Green Goddess Dressing
Ingredients
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- 3/4 cups fresh parsley leaves – coarsely chopped (~0.5 n/a parsleys)
- 1/4 cups fresh chives – coarsely chopped
- 1/4 cups fresh tarragon leaves – coarsely chopped
- 2 each scallions – trimmed and coarsely chopped
- 1 clove garlic – coarsely chopped
- 4 each anchovy fillets (oil-packed) – drained
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 2 tbsp tarragon vinegar
- 1 cups mayonnaise
- 1/2 cups sour cream
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper – freshly ground
Instructions
1. Combine the parsley, chives, tarragon, scallions, garlic, anchovy fillets, lemon juice, and tarragon vinegar in a blender or food processor. Blend until the herbs are finely minced, 15–30 seconds, scraping the sides as needed.
2. Add the mayonnaise and sour cream. Blend until smooth, thick, and pale green, 20–40 seconds.
3. Season with the kosher salt and black pepper, then blend briefly to incorporate. Taste and adjust seasoning.
4. Transfer to a jar, cover, and chill until the flavors meld and the dressing slightly thickens, at least 30 minutes. Serve cold and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Green Goddess Dressing is a creamy, vividly green herb sauce with a bright, tangy backbone and a savory undercurrent from anchovies. The texture is lush and spoonable, perfect for clinging to crisp lettuces or for dipping crudités. Classic versions balance fresh parsley, chives, and tarragon with lemon and tarragon vinegar, producing a fresh, anise-kissed aroma and a gently briny finish.
Created in San Francisco in the early 1920s at the Palace Hotel, the dressing was named in honor of a popular stage play called The Green Goddess. The hotel’s chef paired a mayonnaise base with a garden’s worth of tender herbs and anchovy, a nod to French sauces like sauce verte. Over the decades, it became a California icon, inspiring countless adaptations—yet the core identity remains anchored in tarragon, chive, parsley, and anchovy folded into a creamy base.