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Want a fast and delicious Italian dressing you can make at home? You’re going to love this! Just shake everything together in a jar. Thatโ€™s it! Ready in just 1 minute! No cooking, no chopping, no blending, no nothing.

Update: This recipe was originally published in 2017 and has been republished with all new photos.

I’m a huge fan of homemade salad dressings. They’re so easy! Plus a homemade dressing is more flavorful than store-bought dressings but made with far better ingredients. All the ingredients in this easy homemade Italian dressing are clean. No junk. No artificial anything. Just the good stuff.

This is one of my very favorite dressings and it’s been my most popular recipe on this site for years! Everyone loves its big zesty flavor. But the best part? You likely have all the ingredients you need already. Just shake everything together in a jar and you’re done. It’s that simple!

It’s the perfect way to elevate a green salad, it’s an excellent marinade for chicken or pork, and it can transform any pasta salad into something truly special. Talk about a versatile dressing, right?

If you have dietary concerns you’ll be happy to know this dressing is also Whole30 compliant, gluten free, and dairy free.

Easy Homemade Italian Dressing Ingredients

  • Olive oil: I recommend extra-virgin olive oil in this dressing.
  • Red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar: Both red and white wine vinegar work beautifully. Feel free to go with whichever you have on hand. I tend to select the red more than the white but I couldn’t say that it makes a difference other than creating a dressing that looks (in terms of color) more like what you see in stores.
  • Lemon juice: A little fresh lemon juice adds a brightness to this zesty Italian dressing.
  • Seasonings: The incredible taste comes from a blend of simple but powerful seasonings. We’re also using a few dried herbs because they pack more flavor than fresh herbs. For this recipe you’ll need dried oregano, dried basil, garlic powder, onion powder, crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper.

How to Make Easy Homemade Italian Dressing

Ready to make this homemade italian dressing recipe? Add all ingredients to a jar. Place the lid on the jar. Make sure it’s a tight-fitting lid so we don’t make a mess. Now give it a good shake. That’s it!

This dressing is pretty perfect as is and this is how I enjoy it. If you want to make it more like the dressing you’ll find at Olive Garden, simply add a little grated parmesan cheese and a bit of honey or sugar for a touch of sweetness. Those are optional adjustments you can make based on your own personal preference.

How to Serve this Italian Dressing

Now you’ve made your own salad dressing. What are we going to do with it? The obvious answer is of course to pour it over leafy vegetables. It will add a burst of flavor to a simple side salad or entree salad. But we can get a bit more creative, can’t we? Here are some of my favorite uses for this recipe.

How to Store Leftover Italian Dressing

Store your leftover dressing in the refrigerator in an airtight container with a lid. I like to use a jar with a tight seal. I like to use a glass bottle or mason jar. This dressing can keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. The oil may solidify in the cold but it will return to normal if you leave it at room temperature for a few minutes. You’ll see some separation so shake before using.

4.86 from 125 votes

Easy Homemade Italian Dressing

By Christina
This Easy Homemade Italian Dressing is so tasty and simple! Plus it's Whole30, gluten free, sugar free, and dairy free. Perfect on salads or as a marinade!
Prep: 1 minute
Total: 1 minute
Servings: 8

Ingredients 

  • ยพ cup olive oil
  • ยผ cup red or white wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • ยฝ teaspoon onion powder
  • ยฝ teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • ยพ teaspoon salt
  • ยฝ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
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Instructions 

  • Add all ingredients to a jar, place the lid on the jar, and give it a good shake!
  • Just like with all vinegar based dressing you'll need to shake it up again before pouring to eliminate separation.

Nutrition

Serving: 2tbsp, Calories: 183kcal, Fat: 20g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Sodium: 221mg, Potassium: 4mg, Vitamin A: 35IU, Vitamin C: 0.2mg, Calcium: 4mg, Iron: 0.3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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190 Comments

  1. Renee says:

    Seriously love this dressing! I use balsamic instead of lemon juice, but will try it with lemon juice soon. ย Thanks for sharing this!

  2. Barbara says:

    loved this & so simple & quick to make

  3. Barbara Storace says:

    Iโ€™ve tried many Italian dressing recipes. ย To me this is the best one yet. ย Looking forward to sharing it with my ย DILaws for my picky sons. ย ย 

  4. Jessica says:

    I’ve never had homemade Italian dressing before but needed to make a few dressings for a large party I’m hosting. I just made this and tried a little and it’s amazing! So flavorful! I don’t think I’ll ever buy bottled again!

  5. Sue Russo says:

    This is a wonderful recipe! I’m am Italian personal chef and I’m always looking to tweak my recipes and this one rocks! I did a slight modification by adding all my dry herbs to the vinegar and let it hydrate for about 10 minutes. Then added the olive oil. The flavors really have depth this way. Its a hit at parties for pasta salad and no one can figure it out! Happy cooking!๐Ÿ˜‰

  6. Nichole says:

    Wow! Made this dressing for a pasta salad and it turned out amazing!!! Loved the unexpected heat from the crushed red pepper. Great flavor, highly recommend!!

  7. Leslie says:

    One thing that I have refused to add to any dressing I make is…..sugar!!! Processed food is always sweet. Diet foods are always sugary tasting. Sugar belongs in ice cream and candy bars. Not Italian salad dressing. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not against sugar at all. I just get sick and tired of sugar being used as a condiment like salt and pepper. Thank you, thank you for not putting sugar in this salad dressing recipe. Brave move! Great recipe. Delicious dressing!

  8. Judy says:

    Excellent flavor!!

  9. Jake says:

    This is so good!!!

  10. Dusty says:

    Perfection! It is now my go-to Italian. Everybody loves it!