Poppy Seed Dressing

Meggan Hill

• Updated

5 from 206 votes

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A deliciously sweet Poppy Seed Dressing made with 6 pantry staples! Perfect for fruit and vegetable salads, this makes any side dish taste like dessert.

Homemade poppy seed dressing being poured onto a spinach salad.

Grab some strawberries, some spinach, and toss it up with the easiest salad dressing ever! Thanks to Poppy Seed Dressing, all of a sudden, life is sweeter. It’s old-fashioned, versatile, and better than any bottle at the store.

Recipe ingredients:

  • Oil: Use something neutral such as vegetable oil, light olive oil, vegetable oil, or grapeseed oil.
  • Red wine vinegar: Substitute white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or champagne vinegar if you prefer.
  • Sugar: Add sugar or your favorite sweetener to taste, or leave it out entirely.
  • Dried mustard: Ground mustard powder balances out the sweetness and adds another layer of flavor. If you don’t have it, use an equal amount of Dijon mustard instead.
  • Poppy seeds, salt.

Homemade poppy seed dressing ingredients in various bowls.

Instructions:

  • In a bowl with a whisk, or in a jar with a lid, add the vegetable oil, red wine vinegar, dried mustard, poppyseeds, sugar, and salt. If you’re making a salad right away, keep the dressing out at room temperature to let the flavors mingle while preparing the salad. (However, you can make it up to 4 days in advance.)
    A deliciously sweet Poppy Seed Dressing made with 6 pantry staples! Perfect for fruit and vegetable salads, this makes any side dish taste like dessert!

Recipe tips:

  • Yield: About 1 cup
  • Storage: Store the dressing covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
  • Blender: For the smoothest, creamiest dressing possible, emulsify the dressing in a blender.

Delicious salad recipes:

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Homemade poppy seed dressing being poured onto a spinach salad.

Poppy Seed Dressing

By Meggan Hill
A deliciously sweet Poppy Seed Dressing made with 6 pantry staples! Perfect for fruit and vegetable salads, this makes any side dish taste like dessert.
Prep Time 1 minute
Cook Time 1 minute
Total Time 2 minutes
Servings 8 servings
Course Pantry
Cuisine American
Calories 145
5 from 206 votes
ReviewPrint

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • In a small bowl with a whisk, or in a jar with a tight-fitting lid, add the vegetable oil, red wine vinegar, sugar, dried mustard, poppy seeds, and salt to taste (I like 1 teaspoon).
  • Stir or shake to combine. Allow the flavors to blend at room temperature while preparing the salad.

Recipe Video

Notes

  1. Oil: Use something neutral such as vegetable oil, light olive oil, vegetable oil, or grapeseed oil.
  2. Red wine vinegar: Substitute white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or champagne vinegar if you prefer.
  3. Sugar: Add sugar or your favorite sweetener to taste, or leave it out entirely.
  4. Dried mustard: Ground mustard powder balances out the sweetness and adds another layer of flavor. If you don’t have it, use an equal amount of Dijon mustard instead.
  5. Yield: About 1 cup
  6. Storage: Store the dressing covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
  7. Blender: For the smoothest, creamiest dressing possible, emulsify the dressing in a blender.

Nutrition

Serving: 2tablespoonsCalories: 145kcalCarbohydrates: 6gProtein: 1gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 11gSodium: 1mgFiber: 1gSugar: 6gCalcium: 5mgIron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Tag @culinaryhill on Instagram so we can admire your masterpiece! #culinaryhill
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Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.

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Comments

  1. Best poppy seed dressing ever! I use this for all of our garden salads! Everyone loves it! I use a little less than required sugar and a good pinch of kosher salt.

    Reply

    1. Thank you for your comment, Jane! I’m so glad it is a hit with everyone! – Meggan

    1. Hi Susan, thank you so much for your question! Since the dressing doesn’t have stabilizers or preservatives, we recommend following the USDA guidelines in which any leftovers would need to be refrigerated and consumed in 3-4 days. I hope you love this dressing! – Meggan

  3. I made this just as the recipie called and everyone loved it. Now I have just made another batch and substituted honey for the sugar. Can’t wait to try it

    Reply

    1. Hi Denise, thank you so much for your comment! I’m so glad everyone loved it! – Meggan

    1. Hi Jennifer, you can use your favorite sweetener to taste, or leave it out entirely. Take care! – Meggan

    1. Hi Pam, so glad you loved it! Since the dressing doesn’t have stabilizers or preservatives, we recommend following the USDA guidelines in which any leftovers would need to be refrigerated and consumed in 3-4 days. – Meggan

  7. Hey, if using a blender would you put the poppy seeds in after it is blended or just put all the ingredients together and blend?

    Reply

    1. Hi Talya, I would put them in at the same time. You could also slowly drizzle in the olive oil to the remaining ingredients while the blender is on. Hope this helps! – Meggan

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