A traditional Caesar salad has just two ingredients as its base: Romaine lettuce and croutons.
Since the dressing will make or break the salad, it matters which one you buy.
I set out to test seven popular store-bought Caesar salad dressings in search of the best-tasting option.
Photos: The brands. Design: Eat This, Not That!
It looked more like homemade slime than food.
Authentic or not, it was worth a try.
The look:This dressing looked blobby and overly thick straight out of the bottle.
Photo: Ronnie Koenig, Eat This, Not That!
It didn’t have that nice, creamy texture you’d expect from a good Caesar dressing.
Nevertheless, it was unappetizing, to say the least.
I found it for $3.99.
Photo: Ronnie Koenig, Eat This, Not That!
The look:This dressing looked thick and white, almost like mayonnaise, but dotted with spices.
The taste:Kraft’s version of Caesar was creamy and tangy, but it tasted a bit generic.
This would be serviceable on a Caesar salad, but it’s possible for you to do better.
Photo: Ronnie Koenig, Eat This, Not That!
This one sells for $6.49.
The look:It had a surprisingly thin, slightly liquid consistency, which isn’t necessarily a knock.
I love Annie’s dressings, so I had high hopes for the taste.
Photo: Ronnie Koenig, Eat This, Not That!
The taste:Tangy.
It had a granulated texture, which I’d attribute to the parmesan cheese.
This creamy Caesar dressing contains garlic, lemon juice, and anchovies (a personal favorite of mine).
Photo: Ronnie Koenig, Eat This, Not That!
I snagged this bottle on sale for $4.69.
Bear in mind that the creaminess of this one translates to a dressing that is quite high in fat.
The consistency was closer to what I’m looking for in a Caesar dressing.
Photo: Ronnie Koenig, Eat This, Not That!
The taste:This cheesy, tangy dressing had a kick but without that tangy afterburn.
Still, it could have used more spices.
In addition to swapping parmesan for asiago, this one also contains vinegar.
Photo: Ronnie Koenig, Eat This, Not That!
But we’re going for taste here.
The look:It’s slightly darker, almost like a light brown in color.
The taste:This Caesar was complex and savory.
The thick texture would be delicious on any salad.
Still, it wasn’tquitegood enough to snag the top spot on this list.
It cost me just $2.49 on sale.
The look:It was thick and white out of the bottle.
It would look great on a bed of crunchy, crouton-topped romaine.
The taste:Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!
Ken’s is tangy, savory, and very creamy.
But it’s the inclusion of roasted garlic that really puts it over the top in my book.
Out of all seven dressings I tried, this was hands-down the best.
