This French Dressing recipe is a little tangy, a little sweet, and a fun way to make salads exciting! Homemade salad dressing way better than store-bought. Throw all the ingredients in the blender and that’s all there is to it!
I grew up in the middle of nowhere and my mom only went to the grocery store about once a month. She stocked up on fresh fruits and vegetables and we DEVOURED them! We knew they wouldn’t last forever and pretty soon we’d be back to eating canned green beans and frozen peas again!
My mom’s friend shared this homemade French dressing recipe with her all those years ago and I fell in love with it and it’s still my favorite today!
This recipe was originally published in 2013. The text and images were updated in 2021. The recipe stayed the same.
What I Love About This French Salad Dressing:
- Simple Ingredients: it’s easy to keep all of the ingredients you need in the pantry.
- Easy Instructions: If you know how to measure and use a blender you’ve already got this recipe mastered!
- Better than Store-bought: I love knowing what’s in my salad dressing (I’m not saying it’s healthy, but I can pronounce all the ingredients). And it’s less expensive than buying it in a bottle!
- YUMMY: The flavors are spot on!
French Dressing vs. Catalina Dressing?
To be honest I’m not sure there’s a real answer here! Heck, I’m not even sure if you’d classify this dressing as French or Catalina? I think it’s a pretty good mix between the two! Call it what you want…just make it!
Here’s what I learned about what’s different between the two after studying it on the good ol’ internet! Take it all with a grain of salt!
French Dressing:
- Sweeter in taste
- Thicker
- Typically a vinegar/oil base
- Light pink
Catalina Dressing:
- Named after the Catalina Islands off the coast of California (who knows if this is true)
- Typically has a tomato/vinegar/oil base
- Bright red
- Thinner than French dressing
French Dressing Ingredients:
I’m going to give you a few suggestions for substituting to make this dressing with what you already have in your food storage.
- Ketchup: Use your favorite brand
- White vinegar: You could also use half apple cider vinegar and half white vinegar
- Vegetable oil: Canola oil or light olive oil will also work. Olive oil will give it a little bit of a different flavor.
- Seasonings: salt, pepper, dry mustard, garlic salt
- Granulated Sugar: You can use 1/2 a cup of honey instead of sugar.
Little Dairy on the Prairie Pro Tip: To make a healthy French dressing, or salad dressing with no sugar use 1/4 cup Splenda or another artificial sweetener instead of adding sugar. Diabetic and Keto diet readers have tried this and loved it!
How to make French Dressing:
STEP 1: Add all ingredients EXCEPT sugar to the blender. Blend until smooth.
STEP 2: Gradually add sugar until smooth and creamy.
FAQs about Homemade Salad Dressing:
Store it in an airtight container in the fridge. A mason jar is my favorite way of storing it.
This dressing will last up to two weeks. It’s easy to cut the recipe in half if you need to make a smaller batch.
What is French Dressing Good With:
French Dressing is almost like a condiment at our house! You can use it in so many ways! Here are a few ideas to get you started and pretty soon you’ll be using it on everything!
- Green salad: This is the obvious one! Try it on my Steak House Salad!
- Mexican taco salad: I love ranch with taco salad and I love French dressing too! Be sure to add plenty of Doritos!
- As a veggie dipper: This dressing is pretty thick so it works and is a fun change of pace!
- Over nachos: try using it instead of BBQ sauce on my Pulled Pork Nachos
- On a sandwich: Yep! Use it as a condiment! It’s excellent on my Hawaiian Burgers too! It’s fantastic with hot dogs too!
Other Salad Recipes:
Here are a few other recipes for salads that you’re going to love! They’re perfect side dishes for about any meal, especially BBQs!
- Three Bean Salad – the best make-ahead salad with a vinaigrette
- Healthy Potato Salad – a classic salad made with Greek yogurt
- Chinese Cabbage Salad – my favorite main dish salad
- Pizza Salad – This recipe for French dressing would be yummy on this salad too!
