What Is Salad dressing, thousand island and How Can I Use It?
Salad dressing, thousand island rewards a little know-how: how to choose it, cook it, store it, and substitute in a pinch. Browse 20 recipes to cook with it.
Key Points
- Creamy pink dressing of mayonnaise, ketchup or chili sauce, and sweet pickle relish.
- The classic Reuben spread and close cousin to fast-food burger special sauce.
- Make your own from half a cup mayo, two tablespoons each ketchup and relish.
- Sweeter and milder than Russian dressing, which leans spicier with horseradish.
- Homemade keeps three to four days refrigerated; bottled lasts one to two months opened.
What is salad dressing, thousand island?
Thousand Island is a creamy, pinkish dressing built from mayonnaise, a tomato element like ketchup or chili sauce, and finely chopped sweet pickle relish. Those flecks of relish floating in the pink base are said to be the "thousand islands" that gave it the name.
It tastes tangy and a little sweet, with the gentle vinegar bite of the pickles cutting the richness. You already know it from the deli counter and the drive-through: it is the dressing on a classic Reuben and the closest cousin to the "special sauce" on a fast-food burger.
How to Use It
Its home turf is the sandwich. Spread it on rye for Reuben Sandwiches, where it ties the corned beef and sauerkraut together, and it does the same for a Spam Reuben Sandwich or the baked spin of a Reuben Casserole.
On burgers it acts as a one-stop special sauce, so you skip the separate ketchup and mayo. A thin layer keeps a Swiss Burger juicy without making the bun soggy.
As a salad dressing it suits sturdy, crunchy mixes rather than delicate greens. It coats iceberg wedges and chopped-salad bowls like a Mexican Chef's Salad, and it doubles as a dip for shrimp or cold cuts.
Make Your Own and Common Mistakes
Homemade beats the bottle and takes two minutes.
Stir together half a cup of mayonnaise, two tablespoons of ketchup, and two tablespoons of sweet pickle relish, then thin with a splash of pickle brine if you like. A little grated onion, a few drops of hot sauce, or a chopped hard-boiled egg are common add-ins.
The usual mistake is making it too sweet. Bottled versions lean sugary, so if you are mixing your own, add the ketchup gradually and taste as you go.
The other slip is drowning a sandwich. Because the dressing is loose, a heavy hand turns rye bread to mush, so spread a thin, even layer on toasted bread.
Thousand Island vs Russian Dressing
People mix these two up constantly, and they are close, but not the same. Both start from mayo and a tomato element, yet Russian dressing skips the sweet relish and leans spicier, often built with horseradish and Worcestershire for a sharper kick.
Thousand Island is the sweeter, milder one thanks to that pickle relish. If a recipe wants a tangy bite, reach for Russian; for a mellow, family-friendly sandwich spread, Thousand Island wins.
Substitutes
Out of Thousand Island? Russian dressing is the closest swap, just expect more heat and less sweetness. Plain mayonnaise works in a pinch on a sandwich, though you lose the tang.
For something quick, fry sauce (equal parts mayo and ketchup) gets you most of the way; stir in a spoon of relish and you have essentially rebuilt the dressing. Comeback sauce or a mild remoulade can stand in on seafood and fried foods.
Buying and Storage
Bottled Thousand Island lives on the salad-dressing shelf and keeps for months unopened. Once opened, refrigerate it and use it within one to two months, watching the date on the cap.
Homemade is a different story. Because it is mostly fresh mayonnaise, keep it covered in the fridge and use it within three to four days. If it ever smells off or separates badly, toss it rather than risk it.
Quick facts
- In Chinese
- 沙拉酱，千岛
- British (UK) term
- Salad dressing, thousand island
- en français
- vinaigrette, mille île
- en español
- aderezo para ensalada, mil islas
Recipes using salad dressing, thousand island
There are 20 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Drive-In Nut Burger I & II
Two versions of the classic drive-in nut burger: one topped with salted peanuts, American cheese, and Thousand Island, the other slathered with chunky peanut butter and Russian dressing. Retro burger bliss.
