This homemade sweet salad dressing is one of my special recipes. Every family has a few standout recipes that show up at every gathering. The ones everyone requests and reminisces about.
I’ve been making this salad dressing it for over 40 years. Ever since I clipped it from a local newspaper back in the day.
Now I’m the grandma, and this dressing has officially earned its spot in our family’s treasured family recipes. Alongside Christmas hams, elegant layer cakes, and party cocktails.
We call it “Grandma’s Homemade Vinaigrette.” No matter the occasion—whether it’s tossed with a green salad for holiday meals or poured over mandarin oranges and mixed greens at summer cookouts—this one always delivers a big flavor payoff.
A Classic Homemade Salad Dressing That Stands the Test of Time
This sweet, tangy, and slightly creamy dressing falls somewhere between a French, an Italian salad dressing, and a sweet-sour dipping sauce.
Secret Ingredient
With just the right balance of oil, white sugar, and vinegar, and that magic secret ingredient quality that makes people pause after the first bite and say, “What is this dressing?”
This isn’t the stuff you grab from the grocery store shelf. It’s better. It’s the homemade stuff that turns an upgraded bag-o-salad into something guests will ask the recipe for—every single time.
You can mix it in a mason jar with a tight-fitting lid, a small protein shake bottle, or anything you can give a good shake. I keep mine in a jar labeled simply “Grandmama’s Homemade Vinaigrette,” stored front and center in the fridge.
We Love Grandma’s Special Sweet Salad Dressing Recipe
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Kitchen Essentials
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Oil like vegetable oil, olive oil, peanut oil
- ¾ Cup Vinegar I use rice wine vinegar and apple cider vinegar, white vinegar or white wine vinegar work too
- ½ Cup White Sugar
- ½ Cup Ketchup your preferred brand
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
- 2 Teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Dried Minced Onion or 1 small onion or shallop minced
Instructions
- Add the oil, vinegar, sugar, ketchup, salt, Worcestershire sauce, and onion to a quart size mason jar with a tight-fitting lid.1 Cup Oil, ¾ Cup Vinegar, ½ Cup White Sugar, ½ Cup Ketchup, ½ Teaspoon Salt, 2 Teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce, 2 Tablespoons Dried Minced Onion
- Shake until the sugar dissolves.
- If using the dried minced onion, let sit for 1 hour before using. To rehydrate the onion. If you use fresh minced onion, you can use this right away.
- Store in the refrigerator and shake well before using it.
Your Own Private Notes
Nutrition
Sweet Salad Dressing Recipe Variations
What makes this dressing special—besides the flavor—is all the small details. It’s hand-shaken. It sits in the same corner of the fridge, ready to go.
I like to think of it as a starting point—a base you can adapt.
Want it spicier? Add more hot sauce.
Creamier? Stir in a little mayo.
Tangier? Try a different vinegar like apple cider, or white wine vinegar.
This is the kind of recipe you add to your recipe repertoire, and then one day you’ll find your own grandchild asking, “Can I get the recipe for that dressing of yours?”
How to Serve This Quick Salad Dressing
This easy vinaigrette is a great option for:
- A simple mixed greens salad with salad toppings like nuts, dried cranberries, or goat cheese
- Main-dish salads with grilled chicken, shrimp, or steak
- A dipping sauce for egg roll or crab Rangoon appetizers
- As a drizzle over roasted vegetables or grain bowls
- A dipping sauce for crusty bread during dinner parties
- Even as a unique glaze for Christmas hams
Some of my dinner party guests have even said they like it better than balsamic vinaigrette. That’s high praise in our house.
Preserving Family Traditions, One Recipe at a Time
After over 40 years of making this homemade salad dressing, I’ve decided it’s time to start writing these recipes down—not just for the blog, but for my family.
These time-tested dishes, like Grandmama’s homemade vinaigrette, carry more than flavor. They carry memories.
Every handwritten note in the recipe tin—they’re part of our family’s story.
Whether we’re gathering around the table for holiday meals, tossing a fresh mixed greens salad from the garden, or serving cookout classics in the summertime, it’s these familiar flavors that tie us together.
I want my children, grandchildren, and even future great-grandchildren to know not just how to cook—but how to cook with love.
I hope they’ll open these recipes and hear my voice in the background, reminding them about the secret ingredient, the importance of a tight-fitting lid, or how this dressing also makes a great sweet and sour sauce.
Easy to Make
You don’t need to be a pro to make this. Even an amateur cook can master it in minutes.
My family loved this!