Pesto Salad Dressing

This pesto salad dressing features bright, bold flavor to transform even the most basic salad into something you'll crave. With instructions on preparing it from scratch or utilizing a store-bought shortcut, this recipe is creamy while using classic pesto ingredients and stays well in the fridge.

I started off this recipe thinking I would make a pesto vinaigrette, but after adding a little more of this and a little more of that to the food processor, I landed on what I would call a pesto salad dressing instead.

It's fairly thick and achieves a creamy consistency without the addition of mayo or yogurt - just good old classic basil pesto ingredients (plus a little vinegar). If you're concerned a pesto dressing would be like pouring an extra-oily pesto sauce over top of your lettuce, don't be!

Reasons to Love This Recipe

• This pesto salad dressing is perfect for those of us who don't often feel like putting the effort into assembling a salad with a ton of components. A bold dressing brings all the flavor - the rest can be left simple.
• Using both vinegar and lemon juice provides the appropriate punchiness a dressing needs without one flavor becoming too strong. Plus the acidity prevents the vibrant green color from oxidizing and browning.
• It behaves well! It will stay for up to a week refrigerated and I have not had issues with it separating, the oil solidifying once chilled, etc. It stays ready to drizzle.

Recipe Ingredients

• Basil: If buying basil at the store, look for leaves without darkened areas (they will soon be black and slimy). And if the plastic clamshell has trapped condensation, open it up once home and let it sit at room temperature to prevent quicker spoilage.
• Parmesan: A wedge you grate yourself or tubs of pre-grated Parmesan, Parmigiano Reggiano, or Pecorino from the refrigerated deli cases are your best bets here. Shelf-stable canisters just don't hold their weight!
• Walnuts: Typically pine nuts are used in pesto, but they're pricy. I will often substitute in walnuts or almonds interchangeably.
• Garlic: A fresh clove (versus an equivalent amount of jarred minced garlic) is recommended.
• Olive Oil: Extra-virgin olive oil is classic for salad dressings.
• White Wine Vinegar: This has a mellower flavor than plain white vinegar but still brings the sharpness needed for salad dressing. White balsamic vinegar is also a good choice.
• Lemon Juice: Freshly-squeezed provides the brightest touch. This pairs with the vinegar for acidity while providing a complementary flavor.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Dry ingredients. Add all dry ingredients to a food processor: basil, Parmesan, walnuts, garlic, salt, and pepper.
2. Pulse. Pulse until everything is in small, even bits. Stop to carefully scrape down the sides as needed.
3. Add the liquid. Pour in half of the olive oil through the spout while the motor is running, then follow with the lemon juice and vinegar.
4. Adjust. Check the consistency and add the remaining olive oil if desired.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

• Variations - You can substitute in other greens, such as spinach, baby kale, or arugula, for all or a portion of the basil.
• Other Uses - Beyond salads, this pesto salad dressing can be tossed in a pasta salad, used as a marinade (fat, acid, and flavor!) drizzled over cooked fish, shrimp, and vegetables, stirred into hummus, and more.
• Vinegar/Lemon Juice - For convenience you can likely use all white wine vinegar or all lemon juice, but I haven't tried it this way myself.
• Easy Storage - While this recipe requires a food processor for blitzing, I recommend storing it in a salad dressing shaker bottle. It has a tight seal, is easy to shake up, and features a spout for mess-free drizzling.
• Tasting Note - When tasting this dressing to see if you'd like to add more of anything before serving, keep it mind that the flavor needs to be bolder than you'd prefer than if you were eating it straight-up. It will dilute and become much less sharp once it's eaten over salad greens.

Recipe FAQs

More Pesto Recipes

• Something different - red pesto sauce! Pesto rosso uses a smaller amount of basil, instead relying on sun dried tomatoes to bulk up the sauce. This is SO good on eggs.
• Have you ever though pasta primavera was a little...less than exciting? Me, too. My pesto pasta primavera recipe features roasted vegetables and, of course, pesto for a big boost in flavor.
• Pesto broccoli rice is a fun and different side dish the whole family will love, similar to the concept of cauliflower rice.

Related Recipes

If you’ve enjoyed this recipe, I’d love for you to leave a star rating in the recipe card and/or a comment review below!