Easy Italian Dressing | Downshiftology

This homemade Italian dressing is molto bene! It’s light and zesty, loaded with herbs, and perfect for drizzling on anything for a fresh Italian touch.

A bottle of homemade Italian dressing. — *Photo: Gayle McLeod*

Why You’ll Love This Italian Dressing

The one thing I love about Italian food is how fresh it is. A quick drizzle of olive oil and vinegar over salads is common among locals, plain and simple. But when you need that extra punch of flavor, a batch of my homemade Italian dressing is the best thing ever. Similar to my Greek salad dressing, it adds a special touch to traditional Italian flavors and is guaranteed to be 1000x better than any store-bought bottled version. Here’s why else you’ll love my recipe:

It’s made in 10 minutes. A short amount of prep time delivers the freshest taste of Italy!
There’s no fillers or funky ingredients. Supermarket jars of Italian dressing often contain fillers, preservatives, colorings, and other unnecessary ingredients. This homemade version only contains pure, wholesome ingredients.
It’s great for meal prep. This dressing keeps for about a week, making it a versatile ingredient to have on hand. Drizzle it over salads (especially an Italian chopped salad), use it as a chicken marinade, and more!

Italian Dressing Ingredients

Olive Oil: Grab a bottle of extra-virgin olive oil. Brands I typically gravitate towards are California Olive Ranch and Lucini.
Vinegar & Lemon Juice: I’m using red wine vinegar, but white vinegar works just fine! And as always, fresh lemon juice is best.
Honey & Dijon Mustard: Technically, you don’t have to put honey in this. But I find that the bit of sweetness helps to balance out the tangy, savory flavors.
Dried Herbs: A blend of dried oregano, basil, and thyme makes up the best of Italian seasoning.
Garlic: Garlic powder is an option, but fresh minced garlic does wonders in a vinaigrette.

Find the printable recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Italian Dressing

Good news, this dressing is made in an instant! Just vigorously whisk together all the ingredients in a small bowl, and it’s ready for drizzling. If you’re immediately storing it away, you can shake up the dressing in this glass jar and pop it in the fridge. It’ll last for up to one week!

Helpful Tips

Dressing ratio: Common ratios of oil to vinegar in dressings are either 3:1 or 2:1. I prefer the latter, but feel free to adjust the amount of oil to your preference.
Make it a little thicker: Adding a smidge more Dijon mustard will bump up the thickness, similar to my Dijon vinaigrette.
Make it a creamy dressing: Whisk in a small spoonful of Greek yogurt or mayonnaise to make it creamier. Remember, less is more to prevent curdling.
If you don’t like raw garlic: You can swap in finely diced shallot for a milder flavor.

Ways to Use Italian Dressing

Toss with other types of salads. Give a white bean salad with freshly chopped herbs an Italian touch with this dressing.
Drizzle over grilled veggies. This would taste exceptionally well with veggies like grilled zucchini or eggplant.
Use as a marinade. This is one of my favorite chicken marinades for grilled chicken or baked chicken. Especially in this Italian sheet pan chicken breast meal!

More Easy Dressing Ideas

If you make this Italian dressing recipe, I’d love to hear how it turned out in the comment box below! Your review will help other readers in the community. And if you’re hungry for more healthy food inspiration (and exclusive content), join my free newsletter.

Description

This homemade Italian dressing is molto bene! It’s light and zesty, loaded with herbs, and perfect for drizzling on anything for a fresh Italian touch. Watch the video below to see how I make this in my kitchen!

Stir it together. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, lemon juice, honey, oregano, basil, thyme, garlic, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper.
Use or store. Use it immediately or store it in a sealed container in the fridge for up to one week.

This recipe makes approximately 1 cup of dressing. Each serving is about 2 tablespoons.
Storage tip: This will last for up to one week in the fridge.

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Recipe testing the homemade Italian dressing.

Behind The Scenes

I’ve been trying to do a better job at measuring total quantities for my sauces and dressings, as per your requests! And for this Italian dressing, it measures almost exactly one cup. That means there’s plenty to enjoy drizzled on salads or for marinating my grilled chicken recipe, hint hint.