Thousand Island Dressing Recipe

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This homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe comes together in 5 minutes with just 5 ingredients. It’s thick, delicious, and perfect on your next salad.

Thousand Island dressing in a clear bowl on a countertop with pickles and lettuce in the background.


 

This Thousand Island salad dressing is a fantastic sauce with so many uses. And everyone has their version. It might be “burger sauce,” “secret sauce,” or “house sauce,” but it’s pretty much always the same thing: an addictive blend of mayo and ketchup with pieces of vegetables like pickles, red onion, dill relish, or some other element with tang stirred in.

This homemade salad dressing is great on salads like Garden Salads or a Wedge Salad – anything with a crunchy green that can stand up to the thick texture. It’s also delicious smeared on a Cheeseburger or Reuben Sandwich and is also an essential element in Hot Rebuen Dip. And, it’s the perfect dipping sauce for French fries. Animal style, anyone?

Recipe ingredients

Labeled ingredients for thousand island dressing.

At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.

Ingredient notes

  • Pickles: Sweet pickle relish sounds like an easy substitute, but it’s too heavy and wet in this dressing. To cut the sweetness, substitute dill pickles.
  • Ketchup: Some recipes use chili sauce (such as Heinz chili sauce), so feel free to substitute that if you prefer.

Step-by-step instructions

  1. In a small bowl or mason jar, add together mayonnaise, pickles, ketchup, lemon juice, garlic, and salt to taste (I like ½ teaspoon). Whisk or shake to combine.
Thousand Island dressing in a clear bowl on a countertop.
  1. Use immediately or refrigerate up to 4 days.
A salad with thousand island dressing on it.

Recipe tips and variations

  • Yield: This recipe makes 1 ½ cups homemade dressing or 12 servings, 2 tablespoons each.
  • Storage: Store covered in the fridge for up to 4 days.
  • More mix-ins: If you love an extra-chunky dressing, stir in 4 minced green olives (with pimientos) and/or 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley.
  • Less sweet: To tone down the sweetness, use dill pickle relish instead of the sweet. To remove sugar entirely, choose a no-sugar ketchup.
  • Spicy flavor: Turn up the heat in your dressing with hot sauce, fresh horseradish, sriracha, or cayenne pepper. A pinch of black pepper can go a long way, too.
  • More salad dressing recipes: DIY dressings are always better than store-bought. Make your own Ranch Dressing, Blue Cheese Dressing, Creamy Cilantro-Lime dressing (made with Greek yogurt), Red Wine Vinaigrette, Balsamic Vinaigrette, or French dressing (which is a lot like Russian dressing).
A reuben sandwich on a cutting board surrounded by chips and a pickle spear.
This grilled Reuben Sandwich is made with Corned Beef, Swiss Cheese, Sauerkraut, and Thousand Island Dressing on Marble Rye Bread.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Thousand Island sauce made of?

The fundamental components of Thousand Island dressing are mayonnaise, ketchup, and pickles, but everyone has their own special twist on this classic.

What is the legendary Thousand Island dressing?

The original Thousand Island dressing was created at by a chef from Boldt Castle. The chef, Oscar Tschirky, forgot a salad dressing for his employer, and improvised with a quick mixture of mayonnaise, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, pickle relish, and a hard-boiled egg.

Put your dressing to work

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Thousand Island dressing in a clear bowl on a countertop with pickles and lettuce in the background.

Thousand Island Dressing Recipe

This homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe comes together in 5 minutes with just 5 ingredients. It's thick, delicious, and perfect on your next salad.
Prep Time 1 minute
Cook Time 1 minute
Total Time 2 minutes
Servings 12 servings (2 tbsp each)
Course Pantry
Cuisine American
Calories 136
4.94 from 31 votes

Ingredients 

  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup bread and butter pickles finely chopped (see note 1)
  • 1/4 cup ketchup (see note 2)
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice (from 1 lemon) or white vinegar
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • Salt optional

Instructions 

  • In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, pickles, ketchup, lemon juice, garlic, and salt to taste (I like ½ teaspoon). Use immediately or refrigerate up to 4 days.

Notes

  1. Pickles: Sweet pickle relish sounds like an easy substitute, but it’s too heavy and wet in this dressing. Not recommended.
  2. Ketchup: Some recipes use chili sauce (such as Heinz chili sauce), so feel free to substitute that if you prefer.
  3. Yield: This recipe makes 1 ½ cups dressing or 12 servings, 2 tablespoons each.
  4. Storage: Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 2 tbspCalories: 136kcalCarbohydrates: 2gProtein: 1gFat: 14gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 8mgSodium: 179mgPotassium: 25mgFiber: 1gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 62IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 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. The acid in properly prepared mayonnaise and the pickles will certainly allow it to be stored for much longer than four days . The foods at picnics do not spoil because of mayonnaise but rather the foods they are served with.

  2. My mom made Thousand Island dressing using mayo, ketchup, sweet pickle relish, finely chopped onion, chopped boiled egg and salt and pepper to taste. It was delicious!

  3. How do restaurants keep their lettuce so crisp? In many steakhouses they serve a “mixed” salad, the ingredients are chopped finely…what ingredients would you suggest to make this type of salad?

    1. Hi Barclay! So in some restaurants, they keep cut Romaine in water in the walk-in fridge and bring out smaller amounts for service. At home I just rinse, pat dry, and store in a ziplock with a paper towel. If it’s in a container, I put a damp paper towel in there. Hope this helps! – Meggan

  4. I’d almost forgotten about Thousand Island dressing, seems it used to be way more popular than now, but anyway, needed some for St. Patrick’s Day reubens I’m making, so tried this, and it was better than any I remember tasting in the past. I’d not have thought to put it on burgers, but I have some left, so will try that next. Thanks for a great recipe.5 stars

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