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Skip store-bought salad dressing and blend up your own tangy homemade French Dressing recipe in just 2 minutes. This easy salad dressing is made with all pantry staple ingredients.
Thick and tangy with a sweetness and some spice, this is the French salad dressing of my dreams. It’s what I remember from the Greek restaurants growing up, and it’s exactly what I want on my Dorito Taco Salad today.
The best part is, it comes together in 2 minutes pantry table ingredients you likely already have stocked in your kitchen.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Granulated sugar: The 1 cup sugar in the dressing may sound like a lot, but it tastes just like the ones at Wisconsin supper clubs of my youth (they’d bring a small salad dressing caddy to your table with 4 different kinds of dressing: Ranch, Italian, Thousand Island, and French). If you don’t love sweet dressings, start with 2 tablespoons of sugar, taste, and increase if desired.
- Light olive oil: Light olive oil is milder than extra virgin which allows the other flavor-boosters to shine.
- Paprika: Use regular paprika (often simply labeled “Paprika” on the package) rather than hot or smoked paprika.
Instructions
- In a food processor or blender, add sugar, ketchup, olive oil, white vinegar, celery seed, chili powder, dried mustard, onion powder, paprika, and salt to taste (I like 2 teaspoons). Process until smooth and store covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This French Dressing recipe makes 2 cups of dressing or 16 (2-tablespoon) servings. If you are making this for a Dorito Taco Salad, you’ll probably only need half the recipe.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. And I know what you’re thinking: “Everything in this ingredients list is shelf-stable! Why isn’t this dressing shelf-stable, or why can’t it last for a month?” Ingredients interact when they are combined, and without stabilizers and preservatives, it’s just as perishable as any other “leftover.”
- Make ahead: Feel free to make this homemade up to 3 days in advance. If the dressing begins to separate during this time, give it a shake before drizzling over your salad.
- Bonus salad pairings: In addition to taco salads, this homemade French Dressing tastes incredible tossed with or drizzled over my Easy Garden Salad, Wedge Salad, or Cobb Salad.
Delicious salad ideas
Salad Recipes
Dorito Taco Salad
Salad Recipes
Seven Layer Salad
Salad Recipes
Wedge Salad
Salad Recipes
Cobb Salad
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French Dressing Recipe
Skip store-bought salad dressing and blend up your own tangy homemade French Dressing recipe in just 2 minutes. This easy salad dressing is made with all pantry staple ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar (see note 1)
- 2/3 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup light olive oil (see note 2)
- 1/2 cup white vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/8 teaspoon paprika (see note 3)
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- In a food processor or blender, add sugar, ketchup, olive oil, white vinegar, celery seed, chili powder, dried mustard, onion powder, paprika, and salt to taste (I like 2 teaspoons). Process until smooth and store covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Granulated sugar: The 1 c. sugar in the dressing may sound like a lot, but it tastes just like the ones at Wisconsin supper clubs of my youth (they’d bring a small salad dressing caddy to your table with 4 different kinds of dressing: Ranch, Italian, Thousand Island, and French). If you don’t love sweet dressings, start with 2 Tbsp. of sugar, taste, and increase if desired. Or, substitute a bottle of store-bought French dressing.
- Light olive oil: Light olive oil is milder than extra virgin which allows the other flavor-boosters to shine.
- Paprika: Use regular paprika (often simply labeled “Paprika” on the package) rather than hot or smoked paprika.
- Yield: This French Dressing recipe makes 2 c. of dressing or 16 (2-Tbsp.) servings. If you are making this for a Dorito Taco Salad, you’ll probably only need half the recipe.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. And I know what you’re thinking: “Everything in this ingredients list is shelf-stable! Why isn’t this dressing shelf-stable, or why can’t it last for a month?” Ingredients interact when they are combined, and without stabilizers and preservatives, it’s just as perishable as any other “leftover.”
- Make ahead: Feel free to make this homemade up to 3 days in advance. If the dressing begins to separate during this time, give it a shake before drizzling over your salad.
- Bonus salad pairings: In addition to taco salads, this homemade French Dressing tastes incredible tossed with or drizzled over my Easy Garden Salad, Wedge Salad, or Cobb Salad.