- Lemon Pesto Pasta Salad – yummy summer salad
Other Homemade Salad Dressing Recipes:
- Dill Dressing – healthy herby dressing
- Strawberry Dressing – the best spinach salad dressing
- Honey Mustard Vinaigrette – tangy and sweet
I love it when you make my recipes and give me feedback! If you have a minute please comment below and leave a star ranking! Also, be sure to follow me on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook!
Homemade French Dressing Recipe:
Simple French Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup white vinegar
- 1 cup oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
- 1 cup granulated sugar
Instructions
- Add all ingredients except sugar to a blender and blend until combined.
- Gradually add sugar while blending. Blend until creamy and smooth.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
- This recipe can be made with 1/2 a cup of honey instead of sugar.
- Replace sugar with an artificial sweetener such as Splenda for low carb, or keto dressing.
- Reduce the amount of sugar used if you’d like. I’ve made it with half a cup of sugar and it was still delicious!
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
- The dressing will keep up to three weeks.
Ruth Schulz says
Always enjoyed Mom’s Tomato Soup Dressing, (1 can) eliminate ketchup but other ingredients are much the same~ delicious!!
Amy Engberson says
I love recipes that remind us of our moms! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Norma says
My mom made that tomato soup dressing as well. I haven’t made it in years and now usually use ketchup as I always have that on hand I also now finely chop shallot to taste in my recipe and it is a big hit with everyone who tries it!
Amy Engberson says
Adding shallots is a great idea! These old fashioned recipes are the best!
Mary Kay says
Delicious! Used half water, half oil. White wine vinegar as substitute for regular vinegar, Splenda in place of sugar. Trying to watch my weight. Just as good as the old packets of Good Seasoning French mix. Thanks!
Amy Engberson says
I’m glad you loved it! Food memories are the best!
Angela says
Thanks for the recipe it didn’t last long in my house my husband started putting it on his sandwiches for lunch I will definitely make again this time I will take pictures.
Amy Engberson says
Yum! Using this dressing on sandwiches is genius! I bet it’s such a nice change of pace compared to mayo/mustard flavors! I can’t wait to try it!
Roxie says
Can you sub apple cider vinegar instead of white?
Amy Engberson says
I’m sure that would be just fine in this recipe!
Linda Fernandes says
This reminds me of the home ec salad dressing of the 60’s also like the Catalina salad Dressing we use to douse taco salads with in the 80’s. Thanks for sharing this easy dressing.
Amy Engberson says
I actually got this recipe from my friend several years ago, and I know she’d been using it for about 50 years when she shared it with me. It’s an oldie, but a goodie!
Emily says
I love the tangy zip of this dressing! It’s one of my favorites!
Amy Engberson says
It’s such a great way to make salads exciting and tasty!
Jessica says
One of the easiest dressings to make and SO darn good! Perfect for all of our summer salads and keeping dinner simple. Love this recipe!
Amy Engberson says
Yes! This is the perfect dressing for all the summer salads! Enjoy!
Laura says
I love this yummy French dressing. It’s so easy to make. Thank you for sharing it.
Amy Engberson says
Homemade dressings are so much less expensive and taste so much better than store-bought! I’m glad you loved it!
Lisa Hatfield says
Amy, I LOVE making my own dressings and will make this one…it looks so easy and much healthier than the bottled ones. Thank you for the recipe!
Amy Engberson says
YES! Homemade salad dressing is so much better than store-bought! I can’t wait for you to try this one!
Kevin says
Just made this dressing, halved all of the ingredients so not too much leftover, used olive oil but left out the garlic salt. When adding the sugar I put it in one teaspoon at a time and used about six teaspoons in total which made it about right for us. Very tasty with lots of flavour and a good colour so will definitely make again.
