Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

Name: Copycat Italian Salad Dressing
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 27 min
Yield: 4 cups
Ingredients: ½ red bell pepper; 1 ½ cups vegetable oil; ¾ cup water; ¾ cup white vinegar; ¼ cup white sugar; 2 tablespoons dried basil; 2 tablespoons lemon juice; 1 ½ teaspoons dried minced onion; ¾ teaspoon salt

Rating: 4.5 stars

12 Ratings
11 Reviews
4 Photos

My family prefers the store brand of Italian dressing to any of the name brands. They all pretty much taste the same and have the same ingredients. This is a copycat of their dressing using mostly ingredients from the cabinet most people keep on hand or can find easily. The water makes it stretch a little further for those on a tight budget, but you might also like it without.

By NWMama

Gallery

Recipe Summary

prep:

5 mins

cook:

12 mins

additional:

10 mins

total:

27 mins

Servings:

Yield:

4 cups

Nutrition Info

Ingredients

Original recipe yields 32 servings

The ingredient list now reflects the servings specified

½ red bell pepper
1 ½ cups vegetable oil
¾ cup water
¾ cup white vinegar
¼ cup white sugar
2 tablespoons dried basil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 ½ teaspoons dried minced onion
¾ teaspoon salt

Directions

Step 1

Set oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and add red bell pepper.

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Step 2

Roast red bell pepper under the broiler until slightly blackened, about 12 minutes. Transfer bell pepper to a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap for about 10 minutes. Carefully remove plastic wrap and peel skin from bell pepper.
Step 3

Blend roasted red pepper, oil, water, vinegar, sugar, basil, lemon juice, minced onion, and salt in a blender until smooth.

Cook's Notes:

Store in the refrigerator overnight for best taste, although usable immediately if needed. Shake well before using.

Nutrition Facts

Per Serving:

98 calories; protein 0.1g; carbohydrates 2g 1% DV; fat 10.2g 16% DV; cholesterolmg; sodium 54.9mg 2% DV. Full Nutrition

Reviews (11)

Most helpful positive review

Kim Arnold

01/30/2016

I swapped the white vinegar for balsamic and did about 1 c olive oil and 1/2 vegetable oil (because I ran out of olive oil). This substitutions definitely raised the cost of the recipe, but really elevated the taste as well, I believe. Overall, good recipe that yields a LOT of dressing, even without the water, which I reduced to 1/2 c. The roasted red pepper takes more time to prepare but enhances the recipe. I used the dressing in a pasta salad that I brought to an event and received numerous compliments! Read More

Helpful

(9)

12 Ratings

5 star values: 6
4 star values: 6
3 star values: 0
2 star values: 0
1 star values: 0

Reviews: Most Helpful

Most Helpful Most Positive Least Positive Newest

Kim Arnold

01/30/2016

Helpful

(9)

trutz

05/25/2017

I used red wine vinegar and home dried tomatoes instead of bell peppers. I also added some minced garlic. Then instead of all basil, I added half basil and half oregano. Read More

Helpful

(8)

thedailygourmet

11/16/2015

I followed this recipe completely, I found it a little bit too sweet for my taste. I absolutely love knowing what ingredients are in my salad dressing and will save this for future use. I think next time I will reduce the sugar and I might add a little bit of freshly ground black pepper to it. Read More

Helpful

(7)

Violet

08/17/2015

I loved this dressing because it had fresh lemon juice in it. It also tells how to roast the red peppers so helpful. thank you. Read More

Helpful

(2)

VATom

07/04/2016

A very nice Italian dressing recipe. Good job getting the flavor right. I made it less tart and less sweet to fit my taste profile and added some garlic. 1 tsp of dry mustard helps it emulsify Read More

Helpful

(2)

Jenny C.

12/19/2016

I marinate all my chicken in the most inexpensive Italian dressing I can find. I'm not going to buy it anymore though; I'm going to use this recipe but not just for marinade cuz it's really delicious on its own. I added 2 Tbsp pickle juice b/c I've read that Chik-Fil-a uses it to marinade their chicken 2 tsp minced garlic from a jar cut sugar to 1/8 cup 2 tsp mustard seeds just because I had them ha ha and added about 1/2 Tbsp or so of flour to help suspend the herbs and seeds. Thank you for posting this recipe! Read More

Helpful

(1)

Robyn O'Hara-Prentice

02/21/2017

Looking for Italian dressing for sub sandwiches. When I realized I had a can of red peppers I made this dressing. The kids couldn't tell the difference between this and store bought. I will definitely be adding this to my regular dressing list. Read More

Cindy

08/03/2020

This is so delicious. I didn’t use all the oil it called for. I just used 3/4 cup of olive oil. Used a 7 oz jar of whole roasted red pepper instead of doing a fresh roast of the red pepper. Followed the rest of the recipe. It makes a lot. Used it for salad greens and pasta salad. The dressing was so good on both. Read More

grayjabe

06/01/2018

Exceiient Be sure to shake Read More

More Reviews

Back to Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

All Reviews for Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

- of Reviews

Nutritional Information

Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

Servings Per Recipe: 32
Calories: 98.2

% Daily Value *

protein:

carbohydrates: 1 %

exchange other carbs:

dietary fiber: 1 %

sugars:

fat: 16 %

saturated fat: 8 %

cholesterol:

vitamin a iu: 2 %

niacin equivalents:

vitamin b6: 1 %

vitamin c: 5 %

folate: 1 %

calcium: 1 %

iron: 1 %

magnesium: 1 %

potassium:

sodium: 2 %

thiamin:

calories from fat:

percent of calories from carbs:

percent of calories from fat:

percent of calories from sat fat:

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-)Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.

Reviews for: Photos of Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

1 of 11

All Reviews

Kim Arnold

01/30/2016

Helpful

(9)

trutz

05/25/2017

I used red wine vinegar and home dried tomatoes instead of bell peppers. I also added some minced garlic. Then instead of all basil, I added half basil and half oregano.

Helpful

(8)

thedailygourmet

11/16/2015

Helpful

(7)

Violet

08/17/2015

I loved this dressing because it had fresh lemon juice in it. It also tells how to roast the red peppers so helpful. thank you.

Helpful

(2)

VATom

07/04/2016

A very nice Italian dressing recipe. Good job getting the flavor right. I made it less tart and less sweet to fit my taste profile and added some garlic. 1 tsp of dry mustard helps it emulsify

Helpful

(2)

Jenny C.

12/19/2016

Helpful

(1)

Robyn O'Hara-Prentice

02/21/2017

Cindy

08/03/2020

grayjabe

06/01/2018

Exceiient Be sure to shake

1 of 4 Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

Karen

2 of 4 Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

thedailygourmet

3 of 4 Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

Jill King

4 of 4 Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

Hayden Guinther

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Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

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Recipe Summary

Ingredients

Directions

Cook's Notes:

Nutrition Facts

Reviews (11)

Most helpful positive review

All Reviews for Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

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Copycat Italian Salad Dressing

Gallery

Recipe Summary

Ingredients

Directions

Cook's Notes:

Nutrition Facts

Reviews (11)

Most helpful positive review

All Reviews for Copycat Italian Salad Dressing