Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (2024)

Home Recipes by Type Salads

3030 Minutes or Less

4.58

/5

10 minutes mins

32 Comments

Jump to Recipe

By: Rachel GurkPosted: 03/11/2020

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

Easily made from scratch, homemade Thousand Island dressing is so much tastier and more economical than store bought.

Recipe Overview

Why you’ll love it: The dressing can be used on salads, as a sandwich or burger spread, or as a delicious fry sauce.

How long it takes: 10 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: small bowl or jar
Servings: makes 1 ¾ cup

Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (1)

Table of Contents close

  • 1 Recipe Overview
  • 2 Thousand Island Dressing (It’s the Secret Sauce)
  • 3 Why Is It Called Thousand Island Dressing?
  • 4 How To Make Thousand Island Dressing
  • 5 Ways to Make This Dressing your own
  • 6 Storage Tips
  • 7 More Dressing Recipes
  • 8 Get the Recipe: Homemade Thousand Island Dressing

Thousand Island Dressing (It’s the Secret Sauce)

Ever wonder what that “secret sauce” on a Big Mac is? Or maybe you wonder what makes a Reuben sandwich taste so good (besides the corned beef, sauerkraut, and Swiss cheese)? Well, here’s the secret: Thousand Island dressing!

  • It’s so versatile. We love Thousand Island dressing because it has so many uses. It’s just amazing on a sandwich, whether it’s a hamburger or turkey burger, or a classic Reuben or Rachel sandwich. It’s the perfect dressing for these oven baked turkey sliders (aka Rachel sandwiches).
  • Add it to sandwiches and burgers. Please don’t settle for plain ol’ mayonnaise on your sandwich! Make it much more interesting and delicious with creamy, tangy and slightly sweet Thousand Island dressing.
  • Top your salads. Some salads just call for a good creamy dressing, especially salads with romaine or iceberg lettuce. Have you ever tried Thousand Island dressing on taco salad? Yum! Or try mixing Thousand Island dressing with coleslaw mix to make a knock-out coleslaw. Don’t these Reuben eggs Benedict made with Thousand Island dressing sound delicious? Can’t wait to try those!
  • Easy ingredients. You make your own homemade version using ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry or fridge. Nothing compares to homemade dressing! It’s so much fresher tasting and you can customize it to your own preferences.

Why Is It Called Thousand Island Dressing?

Here’s a little bit of history if you’ve ever wondered where the name Thousand Island comes from. The dressing originated in the Thousand Islands region, an archipelago of 1,864 islands located along the upper St. Lawrence River between the United States and Canada. Who created this dressing first is sort of a mystery, as there are many people claiming to have been the first person to make it.

Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (2)

How To Make Thousand Island Dressing

It’s pretty simple. You’ll need only nine ingredients, and two of those ingredients are salt and pepper. While there are often only 3 ingredient recipes for this dressing (mayo, ketchup, pickle relish), the extra ingredients add more layers of flavor.

You’ll only need one small bowl. Begin by stirring together mayo, ketchup, sweet pickle relish. Next, stir in a tablespoon of white vinegar and a tablespoon of sugar, amping up the sweet/sour flavor. For the final touch, stir in a little finely chopped onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.

Make it ahead. For the best flavor, prepare the dressing at least an hour or up to 24 hours in advance so the flavors have a chance to integrate, and the onion and garlic soften up a bit.

Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (3)

What’s the Difference Between Thousand Island and Russian dressing?

Although the two dressings are similar, it appears that Russian dressing was created first, sometime in the mid 1800s. Thousand Island dressing is most likely a variant of Russian dressing, appearing in the early 1900s. Both dressings are mayonnaise based and contain ketchup or chili sauce. Russian dressing tends to have hot sauce or horseradish, while Thousand Island dressing more often includes chopped pickles, onions, peppers, and/or hard boiled egg.

Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (4)

Ways to Make This Dressing your own

There are many ways you can customize Thousand Island dressing. Here’s a few ideas but feel free to experiment. Make your own “secret” sauce!