Swiss Burgers
Swiss burgers on kaiser rolls topped with melted Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island dressing. A Reuben-meets-burger mashup for the grill.
Mini Sausage Rubens
Mini sausage Reubens on party rye with smoked sausage, sauerkraut, Thousand Island, and bubbly Swiss cheese. Butter-toasted bread keeps them crispy under all that tangy, melty goodness.
Deli in a Skillet
A Reuben sandwich in skillet form: corned beef, sauerkraut, and caraway seeds cooked with rice, then topped with Thousand Island dressing and Swiss cheese. One pan, 30 minutes, dinner done.
Best Tuna Apple Salad
Tuna apple salad mixes flaked tuna with crisp red apple chunks, celery, lettuce, and a creamy Thousand Island dressing. A sweet-savory lunch ready in 15 minutes.
Reuben Cassorole a la Orcas
Reuben casserole layers buttered egg noodles with corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, and Thousand Island dressing. Topped with rye cracker crumbs and caraway seeds.
Reuben Sandwiches
Classic Reuben sandwiches with corned beef, sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing, and Swiss cheese on buttered rye bread. Broiled or grilled until the cheese melts.
Reuben's Juicy Relative
Reuben-style sausage bagel sandwiches with sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, caraway seeds, and Thousand Island dressing on rye bagels, wrapped in foil and baked until melty.
Reuben Casserole
Reuben casserole with layers of sauerkraut, corned beef, Swiss cheese, and Thousand Island dressing topped with buttery bread crumbs. All the deli sandwich flavors in one dish.
Lexington Avenue Seafood Salad
Lexington Avenue seafood salad with shrimp, crab, peas, cucumber, and celery in a horseradish-spiked Thousand Island yogurt dressing. A lighter deli-counter-style seafood salad.
Maui Chicken Sandwich
Maui chicken sandwich with pineapple-marinated grilled chicken, grilled pineapple rings, jicama slaw, and Thousand Island on a roll. A Hawaiian-inspired sandwich ready in 40 minutes.
Reuben Burger Pie - a Collection...
Reuben burger pie with a ground beef and oatmeal crust filled with sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, caraway seeds, and Thousand Island dressing. All the Reuben flavors in pie form.
Reuben Meatloaf
Reuben meatloaf wraps a beef and caraway loaf around a hidden core of sauerkraut, corned beef, and Swiss cheese. All the flavors of a classic Reuben sandwich baked into a microwave-friendly loaf.
Mexican Chef's Salad
Mexican chef's salad with seared chicken, kidney beans, cheddar, avocado, and crushed tortilla chips tossed in Thousand Island and picante sauce. Warm meets cool in one bowl.
Reuben Roller Sandwich
Reuben roller sandwich made with soft Armenian cracker bread spread with cream cheese, corned beef, pastrami, Swiss, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island, rolled jelly-roll style and sliced into pinwheels.
Fiesta Shrimp Dip
Fiesta shrimp dip with cream cheese, Thousand Island dressing, picante sauce, and horseradish. A 10-minute party dip with sweet-tangy-spicy flavors and chunks of shrimp throughout.
Easy Tasty Taco Salad
Easy taco salad with seasoned ground beef, crunchy Doritos, iceberg lettuce, and shredded cheese tossed in tangy Thousand Island. The throw-together potluck classic ready in 15 minutes.
Reuben Loaf
Reuben loaf wraps corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island dressing inside homemade yeast bread topped with poppy seeds. A Reuben sandwich in loaf form.
Reuben Quiche in Rye Bread Crust
Reuben quiche with corned beef, sauerkraut, and Swiss cheese in a toasted rye bread crumb crust, topped with Thousand Island dressing. All the classic sandwich flavors in pie form.
Spam Reuben Sandwich
SPAM Reuben sandwiches grilled on rye bread with tangy sauerkraut, melted Swiss cheese, and Thousand Island dressing. Ready in 15 minutes, this deli-style twist on the classic Reuben is ridiculously satisfying.