Amy Engberson says
Hi Kevin! I LOVE that you’ve made this recipe without as much sugar! Years ago I never even thought about how much sugar my family was consuming. A few years ago we started cutting back and this isn’t a recipe I’ve experimented with yet. I’m going to try making it with less sugar! Glad you enjoyed it!
Lise Roy says
Qu’est ce qu’une scant cup of sugar en français?
Amy Engberson says
One scant cup of sugar is a little bit less than a cup. Hope that helps.
Dawn says
Great dressing. I actually use fresh onion and garlic in my Ninja and add the other ingredients along with 1 egg white, no yolk. It lasts for weeks in the fridge. I just need to whip it before serving.
Amy Engberson says
I love the idea of using fresh garlic and onion! I bet it’s fantastic! Thanks for sharing!
Kim says
I know this is an older post but I just came across it on my search for a homemade French dressing. The ones in the store never seem to taste just right to me and French is my favorite dressing. I never comment on recipes but just had to tell you.. This is amazing!! Without a doubt will never buy bottled French again. Thank you!
P.s. I only used 1/2 cup of sugar and it is absolutely perfect for my taste.
Amy Engberson says
Yay! I’m so glad you found my French Dressing recipe and you love it! Several people have made this dressing with a reduced amount of sugar and love it just as much! I agree..store bought salad dressing is overrated!
Douglas says
I normally try to balance the strong taste of sugar by adding 1/3rd Honey and the balance Sugar
Amy Engberson says
Great idea! Thanks for sharing!
Brenda says
This salad dresssing is awesome, we loved it! It has great flavor and I love that I have all the ingredients on hand. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful recipe.
Amy Engberson says
Yay! I’m so glad you loved it! It’s one of our favorites too! There’s nothing quite like homemade salad dressing! Thanks for stopping by!
janet says
I am a diabetic and have enjoyed this dressing for at least 8 months,the only change I have made, I replaced the sugar with a1/4 cup of splenda. Thank you for recipe.
Amy Engberson says
What a healthy idea. In fact, I’ve started making this dressing with a little less sugar and it still tastes wonderful!
Charlene says
I was wondering if you have ever made it without sugar. Both me and my husband are diabetics and have to watch our sugar. He doesn’t like the artificial sweeteners.
Amy Engberson says
Charlene, I haven’t ever made this without sugar. I wonder if you could make it with honey and maybe make it a little less sweet. Good luck!
Amanda says
I was wondering what kind of oil you use. EVOO? vegetable ? Canola?
Amy Engberson says
I used canola oil! It would be fun to experiment with other kinds too! Let me know if you try something different!
Debbie says
I was wondering about the carb count
Amy Engberson says
Good question! I don’t ever count carbs, etc. However if you click this link it should take you to all of the nutrition information you want to know! http://www.myrecipemagic.com/recipe/recipedetail/simple-french-dressing. It says the carbs per serving is 11.6. I don’t even know if that is high or low!!
Max says
11.6 carbs per serving is high. Try substituting Splenda for the sugar.
Amy Engberson says
This recipe can definitely be altered to your dietary needs. Sometimes I substitute a little honey. I even cut the amount of sugar down and it’s still really good!
Sue says
Thank you so much for sharing all of these recipes. I love making my own dressings and all,of these younhave postedmlooks fantastic. Thank you!
Amy Engberson says
Yay! I’m glad you are enjoying the recipes! Homemade salad dressings are so much better than store bought and so much easier to make than people think! Enjoy!
Sue says
I’m going to be making a couple of the recipes this weekend and next week. I have made my own, but you posted so many different ones I can’t wait to try them.
My iPad seems to have a mind of it’s own. I proof read my last post and it was fine, but reading it once it was posted looked like I typed it when I first woke-up in the morning. YIKES!
Thanks again for sharing.
Marta says
Thank you for sharing. I was wondering if you knew how long this dressing would last.
Amy Engberson says
I’m not exactly sure how long it lasts. We eat it pretty quickly. I’m guessing I have kept it for up to three weeks. You will be surprised how fast it goes!