Southwest Salad Dressing Recipe

May 26, 2015 By Joe Boyle 152 Comments

Southwest Salad Dressing Recipe. Just like McDonald’s southwestern salad dressing that you can make at home. It’s a tangy blend of spices combined to make a great Southwestern salad.

If you’re someone who loves Tex-Mex flavors and is always on the lookout for a perfect dressing to complement your salads, rice bowls, or grilled chicken, then you’re in luck!

Here is a great recipe for homemade southwest salad dressing that’s easy to make, packed with fresh flavors, and uses real ingredients. Plus, you can customize it according to your taste preferences and dietary needs.

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Inspiration For Making Southwest Salad Dressing Recipe

McDonald’s restaurants used to have a Southwest Salad featuring Newman’s Own Southwest Dressing. It was my go-to lunch item to get from McDonald’s. McDonald’s has discontinued having salads on their menu and Newman’s Own Southwest Dressing could not be bought in stores. I had to come up with a copycat recipe for this spicy dressing.

It has been 9 years since I developed this recipe and thought that I should republish it to give it some love because it is so dang good!

Why This Recipe Is A Winner

This dressing hits all the right notes typical of Southwest, Tex-Mex, and spicy. The easy ingredients combine to make a delicious dressing.
Making this dressing is so quick and easy using ingredients you probably have on hand.
The flavor of the dressing is nearly identical to the original Newman’s Own from McDonald’s.
Making your own dressing is more cost-effective in the long run, and you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two weeks. Plus, it tastes as good or better than any store-bought dressing you can find!

How To Make Southwest Salad Dressing

Ingredients

When starting to duplicate the Newman’s Own recipe, I photographed the ingredient label on the packet of dressing from McDonald’s. There were things like corn syrup solids, corn vinegar, cornstarch, whey, egg yolks mixed with soybean oil and cider vinegar, and sour cream powder. I just had to interpret what these things were in a normal kitchen. After trying numerous spice blends, the one presented here was finally approved.

They include:

Mayonnaise
Sour cream
Light Karo syrup
Chili powder
Apple cider vinegar
Lime juice
Ground cumin
Dried cilantro
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Cayenne pepper
Water for thinning

The exact amounts of the ingredients are in the recipe card.

ing the Southwest Salad Dressing Recipe

While we were at one of the McDonald’s stops I told MaryJo that I should try to duplicate the recipe for the Southwest Dressing, so I took a picture of the ingredient label. Logical first step.

There were things like corn syrup solids, corn vinegar, cornstarch, whey, and sour cream powder. Curious ingredients. I’m sure that if you are Paul Newman you could call up friends and have this stuff delivered to your front step! No problem.

Well, I am Joe and not Paul and have no idea what this stuff is. So I experiment.

One of the ingredients is egg yolks mixed with soybean oil and cider vinegar.

The egg yolks make the oil and vinegar mix together to make an emulsion that will not separate, (the old oil and water thing).

Well, I throw this together and added the spices I thought were in the dressing and made a pretty good likeness to the original, (not really).

Then I make another blend. Not quite right.

By then I’m thinking that if I come up with a Newman’s Own copycat recipe, it would contain uncooked eggs. That could mean…Salmonella city!

I went back to the store and bought pasteurized eggs. Turns out they are hard to separate, yolks and whites, but I got the job done.

I then tried another spice blend and I was not close again.

The Dressing Solution…Use Mayonnaise!

MaryJo sensed my frustration and suggested that I use already processed oil, water, and eggs which makes…Mayonnaise. I thought. okay, I give up. Bring on the Hellman’s.

So, with a new sense of purpose and determination, I tried at least 5 more spice blends which required MaryJo to go to the store once and for me to go to the store once more, for spices that we would try and to get more sour cream since I used all that we had.

Finally, I found a blend of spices that worked and my Southwestern Dressing Recipe is pretty close to Paul’s. Store-bought dressing flavor that you can make at home.

He must have spent a lot of time perfecting these recipes! His is exceptional but mine is dang good.

The Ingredients You Will Need

The comprehensive list of ingredients and quantities for the homemade dressing is in the recipe card below.

Substitutions to use for fewer calories include low-fat mayonnaise and Greek yogurt for sour cream. The recipe also includes Karo syrup but agave or honey could the used instead.

McDonald's southwest salad in a plastic bowl.

This photo is an actual Southwest Salad that McDonald’s used to sell.

My recipe makes enough for two salads, but if you enjoy this homemade southwest dressing recipe, feel free to double or triple the ingredients. There is a slider in the recipe card to increase the number of servings up to 20 servings. That would give you the correct ingredients needed for 25 ounces of dressing.

It should be stored in the refrigerator for one or two weeks. Store it in a Mason jar with a tight-fitting lid or any suitable airtight container.

FAQ’s

What ingredients are typically used in Southwest salad dressing?
Can I customize the level of spiciness in the dressing?
Is homemade Southwest dressing healthier than store-bought alternatives?
How long does homemade Southwest dressing last in the refrigerator?
Can I make substitutions for certain ingredients if I don’t have them on hand?
Is Southwest dressing suitable for specific dietary restrictions, such as vegan or gluten-free diets?
What types of salads pair best with Southwest dressing?
How can I adjust the consistency of the dressing to my preference?
Are there any tips for enhancing the flavor profile of homemade Southwest dressing?
Can I use leftover Southwest dressing for other recipes or as a marinade?

McDonald’s Southwest Salad

McDonald’s used to have a southwest salad that came with Newman’s Own Southwest Dressing.

This recipe post was updated on December 9, 2021, and McDonald’s has discontinued making the Southwest salad. They also stopped selling salads in 2020 presumably because they were not that popular.

According to McDonald’s.com, they have Chicken Caesar Salad, Garden Salad, and Garden Salad with Crispy Chicken. According to my local restaurant, they don’t offer salads anymore.

I thought that it might be Covid that made them stop selling salads. This article from “Eat This, Not That” gives another explanation, which for a fast-food restaurant, makes sense. They had to buy 2 different kinds of lettuce…one for sandwiches and one for salads.

So your only option is to give my Southwest Salad Dressing Recipe a try. You won’t be disappointed.

Hey. Did you make this recipe? Let me know how you liked it in the comments below. Take a photo of your creation and post it on your Instagram…tag @joeshealthymeals so I can take a look.

Here are a few more tasty recipes to try:

Tex-Mex Chopped Chicken Salad
Caramelized Onion Crostini with Mushrooms
Jalapeno Potatoes au Gratin
Make-ahead Mashed Potatoes
Pimento Cheese Deviled Eggs