Cobb salad dressing tastes great on any low carb salad. Oil and vinegar based, this dressing recipe makes a nice vinaigrette for veggies, or a marinade for chicken, too.
It’s been a hot California summer. One of those years where you run your errands in the evening because it’s just too hot to leave the house in the afternoon. And turning on the oven? Fugetaboutit! It’s time to pull out the “summer oven” (toaster oven).
Luckily, we are a family of salad eaters. We enjoy salads all year, but especially during hot weather. We currently love Amish Broccoli Cauliflower Salad with its tangy cheddar cheese and creamy dressing. Crisp BLAT Salads or Curried Chicken Salads also hit the spot but a great Chicken Cobb Salad is one of our all-time family favorites!
To us, Cobb salad is KING! It’s a great low carb meal full of protein, low carb veggies, cheese and an oil and vinegar based dressing. The dressing is naturally low carb and has an acidic bite that plays nicely against the bacon, egg and cheese usually found in a Cobb salad. (BTW, my kids don’t like blue cheese so I subbed cheddar.)
How To Make Cobb Salad Dressing
Cobb salad dressing is easy to make. It starts with an oil and vinegar base with a little lemon for brightness. Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard and garlic add flavor while a hint of sugar tempers acidity and rounds out flavors.
You can whisk the dressing together or shake it in a jar, but I prefer to use an immersion blender to emulsify the ingredients. This results in a nice thick creamy dressing.
Cobb Salad Dressing Variations
There are many variations for Cobb salad dressing. Some people use avocado and water to replace the oil, and add a little cumin and cayenne for a Mexican flavor. Other recipes call for balsamic vinegar instead of red wine vinegar or use more mustard in the dressing.
Sometimes, restaurants serve their Cobb salad with ranch or blue cheese dressing. I often serve our Cobb salad with a quick and dirty mayonnaise based dressing which includes white vinegar and a little sweetener. It’s the same dressing I use on my raw broccoli salad.
Low Carb Cobb Salad Dressing is 1 net carb per serving.
Cobb Salad Dressing Recipe
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup salad oil (I used 1/2 avocado oil and 1/2 MCT oil)
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp water
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp low carb sugar (Swerve Granulated or sugar)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
Making a Salad Dressing With an Immersion Blender:
- Add all of the ingredients to a jar and blend until thick and emulsified.
Jar Method for Salad Dressing:
- Mince the garlic then combine all ingredients in a jar. Shake vigorously before dressing the salad.
Whisking by Hand:
- Mince the garlic, sprinkle with a little salt and by angling the knife, work the garlic and salt together against the cutting board until it forms a paste. Place the garlic paste, Worcestershire sauce, and mustard in a bowl and whisk together. Add either the lemon juice or vinegar and whisk again.
- Begin adding the oil, a few drops at a time, and whisk until completely incorporated before adding any more. This process takes a long time. As the dressing begins to emulsify, you can add the oil a little faster.
- When you’ve added 1/2 of the oil, add another tbsp of vinegar or lemon juice. Continue slowly adding 1/2 of the remaining oil, waiting until completely incorporated before adding more. Then, add the remaining vinegar or lemon juice. Finish-up by adding the last of the oil in a thin stream while whisking and then the remainder of the ingredients.
- Taste to adjust acidity. Add a little more water to dilute the acidity or a little more sweetener to balance or even out the over all flavor.
- Refrigerate any leftover dressing. Makes about 1 cup with a serving size of approximately 3 tablespoons.
Notes
Nutrition
Healthy Cobb Salad For One (low carb, keto)
Hi Kim! I love this recipe! I have made it twice!
I would like to make this but when I saw the calories I about died. Could you tell me if that is for the 1 cup and what you figure for a serving size?
Thanks
Terrie
Hi Terrie. The recipe makes 1 cup with an approximate serving size of 3 tablespoons. A tablespoon of oil is 14 g fat and 119 calories.
Most store bought salad dressings thin traditional salad dressing recipes with a lot of water. Then they use xanthan gum and/or starches to thicken and provide a slippery mouth-feel to approximate the oil they are replacing. You may play with the oil-to-water ratio to get something lower in calories. -Kim
Is this really 200 plus calories per serving?
Yes, Anne. One tbsp oil is about 100 calories. The serving size for the dressing is approximately 3 tbsp. You can reduce the amount of oil and add water if you feel more comfortable. That will lower the calories, but also dilute the flavor. -Kim
My end result was not as good as others. It was way to acidic even after the sugar was added. Thumbs down for me.
Thank you for sharing your opinion of the recipe, Melinda. Adding a little more oil and more water will help to tone down the acidity. Everyone’s taste buds are different and register flavors differently. Thank you for providing me the opportunity to share how to adjust the taste. I will make sure to add it to the post, too. -kim
Very tasty!! Will be keeping this as a go to!
Great salad dressing. Will not go back to store bought dressing after tasting this.
Can u use olive oil with the avacado oil for dressing ? I’m just starting and not knowledge about all the oils. I see Walmart carries the mct oil. So maybe I can find it.
Can u use regular coconut oil instead?
Please help !
Hi Elayne. You can use extra light olive oil for the salad oil. Make sure it is 100% olive oil and not mixed with canola. -Kim
This is delicious! Thanks.
Can Stevia be used instead of swerve?
Sure! Use what you like to sweeten. -Kim
The Cobb is king of salads! And this dressing is perfect with it – does that make it the queen of salad dressings?
Lol. Maybe. -Kim
Looks great. Can you use olive oil for the salad oil? Thanks.
Of course you may use olive oil, Kate. -Kim