This delicious green goddess dressing recipe is a throwback to the 1970s favorite. It can be used for salads, sauces, and dips.
If you grew up in the 70s, as I did, then you've probably heard of Green Goddess Dressing. Recently, I was having a conversation about "City Chicken," another '70s throwback, with my sister. For some reason, it reminded me of several dishes that were popular back then, including Chipped Ham Barbecue Sandwiches, Chicken ala King, and Turkey Tetrazzini. This was before the advent of Ranch dressing, one of my favorites, but it's actually pretty similar.
Green Goddess History
I had no idea where the dressing originated from, so I looked it up and found this on Wikipedia:
"is a variation of a dressing originated in France by a chef to Louis XIII, who made a sauce au vert (green sauce) which was traditionally served with "green eel"."
It also references a bottled dressing from Seven Seas that was sold in the 1970s.
More Homemade Dressing Recipes
What's in Green Goddess Dressing?
According to Wikipedia, the original dressing (from 1923) contained anchovies, scallions, parsley, tarragon, chives, mayonnaise, and vinegar.
My recipe is similar with one notable difference. I do not use tarragon. This herb has a black licorice flavor that I don't care for. However, you can use it in addition to the parsley and chives to create this dressing if you are a fan. In fact, you can add whatever fresh green herbs you like, such as basil, cilantro, dill, or mint.
Anchovy paste, garlic, and lemon juice combine well with the fresh herbs, giving this dressing plenty of flavor. If you can't find anchovy paste, a couple of canned anchovy fillets will do just as well.
In reality, it isn't that green in color, so I sometimes add a drop of green food coloring to the mix.
What do you put Green Goddess Dressing on?
- This dressing is perfect for salads, and you can see here, I used it on a nice wedge of romaine lettuce and some roasted chicken.
- Back in the day, I remember my mom also serving this as a dip with veggies at parties.
- This is also a good sauce for seafood and grilled items like chicken and steak.
However you decide to use this fresh homemade dressing, chances are good that everyone will love it.
Homemade Green Goddess Dressing Recipe
Equipment
- Food Processor or Blender
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Flat Leaf Parsley finely chopped
- 1/4 cup Chives finely chopped
- a large garlic clove finely minced
- 1 tablespoon Anchovy paste
- 1 cup Mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup Sour Cream
- 1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
- Fresh lemon juice approx. 2 tablespoons
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- a couple drops of green food coloring optional
Instructions
- Place parsley, chives and garlic in a food processor or blender and combine.
- Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
- Transfer to a bowl and serve or cover and refrigerate.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although attempts have been made to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
Shucky
The contemporary version leave out the tarragon used in the 60's.
Patti Estep
Shucky, I'm not a big fan of tarragon so that works for me but you could definitely substitute tarragon for the parsley or just add some if you like it.
Karen Pierantoni
My Mom got a great recipe off the radio show Ask Your Neighbor, hosted by Bob Allison, for taco salad years ago. The dressing was Seven Seas Green Goddess dressing. It is the only taco salad I make and the dressing is the secret. Thanks for the recipe! Can't find the dressing in the store, but I will make this recipe.
Patti Estep
Hi Karen,
I remember Seven Seas salad dressing. I don't think I ever had their green goddess. I wonder if they still sell it. Anyway, I hope this recipe works well for your taco salad.
Thanks for stopping by,
Patti
Stacey
I could eat my weight in Green Goddess dressing! It's so delicious and I love the idea of making it homemade. 🙂
Sandra L.
I love this salad dressing and so does my daughter who was born in 1970. I hate Ranch Dressing but she loves it and swears by it. We love it on a wedge of Iceberg Lettuce. Thanks for the recipe and I think I will be making this for our Easter/Birthday Dinner.
I also love Chicken ala King and Turkey Tetrazinni. We also miss Brown Edge Wafers and I forget the name of the company who made them but you got 6 different cupcakes and they were in freezer section.
Patti Estep
Hi Sandra,
I have never heard of Brown Edge Wafers but they sound amazing. I hope you enjoy the dressing. Feel free to change it up using some ingredients that you like. I'm going to have to make some more throwback recipes in the future. They are so fun and bring back great memories.
Have a great weekend!
Patti
Carole West, Garden Up Green
So I did grow up in the 70's in a Italian home so it was oil and vinegar. Other salad dressings were basically a treat on the rare occasion we went out to eat or it was a holiday. This sounds tasty, I'm wondering if you could skip the mayo and sour cream and use plain yogurt instead? Would also be good for veggie dip. I just love coming over here, it's a great way to start my day because it get's my brain thinking..
Patti Estep
Hi Carole,
Of course! You know all of my recipes can be adapted to your liking, and a good greek yogurt would be fabulous as a veggie dip.
Thanks for stopping by,
Patti