Greek Salad Dressing
Make your own Greek dressing with this simple recipe. Drizzle this bold Greek dressing on your homemade salads—it will keep for one week!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 2, 2024
Who doesn’t love a great Greek salad? Make your own starting with this Greek salad dressing recipe. This dressing is bold, zippy and delicious. It’s super easy to whisk together at home with basic pantry ingredients.
This Greek vinaigrette is made simply with olive oil, red wine vinegar, fresh garlic, dried oregano and salt and pepper. We’ll add a touch of honey or maple syrup to balance the flavors. That’s it! The end result tastes just like the dressings I’ve enjoyed in Greece.
Homemade salad dressings always taste so fresh and vibrant—they’re simply superior to store-bought dressings and keep well for a week in the fridge. Plus, you can use healthy ingredients, like extra-virgin olive oil, and avoid unnecessary preservatives. Homemade dressings are a win all around, and this one is ready in just five minutes!
Enjoy this dressing on my Chopped Greek Salad, Cucumber Tomato Salad or improvise your own salad with fresh ingredients you have on hand. You’ll find a list of my suggested salad ingredients below, and keep an eye out for a fresh summer salad featuring this dressing later this week.
Watch How to Make Greek Salad Dressing
Greek Dressing Salad Suggestions
Drizzle this Greek vinaigrette over salads made with any of the following ingredients:
- Tomatoes
- Bell peppers (any color)
- Cucumber
- Red onion or green onion
- Radish
- Carrots
- Cabbage
- Zucchini or yellow squash
- Olives, capers or pepperoncini peppers
- Greens: romaine, spring greens, arugula, kale
- Beans: chickpeas, lentils
- Cheese: feta, goat cheese
- Fresh leafy herbs: basil, cilantro, chives, dill, parsley
- Nuts and seeds: almonds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds
- Whole grains: farro, quinoa, wheat berries
- Crispy Baked Falafel
Please tell me how you like this dressing in the comments! I can’t wait to hear how your salads turn out.
Greek Salad Dressing
Make your own Greek dressing with this simple recipe. It’s healthy and delicious. Drizzle this bold Greek vinaigrette on your homemade salads—it will keep in the fridge for one week! Recipe yields about ¾ cup.
Ingredients
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 2 medium cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 2 teaspoons honey or maple syrup, to taste
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano, to taste
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Pinch of red pepper flakes, for heat (optional)
Instructions
- In a liquid measuring cup or small bowl, combine the vinegar, garlic, honey, oregano, salt, several twists of black pepper, and a pinch of red pepper flakes (if desired). Whisk until blended.
- Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking. Stir until the mixture is fully blended.
- Taste, and adjust as needed—add another teaspoon of honey if the mixture tastes too acidic, or another ¼ teaspoon oregano for more herbal flavor. If the mixture is overall too bold for your liking, dilute it with a splash of olive oil, or if it’s just not quite right yet, add more salt and pepper.
- Store leftover dressing in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week. It will separate over time, so just whisk it back together before serving (if the olive oil solidifies a bit in the refrigerator, don’t worry, that’s normal—just let it warm up for about 5 minutes at room temperature or microwave for 10 to 20 seconds).
Notes
Recipe adapted from my Chopped Greek Salad.
Make it vegan: Use maple syrup instead of honey.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
A very pleasing recipe.
My regards to Cookie, along with healing thoughts.
Joe
Thank you, Joe! She’s doing great. :)
My husband loves a Greek salad so I’m very eager to try this dressing. I’m new to your site and I like it alot – thank you!
So glad you found the site, Chris! Hope you enjoy this dressing.
I made this dressing for my salad lunch today. It was delicious! Will definitely make it again.
I’m so glad! Thanks, Shivani.
Hi. Just wanted to say that Greeks never put sugar in the salad dressing. That’s purely an American thing. I’m a Greek-American living in Greece for over 35 years and I know. You can add some oregano to the salad. Also, Greeks never put crumbled up feta cheese in or on salad. If feta cheese is used, it’s usually a thick slice added on top of a tomato-cucumber salad (never a green salad) and drizzled with oil and oregano.
Hi Helen, thank you for your input! I appreciate it. I absolutely loved all the authentic Greek food I enjoyed on my trip and look forward to visiting again.
You’re one Greek out of a whole race. Maybe when she visited, she tasted sweetness in her dressing and decided to incorporate it. Also….greeks and other ethnicities can add feta to their salad. Your comments aren’t really helpful, just condescending. You stated they never put feta in or on a salad then stated “if they do…”
This was a great recipe and it’s also my favorite….speaking as a Greek-American :)
This dressing looks great. I’m going to use part for a marinade for my flat iron steak.
Great idea! Enjoy.
Made this last night and it was so tasty and easy! Way better than store bought dressings. It will be my new go to dressing!
Hooray! Thanks so much, Jayne!
Great dressing recipe! Whenever I’m using Greek olives, I also use a splash of the olive juice. Goes well with the red wine and deepens the “Greek” flavor. I also add fresh lemon zest. Thank you for all your delicious work!
Oh, that is a fantastic idea! I’ll try that next time. Thank you, Debi!