Nutrition
Serving: 2tbspCalories: 121kcalCarbohydrates: 15gProtein: 1gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gSodium: 92mgPotassium: 35mgFiber: 1gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 78IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 4mgIron: 1mg
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Hey this is great! Definitely agree with another commenter about the sugar though. Ketchup is already almost all sugar anyway, so I’ll probably not add any extra sugar next time. Regardless, great recipe!
I am looking for a French dressing that has no vinegar or any tomato products due to a cancer diet that I am on which doesn’t allow those products. I’ve lived 3 years beyond what the doctors projected by avoiding these products. I’ll use lemon juice in the place of vinegsr, but what should I use to replace the tomato?
Hi Tom, I am happy you are beating the odds and it’s amazing to think it’s because you are avoiding vinegar and tomato juice. I bought the Plant Paradox book recently so I wonder if there’s some truth to that?? In any case, you could try using something like miso paste to replace the tomato, but it would obviously give it a completely different flavor. If you’d like, I could play around with some options and report back. My next recipe development day is Wednesday of this week (8/29). I am not sure it will be French dressing without the tomato, but I can see what I can come up with. What do you think?
Do you think you could use stevia to decrease sugar?
Hi Rhonda, yes I don’t see why not. I can try this in the next couple of weeks and post my results (I’m a Stevia consumer myself). Or in the meantime, just try adding it to taste instead of sugar and see what you think! Good luck and thanks for the question.
Hi Rhonda! I made the dressing with Stevia. I think 3 packets (3 grams) of Stevia is a fine substitute for the sugar. It has sweetness without tasting funny. You should try it yourself, you could even start with 2 packets and see what you think! I hope this is helpful. Good luck and thanks, let me know if you need anything else.
I wanted French dressing home made and this hit the spot. Maybe I could have used a bit less sugar, but it was exactly what I was looking for. Thank you!
Regarding “chili powder”–is this ground red pepper/cayenne or the spice blend typically refrred to has chili powder? Thank you.
Hi Christine! Chili powder is the spice blend. Otherwise I call it cayenne pepper, but it’s definitely confusing. Sorry for the confusion! Thanks for the question.
I’m still confused….are you using Chili Powder or Cayenne Pepper? PLEASE CLARIFY.
Hi Nancy, it’s chili powder! It says chili powder, I don’t think cayenne pepper is mentioned anywhere in the post. Sorry for the confusion. If I wanted you to use cayenne pepper, I would have said so. Thanks! -Meggan
LOL As a lawyer, I respect that answer.
I’m wondering why you can only keep it 4 days. Nothing in that recipe spoils.
Hi Anne, that’s just the general food safety/CDC guidelines for recipes. But you are right – none of this stuff would spoil on its own. Why would it spoil if combined? I just have to follow the guidelines established by the powers that be so I’m less likely to be sued.
Ok I love the idea of this, but are you sure you have the amount of sugar right? I made this and it’s basically just a sugar paste. It’s so horribly cloying. Maybe about a third of a cup of sugar would be better?
This is the way I make it, yes. Based on your feedback, though, I should probably have a suggested range for the sugar for people who don’t share my taste buds! I’m so sorry about that, Mike. I admit it is sweet, but to me that’s not a bad thing. I guess that’s how I grew up with it. I’m sorry again, I’ll make some notes so people don’t automatically use all the sugar.
You did add the oil and the vinegar, right? I’m sure you did. But it shouldn’t be a paste at all, so that’s the only reason I’m asking. Sorry again!
Yes I used regular extra virgin olive oil. Maybe paste was the wrong word but it is very thick for a dressing and between the cup of sugar and the corn syrup in the ketchup, it’s like half sugar. Anyway I was making it for a crock pot recipe so I just used it anyway. We’ll see how it is after 4 hours in the crock pot.
Extra virgin olive oil solidifies when refrigerated, light olive oil doesn’t. Maybe you should follow the recipe next time before you complain.
My mouth is watering!
What a great combination that includes all my favorites and all the fresh veggies in peak season. 5-stars Meggan!