Healthy, easy, and versatile, flavorful tahini is one of my favorite ways to make creamy vegan salad dressings and sauces. Today I’m sharing a recipe for basic lemon tahini dressing plus four variations, all of which are oil-free, gluten-free, flavor-packed, and come together in just minutes!
Tahini Salad Dressing Five Ways! Clockwise from upper left: Orange-Ginger, Green Goddess, Smoky, and Mustard. Not pictured: Basic Lemon Tahini Dressing.
Easy Lemon Tahini Dressing (the perfect balance of bright and rich flavors)
Smoky Tahini Dressing (same as above but with a subtle, smoky finish <—yum!)
Orange-Ginger Tahini Dressing (for those of you who like your dressings and sauces a bit on the fruity/sweeter side)
Green Goddess Tahini Dressing (fresh herbs = YES; my personal favorite!)
Mustard Tahini Dressing (lively with zesty dijon)
Mustard Tahini Dressing
Smoky Tahini Dressing
Green Goddess Tahini Salad Dressing
But don’t limit these delicious dressings to salads! Think about complementary flavor combinations and use these them as….
Healthy dip for vegetable platters
Mayo replacement in sandwiches and wraps
Mayo replacement in chickpea or other bean salads
Mayo replacement in potato salad or as a dip for fries (Baked oven fries with smoky tahini dressing? Yes, please!)
Sauce for roasted, grilled or sautéed vegetables
Creamy sauce for hot or cold pasta dishes
Buddha bowl sauce!
Have other flavor combos in mind? Go for it! Also, don’t be afraid to experiment with the ingredient amounts listed below. You may find you like a tad more smoked paprika in your smoky tahini dressing or a bit less orange in your orange-ginger dressing…..or vice versa. We all have different palates, and in recipes that contain so few ingredients, small variations can make a huge difference!
Best advice: you can always add more of something, but it’s not always easy to tone down an ingredient after adding too much. 🙂
Happy drizzling, dipping, schmearing and tossing!
UPDATE! My latest tahini-based dressing obsession –> Creamy Harissa Dressing! It’s oil-free and delicious on everything.
More dressings and sauces:
Sweet Potato Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
Asparagus Salad with Lemon-Chia Dressing
Vegan Yogurt-Balsamic Dressing
Creamy Lime Dressing (plus a taco recipe)
Tahini Salad Dressing (Five Ways)
Ingredients
Easy (aka Basic) Lemon Tahini Dressing
- 1/3 cup tahini
- 1/3 cup water
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice, about the amount from one small lemon
- 1 clove garlic, zested or finely minced if not using a blender
- 2 tsp maple syrup or agave
- 1 tsp salt
Smoky Tahini Dressing - same as Basic and add:
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
Orange-Ginger Tahini Dressing - same as Basic but omit lemon juice and add:
- 2 Tbsp fresh orange juice
- pinch of orange zest
- 3/4 inch piece fresh ginger root, zested if not using a blender
- black pepper
Mustard Tahini Dressing - same as Basic and add:
- 2 to 3 Tbsp dijon mustard; start with 2 Tbsp and adjust
Green Goddess Tahini Dressing (written in full for simplicity):
- 1/3 cup tahini
- 1/3 cup unsweetened and unflavored non-dairy yogurt (Forager Cashewgurt is my go-to)
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 cloves garlic, zested or finely minced if making dressing by hand; chopped if using blender
- 1/3 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped if not using a blender
- 2 Tbsp chives, finely chopped if not using a blender (if you can't find chives, sub green onion)
- 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp dulse flakes
- 2 tsp maple syrup or agave
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Blender: add all ingredients and blend until smooth.By hand: whisk all ingredients together until fully incorporated.
- Refrigerate dressing in an airtight container. Best consumed within two days.
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