This fresh jalapeño salad dressing is ready in minutes and pairs well with so many dishes! Drizzle it on salads, tacos, grains, and veggies. Spread it on sandwiches and burgers. Use it as a dip for tortilla chips, taquitos, french fries, and more! With jalapeños, cilantro, lime, and a base of vegan mayo, it's dairy-free, vegan, and easy to prepare.
As we near the end of summer, I find myself looking for quick and easy ways to use the jalapeños from our small container garden. I mean, not that jalapenos are difficult to use! Raw, pickled, roasted, and sauteed, there isn't much the jalapeno can't do.
Now that I think about it, this cute little pepper is in so many of my most popular recipes, like:
- classic vegan chili, lentil chili, white chili, and Beyond Meat chili
- quick pickled vegetables
- Chipotle corn salsa
- vegan taco meat and lentil taco meat
- zhoug sauce and spicy pesto
But what I didn't have yet, was a recipe for a simple jalapeno dressing and sauce. So here you go!
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Why You'll Love Jalapeno Dressing
- It's lusciously creamy, fresh, and versatile. Use it as a salad dressing, sauce, dip, and spread!
- All you need are a blender and 8 ingredients.
- Easily adjust the heat level to suit your tastes.
- The recipe is dairy-free and vegan and can be made without nuts or oil!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- fresh cilantro: This recipe is also a great way to use up a small amount of cilantro. You'll need ½-2/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves and stems, or about half of a small bunch.
- jalapeños: I used two jalapenos and included most of the seeds because we wanted it a bit spicy. For a mild dressing, discard all of the seeds.
- lime juice: You'll need one lime, or about 2 tablespoons of juice. The mayonnaise already adds quite a bit of tanginess to the dressing, so it doesn't take much.
- salsa verde: This adds more flavor, acidity, and saltiness. If you don't have salsa verde on hand, you can try a small splash of vinegar and adjust the other ingredients to taste.
- vegan mayo: Go with your favorite store-bought mayonnaise or a homemade vegan mayo.
- raw cashews or sunflower seeds: The dressing was a bit too thin using just mayo, so I included a small amount of cashews to thicken it up. It worked perfectly, and the added richness and neutral flavor actually balanced the flavors and made the dressing even tastier. Raw sunflower seeds are ideal for a nut-free option.
- spices/seasonings: You'll also need onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
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See the recipe card below for amounts and step-by-step instructions.
How to Make Jalapeno Dressing
Begin by removing the stems of the jalapenos, and slicing the peppers lengthwise. Scrape out the seeds and reserve them. Chop the jalapenos.
Combine all of the ingredients except the seeds in a blender. Slowly increase to high speed, and blend until creamy.
Taste the dressing and add more of any ingredient you feel it needs. Then blend again until completely smooth.
Serving Suggestions
This dressing is so versatile, it would almost be easier to list the ways you wouldn't want to use it!
Serve this creamy jalapeno dressing as a:
- salad dressing and dip for a veggie tray
- sauce for vegan tacos, taquitos, and nachos
- condiment for sandwiches and veggie burgers
- topping for loaded baked potatoes and dip for potato wedges and fries
- and as a substitute for sour cream on chili
Variations
- Nut-free: Use store-bought vegan mayo or a homemade option that doesn't include nuts, and replace the cashews with raw sunflower seeds.
- Oil-free: Instead of store-bought mayonnaise, use my oil-free vegan aquafaba mayo.
- Gluten-free: Woohoo, the recipe is already gluten-free!
RELATED: If you're into nut-free and oil-free dressings, don't miss my vegan ranch dressing and sunflower seed dressing.
Equipment
Since we're using cashews or sunflower seeds to thicken the dressing, a high-speed blender is helpful. However, if you're using a regular blender, you can soak the nuts/seeds in boiling water first to soften them.
FAQs
The fat content in the mayonnaise and nuts/seeds goes a long way in toning down the spiciness of the jalapenos. So even with 2 whole jalapenos, we don't find the salad dressing to be very spicy. But it doesn't hurt to start with less, then taste and adjust.
Store the homemade dressing in a lidded jar or container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Top Tip
If you're not sure how spicy your jalapenos are, remove and reserve the seeds. After blending the dressing, taste and decide whether to add some or all of the jalapeno seeds, then blend again.
Recipe
Creamy Cilantro Jalapeno Dressing (Vegan)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 fresh jalapeno peppers
- ½ cup vegan mayonnaise - homemade or store-bought
- 3 tablespoons raw cashews - or raw sunflower seeds
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro - or more to taste
- ½ cup salsa verde
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice - about 1 small lime
- ½ tespoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- black pepper - to taste
Instructions
- Trim the stems from the jalapenos and slice the peppers lengthwise. Scrape out the seeds and reserve them for adjusting the spice level. Roughly chop the jalapenos.
- In a blender, combine all ingredients except the seeds (unless you know you want to include them all)! Slowly increase to high speed, and blend until creamy. Taste the dressing and decide how much of the seeds to add, and adjust the seasonings as desired. Blend again until completely smooth.
- If the dressing is too thick, adjust the consistency anytime by whisking or blending in a small amount of water.
- Pour the dressing into a lidded jar or container and refrigerate until ready to use.
Notes
Estimated Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used.
Janelle says
Love this dressing! It has become a family staple. I can dial up the heat for my husband and me with more jalapeno, and tone it down for the kids. Great recipe! Thanks!
Marsha says
Do you measure the cilantro before or after chopping? I read it as after, but I want to make sure.
Lori Rasmussen says
Hi Marsha - Yes, after chopping, lightly pack it into a 1/2 cup measuring cup. But it’s a very flexible ingredient! Feel free to use more or less depending on how much you enjoy cilantro.
Shirley Leger says
How long do you think this will last in the fridge? I'm a single person so it wouldn't get used to that fast.
Lori Rasmussen says
Hi Shirley - I feel comfortable keeping it for 4-5 days. You might want to make a half batch.