Love your recipes
Pats to Cookie and hope all is well with you.
I’m amazed how you keep in touch with recipes.. love your book.
I have so many tomatoes and cucumbers from the garden and this dressing will be perfect
Thank you, Jill! Enjoy!
ON.POINT.
I’ve just used it drizzled on fresh green beans (cold)+ black olives + heirloom tomatoes + home preserved skipjack (flexitarian!) – a simplified “salade niçoise”.
Hope you’re doing really good in your pregnancy final days!!!
Yesss! That sounds great. Thank you, Nathalie!
I’ve loved every recipe of yours that I’ve made, and this, like all the others, nailed it! So much better than store bought. I just had it over a salad of baby greens, cherry tomatoes, baby bell peppers, cucumber, red onion, and feta. Fabulous.
Thank you, Mackenzie! I appreciate your feedback!
I loved this salad and the dressing recipe. I went out to the garden and picked fresh parsley and fresh oregano. Really made it pop! Wonderful do again
Marvelous! Thank you, Donna!
I’m in Crete right now in Chania. Loving my Greek vacation, visiting my daughter. Will make this when I get home to remind me of a beautiful time and place!
Hi Cathy, I must admit that I am jealous! I can’t wait to go back to the Greek islands! Hope your trip has been completely fabulous and safe travels home.
OMG Delicious!!!
Fast and easy to make!! We’ll be keeping this in the fridge. Always been a ranch fan but this has definately taken the lead!!
Thx for sharing
Mike
Hooray! Thanks Mike!
I always make homemade dressings and I’m always on the hunt for new ones … love, love, love this dressing!! Thanks, Kate!
Sorry … forget the “star” effect!
Thank you very much, Kath!
The touch of honey/maple syrup in the dressing really takes it up a notch and offers a wonderful flavor for a simple salad, or with falafel and feta mixed in. Love it! TY
You’re welcome! I’m delighted you loved it. I appreciate your review, Andrea.
Fantastic!
This looks delish!
Hi Kate! Thanks again for another great salad dressing! I’m always on the look-out for new and flavourful dressings to change things up and this was a very nice, light addition for me.
Happy New Year to you and yours!
You’re welcome, Kath! I appreciate your review.
This dressing is a new favorite
I love to hear that, Mary! Thank you for sharing.
Excellent, I just put it all in a mini blender and it tuned out fantastic.
Great to hear, Ed! Thank you for your comment.
Excellent, I just put it all in a mini blender and it tuned out fantastic. Thanks!
I absolutely love this recipe! It is so easy to make and VERY tasty. It’s going in ‘My Recipes to Keep’ file. Thank you.
Wonderful to hear! Thank you for your review.
I’m still trying to find a “go to” vinagrette. This has potential. Most of the recipes I try are too heavy with vinegar. I much prefer making my own dressings.
I hope you enjoy this one, Diane! Be sure to report back and tell me what you think.
I love eating salads. I used my own dressing. I have a medical problem with acid. Therefore, I can not use vinegar or lemons. Somebody suggested to try tahini. Do you have a dressing.
Thank you in advance.
Betty
Hi Betty, I have a Creamy Tahini Dressing. If you try it, let me know!
Perfect!
I’m happy you enjoyed it, Kayla! Thank you for your review.
Loved this dressing so much!! Not too vinegary like others I have made. Delish!
Thanks for sharing so many tasty and healthy recipes! You are my go-to when i need something nourishing. I love your blog!
I am so sorry to hear about Cookie. My sincerest condolences on the passing on a beautiful friend.
Great to hear, Yvonne! I appreciate your review.
This sounds perfect! What brand(s) red wine vinegar do you recommend?
Hi! I’m happy to hear you enjoy it. I like Napa Valley.
Every time I make a new Cookie and Kate dressing, I think it’s my fave, but this one really is! So tasty and versatile, and the kids like it, too : )
I love to hear that, Amber! I appreciate your review.
Can you use a basic white vinegar if you don’t have red wine vinegar?
I would suggest a balsamic vinegar or a sherry vinegar if you could. White vinegar won’t quite give the right taste. Sorry!
Wow, what a wonderful recipe. I may never make anything else but this. I did add a tiny bit of Dijon mustard and sprinkle of chili peppers. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Phyllis!
I cooked a fairly complicated Greek dinner this week, and at the last moment I decided to start with a salad. I made this Greek dressing in no time flat, and settled on a very simple salad of romaine, cucumber, tomato, Kalamata olives and feta cheese. With all the work I put into the other dishes, I agreed with my guests–the salad stole the show! This dressing is absolutely wonderful! I made the very same salad for lunch the next day. The dressing is worthy of the very finest Greek restaurant. . . or, worthy of my guests! Thank you!
Unbeknownst to me, I was bringing a Greek salad to a dinner party with attendees who didn’t like Greek salad. And… they loved it! I made this dressing a couple days before and bottled it for transporting, and lightly followed another recipe on Cookie + Kate for the salad itself. They said it was the best Greek salad they’d ever had.
The only change I made to the dressing recipe was to add a tiny bit of dijon mustard.