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Homemade salad dressings taste so much better than bottled, and they’re easy (and inexpensive) to make.
This Italian dressing recipe is a simple blend of oil and vinegar with herbs and a hint of garlic.
It’s great for salads, pasta salads, as a marinade, or to dip and dunk bread.
You’ll LOVE This Italian Dressing Because…
- It’s easy to make with ingredients you likely have on hand.
- It takes about 5 minutes and packs lots of flavor.
- It can be used on everything from salads to chicken marinade to bread dipping.
Ingredients in Italian Dressing
- Oil: I prefer a light tasting olive oil for Italian dressing. Other light oils like canola oil or avocado oil can be used. Extra virgin olive oil can have too strong of a flavor for this recipe.
- Vinegar: Red wine vinegar is my preferred vinegar in this recipe. Other options include white balsamic or white wine vinegar.
- Dijon: Dijon mustard adds a zesty flavor and, along with a bit of honey, helps to emulsify the dressing so the oil and vinegar do not separate.
- Herbs & Seasonings: I use Italian seasoning in this recipe as it has the perfect blend of basil, oregano, parsley, and onion powder.
- Garlic: Garlic powder has a delicate flavor, for a more robust flavor, use a clove of minced garlic.
How to Make Italian Dressing
- Whisk all ingredients (per the recipe below) except the oil.
- Very slowly drizzle the oil while whisking until it is incorporated.
- Season and use as desired.
Storage
Keep Italian dressing in the refrigerator and shake it thoroughly before using it (it may separate after sitting in the fridge). Use within 3 days.
More Easy Homemade Dressings
Did you make this Italian Dressing? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Homemade Italian Dressing
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup vegetable oil (or use half olive oil, half vegetable oil)
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey *
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add all ingredients except oil to a bowl and whisk to combine.
- Very slowly drizzle in the oil while whisking. This should take at least 1-2 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
- Serve over fresh greens. Makes about ⅔ cup.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dressing, Salad, Sauce
Cuisine American, Italian, Mediterranean© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I made this today. AMAZING!!!! Excellent flavor. I didn’t have the Dijon mustard, so I used yellow. Very good flavor. I don’t think I’ll be buying store-bought anymore. The tortellini salad was excellent with our Cuban sandwiches for dinner.
So glad it turned out delicious for you, Brenda! Thanks for sharing your substitutions.
This dressing is delicious and so much better than store bought. Thank you
Quick question on the oil. If I use olive oil also, would it be 1/2 cup of both? Or half of each for a total of 1/2 cup?
Thanks!
You want to use a total of ½ cup of oil. So if using olive oil and vegetable oil, you will use ¼ cup of each oil.