  • Add an egg. Many Thousand Island dressing recipes call for a finely chopped hard boiled egg. Keep in mind, this will reduce the length of time you can store the dressing in the fridge. I’d toss it after a week.
  • Don’t care for garlic or onion? Leave it out. You could substitute finely chopped peppers or olives.
  • Try a different kind of vinegar. Cider vinegar, rice vinegar, or white wine vinegar would all be fine although each would lend a slightly different flavor to your dressing.
  • Pickle relish options: I confess that I don’t always have sweet pickle relish in my pantry so I often use dill relish for this dressing and it tastes great! Alternatively, make it without relish. Or just chop up a few pickles and add those.
  • Add spicy heat. If you want to spice it up, add a little hot sauce, chili sauce, or horseradish, to taste.
  • Make it keto. Use avocado oil mayonnaise and a no-sugar-added ketchup. Skip the sugar, and use dill pickles instead of sweet.

Storage Tips

Refrigerate leftover Thousand Island dressing in a glass jar or airtight plastic container. It should keep for at least a week.

More Dressing Recipes

Healthy Ranch DressingHealthy Green Goddess DressingPoppy Seed Dressing (Creamy and Healthy!)Catalina Dressing Recipe

Browse All

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (9)

Recipe

Get the Recipe: Homemade Thousand Island Dressing

4.58 from 57 votes

Prep Time: 10 minutes mins

Total Time: 10 minutes mins

14 servings

Print Rate Recipe

Easily made from scratch, homemade Thousand Island dressing is so much tastier and more economical than store bought. Use it for salads, sandwiches, or as a delicious fry sauce.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • ¼ cup sweet pickle relish (dill relish or chopped pickles can be substituted)
  • ¼ cup ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons finely diced onion
  • ½ teaspoon finely minced garlic (about 1 clove)
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

  • Mix all ingredients together in a bowl or jar. Refrigerate for at least one hour to let flavors meld.

Notes

  • Makes 1 ¾ cups.
  • Refrigerate dressing in an airtight container or jar for up to 1 week.
  • Variations: add hot sauce, chili sauce, or horseradish. Add 1 chopped hard boiled egg, if desired (use dressing promptly).

Nutrition Information

Serving: 2tablespoons, Calories: 123kcal, Carbohydrates: 4g, Protein: 0.2g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 0.03g, Cholesterol: 7mg, Sodium: 218mg, Potassium: 19mg, Fiber: 0.1g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 86IU, Vitamin C: 0.4mg, Calcium: 3mg, Iron: 0.1mg

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk

You May Also Like...

  • Healthy Ranch Dressing

  • Healthy Caesar Dressing Recipe

  • Raspberry Vinaigrette Recipe

  • Homemade Italian Dressing Recipe

Previous PostInstant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
Next Post Instant Pot Pot Roast Recipe

Reader Interactions

Leave a Review

  1. Bev says

    Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (17)
    Yummy!!!!!
    Much better than store bought!

    Reply

    • Rachel Gurk says

      So glad you like it! Thank you for leaving a review!

      Reply

Older Comments

Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (2024)

FAQs

What is the Flavour of Thousand Island? ›

Praise Everyday Thousand Island Dressing is a tomato flavoured sauce spiced with paprika that adds flavour to veggie salads, seafood and burgers.

What is the difference between French and Thousand Island dressing? ›

The Thousand Island dressing combines ketchup, mayonnaise, sweet pickle relish, vinegar, minced onion and garlic. In contrast, the French dressing is composed of olive oil, vinegar, mustard, ketchup, sugar, and paprika, among other seasonings. The former is mayo-based, while the latter relies more on vegetable oil.

What is the origin of 1000 island dressing? ›

From Thousand Islands to the Waldorf-Astoria

That story says that Waldorf-Astoria owner George Boldt and his wife, Louise, were on their boat when their chef realized he forgot the dressing for the salad. So he made a dressing with the ingredients he had on the boat and this became Thousand Island dressing.

What does thousand dressing taste like? ›

What does Thousand Island dressing taste like? Thousand Island dressing is fairly sweet. The ketchup offers sweetness, as does the bit of added sugar. (You can leave that out if you like a more tangy dressing.)

What dressing is the same as Thousand Island? ›

If you look at Russian dressing and Thousand Island dressing side by side, they're pretty similar. And that's because both sauces have a mayo and ketchup base. However, while Thousand Island dressing includes pickle relish, making it a bit sweeter, Russian dressing tends to include horseradish to give it a little kick.

Is Thousand Island just ketchup and mayonnaise? ›

Thousand Island dressing is an American salad dressing and condiment based on mayonnaise that can include olive oil, lemon juice, orange juice, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, vinegar, cream, chili sauce, tomato purée, and ketchup or Tabasco sauce.

