Easy Caesar Salad Dressing without Anchovies or Egg

Why You’ll Love this Caesar Salad Dressing without Anchovies! 

If you’re on the hunt for a really good vegan salad dressing this is the recipe for you! This super creamy homemade caesar dressing is eggless and vegan since it doesn’t use egg-based mayo or any anchovies! It’s also made without any cashews, making it more affordable and easy to make. 

💡 Did you know? Traditional caesar dressing uses raw anchovies or anchovy paste as well as Worcestershire sauce that contains anchovies. Some caesar dressings also use eggs or raw egg yolks as an emulsifier. 

Here are a few reasons you’ll love this simple dressing:

• 5-Minute Prep Time: this recipe is super simple and takes less than 5 minutes to mix together.

• Only 7 Ingredients: you only need a few ingredients plus salt and pepper for this flavor-packed, delicious dressing!

• The BEST Caesar Salad Dressing without Anchovies: we’re using capers to get the best savory flavor that’s just like your favorite authentic caesar dressing… but without any fish!

• Plant-Based and Vegan Friendly: this creamy dressing recipe uses vegan mayo and vegan Worcestershire making it vegetarian, eggless, vegan, and 100% plant-based.

Ingredient Notes

This plant-based caesar dressing uses a few key simple ingredients that replicate that distinctive caesar dressing flavor. Below are the main ingredients for this dressing.

• Capers: The capers are a great substitute for the anchovies that are in traditional caesar dressing. Capers are thankfully vegetarian-friendly. They’re stored in a salty brine and have an amazing olive or lemony flavor.

• Vegan Worcestershire: did you know regular Worcestershire Sauce typically has anchovies in it!? Luckily there are many vegetarian and vegan friendly brands like Annie’s! 

• Vegan Mayo: to keep this recipe egg-free we’re using a plant-based mayo like Hellman’s Vegan Mayo.

• Lemon: to add acid, freshness, and a tangy flavor to the dressing.

• Garlic: fresh garlic cloves are best for flavor!

• Dairy-Free Parmesan: I’m using a vegan parmesan like Violife to keep this recipe dairy free. You can also use your parmesan of choice if you’re not dairy free.

• Dijon Mustard: a little Dijon mustard goes a long way in terms of flavor.

To make a classic caesar salad you’ll need:

• Crisp Romaine Lettuce
• Herbed Garlic Homemade Croutons
• Avocado
• Fresh Cracked Black Pepper

Substitutions

• Vegan Mayo: this recipe uses a mayonnaise base, but if you want to make a caesar dressing without anchovies and mayo, you can use dairy-free plain, unsweetened yogurt instead. However, the mayo adds a lot of flavor to the dressing. More salt, garlic, or mustard may need to be added to taste if using yogurt. 

• Lemon: you can use a splash or a teaspoon of red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar to taste instead of lemon.

• Dijon Mustard: this can be substituted for dried mustard powder or regular yellow mustard.

• Capers: The capers add a briny flavor similar to anchovies, so I don’t recommend subbing them out. I haven’t tried this particular substitution, but you could try using miso paste instead if you can’t find capers. Miso will add an umami, salty flavor but it doesn’t have the same briny flavor as capers.

vegan parmesan

Traditional caesar dressing gets a lot of its flavor from parmesan cheese. While adding vegan parmesan is optional in this recipe, it adds SO much flavor to the dressing.

Vegan parm really makes this dressing indistinguishable from traditional dairy-based caesar.

My favorite brand of vegan parmesan is by Violife. It comes in a block which you can grate yourself. This cheese is salty and is the closest in taste to dairy parm. I get this vegan cheese from Whole Foods.

Helpful Equipment

• Small Mixing Bowl

• Airtight Container or Glass Jar

Step-By-Step Instructions

To make the easy caesar dressing:

All you need is 1 small bowl and 5 minutes!

STEP 1: Start by mixing all the dressing ingredients together in the medium-sized bowl. No blender or food processor is required, although you could blend everything up in one if you’d like. The mixture should come together very easily. 

Serving the Salad

Once you’ve tossed the romaine with the creamy dressing, top everything off with fresh cracked black pepper and avocado chunks. You can also add a drizzle of olive oil on top for more flavor.

I also love serving this salad with slices of blackened vegan chicken breast. If you’re vegetarian you can still have plant-based ‘chicken’ caesar salads thanks to this vegan chicken recipe. 

And there you go, it’s ready to serve and enjoy!

Storage

FRIDGE: You can store this egg free caesar salad dressing covered in the fridge for up to 1 week.

FREEZER: I don’t recommend freezing this dressing.