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Veggies taste better when covered with a bright-n-creamy dressing. My tahini dressing recipe is incredibly simple to create and can turn a variety of vegetables into savory treats. I originally created this tahini salad dressing for my Chickpea Salad, yet feel free to use it on the salad of your choice!
This recipe can be used in a variety of ways so feel free to make a whole jar and drizzle over veggies, other salads and more.
Table of Contents
Tips for the Perfect Tahini Dressing
Use quality olive oil. Homemade dressing is the perfect time to pull out that high-end olive oil in the back of the pantry. You know, the one you found at the artisan oil shop but can’t bring yourself to use on veggies?
I can tell the difference when using different olive oils in dressing since the amounts are more concentrated. So find a good one (you don’t need a big bottle of it!) and enjoy.
Find a brand of tahini you like. Tahini is slightly bitter and definitely has a flavor. Make sure the one you use is one you like! I prefer Trader Joe’s brand. It even comes in a cute jar.
The end consistency should be pourable, not a dip. My tahini dressing recipe would honestly make a great dipping sauce if you cut back slightly on the liquid to thicken it. Yet to make it work well with salads, it has to pour easily. If you whisk the ingredients together and still can’t get it to run slightly, add just a bit more oil or water until the proper consistency is achieved.
Great salad dressing is worth the effort!
Easy Ingredient Swaps
If you’ve never tried tahini before, this is the perfect recipe for your first taste test. Tahini is a healthy fat made from ground sesame seeds in Mediterranean dishes. If you know tahini isn’t your thing, or you don’t have it on hand, swap in almond, sunflower or cashew butter. Know the result will vary in consistency and thickness.
Orange juice brings a bit of sweetness to this dressing yet can be swapped with a Meyer lemon or tangerine.
Tamari is a gluten-free soy sauce, so if you avoid soy ingredients, then swap this for coconut aminos.
How to Make A Simple Salad Dressing
All you need to make a salad dressing is oil and acid. This typically comes in the form of olive oil and some kind of citrus juice. Then, go crazy adding your favorite seasonings and flavor enhancers to achieve the result you want. I use fresh orange juice in this tahini salad dressing to provide sweetness to all the savory ingredients.
Tahini Dressing FAQs
My dressing uses tahini, fresh orange juice, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, tamari and a bit of minced garlic. It’s citrus-y and super creamy.
I love the Mediterranean-inspired flavor that goes into this dressing and primarily use it on my Sweet & Crunchy Chickpea Salad, full of chickpeas, cucumbers, bell pepper, spinach, carrots and seeds.
Tahini is made from sesame seeds. It looks like peanut butter but isn’t sweet. Instead, it’s got an earthy, slightly bitter taste.
More Homemade Dressing Recipes
Pretty much all of my dressing recipes have the same base: oil and acid. Then I play with seasonings and flavors until I get the perfect combo for that particular salad. Feel free to tweak these recipes to fit your tastebuds. You’re the one who’s going to eat these!
- Strawberry Vinaigrette
- Lemon Vinaigrette
- Roasted Pear Vinaigrette
- Garlic Lemon Aioli
- Chipotle Ranch Dressing
Will you please leave a rating + review once you’ve given this recipe a try? These ratings help out bloggers like myself so much!
Citrus Tahini Dressing
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp tahini
- 2 tbsp orange juiced
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp raw apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp tamari
- ½ garlic cloves minced
Instructions
- Whisk all ingredients together until well combined. Add extra oil or water if dressing is too thick.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Notes
- Tahini can be replaced with sunflower butter, almond butter or cashew butter (though final texture will change).
- For best results use a good tasting olive oil as you will notice a difference. This IS the time to break out that fancy oil you got on vacation or as a gift!
- To make this soy-free replace tamari (gluten-free soy sauce) with coconut aminos.
- This dressing is a great topper for my Sweet & Crunchy Chickpea Salad.
- Store up to 3 days in the refrigerator. Shake well before using.
- Tamari is very salty on its own, so no need to add extra salt to this recipe. It might feel weird to omit it, so just tell me you’ll try the dressing before adding in extra salt!
Made this today to go on the sweet and crunchy salad and it was great! I halved the amount of olive oil to make the texture a bit more ‘hummus-like’ and it was perfect.
Great idea!
I always wonder what to do with my tahini once I’ve used it in the one recipe I have that calls for it. This dressing is a great idea!
Awesome! Tahini is so versatile and goes great with so many dishes. I swear I could put it on EVERYTHING! Hope you enjoy the dressing.