Which is better Russian or Thousand Island dressing? ›

And while the horseradish arguably makes Russian dressing a little more flavorful, Thousand Island tends to be the secret sauce of choice for burgers, perhaps because the horseradish would just get buried beneath the other elements anyway. Russian and Thousand Island have lots of other cousins, too.

Is Russian dressing the same as Thousand Island? ›

While there are a lot of overlapping ingredients, there are also some key differences between these two iconic slathers. To start, both are mostly made from a mix of mayonnaise and ketchup, but generally, Russian dressing is a little spicy while Thousand Island tends to be on the sweeter side.

Is Thousand Island dressing same as Big Mac? ›

Is Big Mac Sauce the same as Thousand Island Dressing? The two are similar, but they have different ingredient ratios. Also, Thousand Island dressing is made with ketchup and diced onions. Big Mac sauce doesn't use either of these ingredients.

Does 1000 island dressing go bad? ›

Thousand Island Dressing can last anywhere from 3-8 months in your fridge. If unopened and properly stored, it may even last until the manufacturer's intended expiry date on the package, which is usually a year from the manufacturing date.

Is burger sauce the same as Thousand Island? ›

Is burger sauce the same as Thousand Island? The two share a lot of similarities in ingredients and color, but they're not exactly the same. Burger sauce really just a mix of condiments like mayo, mustard, ketchup, and relish with a few extra flavorings thrown in.

What goes with Thousand Island dressing? ›

This type of dressing is very versatile, so don't just confine it to a lettuce-based salad. Use it in place of tartar sauce for fried fish, as a condiment for potatoes or other vegetables, or as a spread on your favorite sandwich.

What is the most unhealthy salad dressing? ›

And at the top of that list? Caesar dressing. Made up of mayonnaise, cheese, salt and oil (and all too often, anchovies), Caesar tends to be one of the least healthy options out there. Those ingredients cause it to be high in both saturated fats and sodium.

What is the most requested salad dressing? ›

Ranch Dressing

The ranch is hands down America's most beloved salad dressings. It is made from a number of ingredients such as buttermilk, mayonnaise, mustard, garlic, onion, chives, salt, and pepper.

What is the most popular salad dressing in the world? ›

Most Famous Dressings in the World
  1. Ranch Dressing. The ranch is a salad dressing or dip made with buttermilk, salt, garlic, onions, herbs (dill, parsley, chives, etc.), and spices (mustard seeds, black pepper, paprika, etc.) ...
  2. Fry Sauce. ...
  3. Chermoula. ...
  4. Blue Cheese Dressing. ...
  5. Thousand Island Dressing. ...
  6. Italian Dressing.

What is Thousand Island sauce made of? ›

Thousand Island Ingredients: It's mixture of mayonnaise, sour cream, ketchup, sweet pickle relish, red onion vinegar, sugar, garlic, and salt and pepper. All ingredients are combined by hand to make a perfect, thick, and creamy dressing, dip, or sauce.

Does Thousand Island taste like Big Mac sauce? ›

The answer is no… but they are similar. Both of the condiments have a creamy consistency and include pickle relish. But, McDonald's Big Mac Sauce includes vinegar and has a bit more pickle relish in it than Thousand Island dressing.

Does Thousand Island taste like Big Mac? ›

The two are similar, but they have different ingredient ratios. Also, Thousand Island dressing is made with ketchup and diced onions. Big Mac sauce doesn't use either of these ingredients. Both are tasty, and if you're looking for a homemade Thousand Island dressing recipe, you can find mine here!

Is Secret Sauce just Thousand Island? ›

To start, "thousand island dressing" is also reffered to as "secret sauce" by many fast food locations (notably, usually without tomatoes), though this would be most accurate to Ed's sauce, as it's contents are literally a secret.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Barbera Armstrong

Last Updated:

Views: 5417

Rating: 4.9 / 5 (79 voted)

Reviews: 94% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Barbera Armstrong

Birthday: 1992-09-12

Address: Suite 993 99852 Daugherty Causeway, Ritchiehaven, VT 49630

Phone: +5026838435397

Job: National Engineer

Hobby: Listening to music, Board games, Photography, Ice skating, LARPing, Kite flying, Rugby

Introduction: My name is Barbera Armstrong, I am a lovely, delightful, cooperative, funny, enchanting, vivacious, tender person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.