Creamy Caesar Dressing

Nothing quite compares to this creamy Caesar dressing. It’s not too garlick-y or too strongly flavored with anchovies. This dressing is easy to whip up and make in a couple minutes.

Even though many folks buy Caesar dressing in a bottle, making your own at home is easy and tastes so much better than store-bought. You can opt to omit certain ingredients or add more of some ingredients to make a fully customized dressing.

This easy Caesar dressing is thicken with mayonnaise instead of raw eggs and oil. You can either use mayo from a jar or you can make your own for this recipe.

Ingredients for Creamy Caesar Dressing

There are a couple of key ingredients for a creamy dressing.

• Mayo: This is a mayonnaise-based dressing. It’s what makes the dressing so creamy! Add your own two-minute mayonnaise to add to your dressing.
• Worcestershire sauce: Just a tiny bit of Worcestershire will make this dressing taste complete. It has a rich umami flavor that packs a punch.
• Anchovies: These little fish give your dressing a salty (and dare I say “fish” flavor) that is distinct to Caesar dressing. If anchovies are not your thing, feel free to omit and replace with a 1/4 tsp. of salt instead.
• Parmesan cheese: I used freshly grated parmesan for this dressing, and then used the same block to grate fresh cheese onto my Caesar salad.
• Garlic: This recipe only calls for a little bit of garlic, and since you’re adding it raw, just a bit is enough. Taste and add more if you’d like.
• Spices: Using a mixture of sharper and more mellow spices to add a depth of flavor to a creamy Caesar dressing.
• Lemon: Nothing brightens a dish quite like a squeeze of fresh lemon! Add in the juice of a fresh lemon to your dressing.

How to Make Easy Caesar Dressing

Making this creamy Caesar dressing is quite easy.

Usually, this dressing is made with raw eggs and lots of anchovy paste. Instead, just use mayonnaise to substitute. Using mayo is foolproof.

Instead of using whole anchovies, I chose to use anchovy paste instead. It’s much easier to deal with and you don’t have to deal with grinding the anchovies. While using anchovies might seem like overkill and unnecessary when you are adding it to your mixing bowl, I promise, your dressing needs the anchovies to taste like the real deal.

When choosing a Parmesan cheese for your dressing, you can opt to go as fancy as an imported Parmigiano-Reggiano or you can use the bottled Kraft Parmesan. I’ve made this dressing with both, and the quality of cheese doesn’t seem to make much of a difference. Plus it’s much easier to sprinkle some of the bottled Kraft cheese into your mixing bowl than it is to microplane the Parmigiano – but that being said, it can be done!

Start by whisking the anchovy paste, Worcestershire sauce, cheese and garlic together. Whisk until these ingredients are well incorporated and then add in the mayonnaise and Dijon mustard. Once combined, add in the lemon juice, freshly cracked pepper and parsley.

Caesar Dressing without Anchovies

Making a caesar dressing without anchovies is actually quite easy. Simply don’t add the anchovy paste to the dressing!

Since anchovies are incredibly salty, you will want to replace the salt that you are removing by not adding the anchovy paste. Add the salt back in by adding about a half teaspoon of salt. If you’re unsure wether or not to add more salt, just taste your dressing and add more salt if you think it needs it.

If you are sensitive to fish or anchovies, make sure to double-check your Worcestershire sauce ingredients. Many Worcestershire sauces include anchovy as a minor ingredient in the sauce. It’s possible to find a fish-free sauce, or simply make your own.

Making this recipe with anchovies also makes it suitable for anyone with a shellfish allergy or any vegetarians in your life.

Uses for Caesar Dressing

The most popular use for this creamy Caesar dressing is using it to dress a Caesar salad. If you do choose to make this dressing and use it on a salad, add more of the dressing ingredients onto the Caesar to compliment it. Take your chopped romaine and then massage it with your dressing. Add Parmesan, anchovies, and freshly cracked black pepper to top off the salad. Along with homemade croutons, of course.

While this is a salad dressing, I have seen folks dip breads, pitas and the like into this dressing and use it as a dip because it is that good! I’ve also been a culprit of dipping full (washed!) romaine leaves and croutons into the dressing because I can’t be bothered to make a full salad.