This Keto Caesar Salad with Bacon has a delicious homemade caesar salad dressing recipe without anchovies that has just four ingredients. It is the perfect side dish or an easy main course when topped with chicken. My 9-year-old makes this keto Caesar salad dressing for dinner for us at least once a week without any help!
An easy Caesar salad is one of our go-to easy sides for dinner for those of us on a keto diet or not. Especially since my toddler now looooves it. Yes, you read that correctly. I have a toddler whose favorite food is Caesar salad. No matter what else is on the table if she sees Caesar salad she begs for it and then eats two plates full.
We eat this Keto Caesar Salad in the summer a lot topped with grilled chicken. In the winter I just saute or bake the chicken breasts in a pyrex dish covered with aluminum foil. When I have bacon crumbles I always add them. On occasion, I’ll add sliced mushrooms and red onions too.
How to Make a Caesar Salad Dressing Recipe without Anchovies
It is easier to your own dressing than you think. Homemade creamy dressing is better than store-bought every single time because you can control all the ingredients in them. You can leave out the msg, cornstarch, maltodextrin, soybean oil, preservatives, and make them sugar free and gluten free with fresh whole ingredients.
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My easy homemade Caesar dressing recipe has only 4 ingredients and takes less than 5 minutes but I get compliments on it every single time I make it. You can even make ahead and store in an airtight container or mason jar.
- Mayo – this plus sour cream or yogurt gives a creamy texture.
- Sour Cream or Plain Greek Yogurt – whatever you prefer is fine.
- Garlic Powder – preferably Roasted Garlic Powder for the most flavorful dressing. Fresh garlic is a bit too potent for me but if you prefer go ahead and use a bit.
- Parmesan Cheese – the kind in a shaker bottle, pre-grated cheese, and fresh parmesan cheese all work.
plus a little Salt & Black Pepper
A lot of readers comment that this isn’t traditional caesar dressing or authentic caesar dressing because it doesn’t have anchovies, fresh lemon juice, dijon mustard, raw egg yolks, etc. but really… who cares? It’s a delicious dressing with just a few simple ingredients and my kids love it. I doubt that would happen with a dressing chock full of anchovy paste. If you are a fan of anchovies this may not be the recipe for you.
How to Make Caesar Salad
The salad dressing recipe you use is really the trick to a good classic Caesar salad. Anytime we go to a restaurant I’m shocked at how much they can charge for lettuce, dressing, and a few croutons. It is so easy to make anchovy-free caesar dressing and salad at home I’ve stopped even considering ordering it when out.
All you really need is crisp romaine lettuce (washed and cut into bite-size pieces), a delicious creamy caesar salad dressing, and shredded Parmesan cheese. You can dress up your salad with more keto food options but it’s not necessary.
Caesar Salad Topping Ideas
- Bacon Crumbles – I normally just buy the 100% bacon crumbles in the package
- Cooked Chicken – I make extra chicken so we’ll have it for salads for lunch frequently
- Hard Boiled Eggs – this is a great way to boost the protein if you don’t want to add meat
- Sliced Mushrooms – one of my favorite additions
- Grape Tomatoes – these add a hint of natural sweetness to the salad
- Shrimp – I prefer to take the tails off before serving
How to Make Chicken for Caesar Salad
You don’t have to do anything special to the chicken. Sometimes I’ll quickly pan saute a chicken breast in some olive oil and garlic just so we can slice it for this caesar salad recipe.
We also use leftover grilled chicken on our caesar salads a lot. Or even rotisserie chicken. If you need a recipe for grilled chicken make sure to try my lemon garlic grilled chicken.
What to Serve with Keto Caesar Salad
For a complete meal serve this easy low carb Caesar salad with my Braided Garlic Breadsticks, or Cheddar Garlic Crisps.
We love it as a side dish with anything Italian like Meatball Casserole, Keto Zuppa Toscana, White Keto Lasagna, or Eggplant Lasagna.
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Keto Caesar Salad with Bacon
This Keto Caesar Salad with Bacon has a delicious homemade dressing with just four ingredients. It is the perfect side dish or an easy main course when topped with chicken.
Dressing Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 1/2 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
- 1/3 cup grated or shredded Parmesan cheese I normally use the shelf stable powder variety
- 1 tsp roasted garlic powder or regular garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp salt add another 1/4 tsp if it needs it, the saltiness of parmesan cheese can vary
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Salad Ingredients:
- Romaine lettuce, washed and cut into bite-size pieces
- Shredded Parmesan cheese
- Bacon crumbles (optional)
- Cooked Chicken, cubed (optional)
Salad Instructions:
-
Mix the dressing ingredients in a large bowl if you are making a large salad. This makes enough dressing for a large bowl of salad using two romaine hearts or one large head of romaine. You can add the lettuce right to the mixing bowl and toss until it is covered with the dressing. Then add the chicken and fold that in gently. Finally, sprinkle the bacon and extra cheese on top.
The nutrition is calculated for 1/6th of the dressing using plain yogurt.
Calories: 160Carbohydrates: 1gProtein: 3gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 310mgPotassium: 29mgVitamin A: 55IUCalcium: 84mgIron: 0.1mg
Originally published March 23, 2016. Revised and republished November 21, 2024.
More Keto Salad Recipes
Grilled Vegetable Salad with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette
Healthy Broccoli Salad with Bacon
Kohlrabi Salad with Homemade Italian Dressing