home.
=> To pasteurize large eggs, place them in a saucepan filled with enough water to cover by 2-inches. (Monitor the temperature of the water with a digital thermometer.) Turn on the heat and bring the water up to 140F. Keep the water temperature at 140F for 3 minutes (and no more than 142F), reducing the heat or sliding off the burner if necessary. Carefully remove eggs from the hot water and rinse thoroughly with cold water. Store in the refrigerator until needed or use right away.
Serve this Classic Caesar Salad recipe as a side dish or top it with grilled chicken or blackened salmon as a main dish.

Nutrition

Calories: 234kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 65mg | Sodium: 202mg | Potassium: 68mg | Vitamin A: 18.8% | Vitamin C: 2.1% | Calcium: 9% | Iron: 4.6%
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Comments

  2. Meredith says

    May 11, 2019 at 1:18 pm


    I love a caesar salad… and can definitely handle a salad dressing that takes 2 min!!! PS – those grilled cabbage wedges look delish. Definitely making those too!

    Reply

  8. Megan Stevens says

    May 6, 2019 at 8:03 am


    I love that you use whole anchovy fillets! This looks like the best, classic recipe online to follow! Thank you! I was looking for a recipe just like the one I grew up with. It was made at our country club table-side, so much fun to watch and eat! 🙂

    Reply

  11. Karen (Back Road Journal) says

    May 18, 2018 at 11:46 am

    You will never, ever find a bottle of salad dressing in our refrigerator, as you say it takes so little time to prepare it fresh. We love Caesar salads and your recipe is close to what we do…the only difference is no egg white in ours. I’m sure the taste is much the same.

    Reply

  12. mjskitchen says

    April 16, 2018 at 8:51 pm

    What a great post that covers every aspect of a classic! The Caesar is the ultimate classic salad and what a wonderful thing you’ve put together so we can all make it at home. Thank you! And yes, you are so right in that the couple of minutes it takes to make a homemade salad dressing is well worth it. We haven’t bought a salad dressing in decades. 🙂

    Reply

  13. Pati Stephens says

    April 7, 2018 at 11:38 am


    This is by far the best Caesar salad dressing I’ve ever had. Especially on grilled cabbage with those crunchy croutons… Yum!

    Reply

    • Judy Purcell says

      April 7, 2018 at 11:26 am

      Thanks, Bam, that was my first video attempt, I appreciate your kind remarks! We go through fresh Caesar dressing quickly too … it’s a standard at our house. 🙂

      Reply

  18. rsmacaalay says

    June 26, 2011 at 1:54 am

    The last time I had these was last weekend when we had a conference, I still crave for it until now, it may look simple but the flavours in this salad is sometimes way much better than the fancy ones. I love minse with lots and lots of parmesan 🙂

    Reply

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