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This tahini salad dressing has an unbelievably creamy texture and is the type of sauce you’ll want to drench your next salad in. It’s made with simple ingredients, like lemon juice and garlic, and can be stirred together in minutes.
The first time I made this dressing was over a decade ago, when I was on a raw-foods kick. That meant I was buying raw tahini, which, as it turns out, is drastically different from other varieties. Be sure to read my tips below on which tahini will work best for this recipe, so you won’t wind up with bitter results.
Use it as a salad topping or a dip for veggies this week!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Featured Review
“Wow this was good!! BEST salad dressing recipe EVER and I’ve tried quite a few! Thank you so much for sharing. 🙂 I can’t wait to have another salad for dinner tomorrow night!!” – Amber
Tahini Dressing Ingredients
- Tahini. I think you get the best results with raw tahini, such as Artisana brand, or with homemade tahini. It takes about 10 minutes to make in a food processor and is more affordable than buying it at the store. If you use another brand, such as Soom, the toasted sesame seed flavor will be more pronounced. (So it will taste less like Caesar dressing.)
- Lemon Juice. You’ll need approximately two lemons for this recipe. I like to start with 4 tablespoons of lemon juice, but you may want to use up to 6 tablespoons total. It’s best to taste and adjust as you go. Don’t use store-bought bottled juice; fresh is best!
- Garlic. I’ve learned that the key to hiding the bitter tahini flavor is to add plenty of fresh garlic. I usually use 3 small cloves in this batch, but you can adjust this to taste.
- Onion Powder. This is another layer of flavor that masks the bitterness of the tahini.
- Salt and Pepper. I use fine sea salt, which tastes different than white table salt. I recommend a minimum amount of salt in this recipe, but you can always add an extra pinch if you want to boost the flavor.
How to Make Tahini Dressing
Step 1:
In a 14 oz. or larger jar, add the tahini, lemon juice, onion powder, salt, and black pepper. Use a microplane to finely mince the garlic cloves directly into the jar.
Stir well. The mixture should start to look relatively thick.
Step 2:
Add water, one tablespoon at a time, until the dressing reaches a creamy, drippy consistency. I usually add 4 to 5 tablespoons total, but this may vary based on the type of tahini you use.
As soon as you’re happy with the consistency, you can taste the dressing and adjust the seasoning if needed. It’s ready to use right away.
Lemon Tahini Dressing (Oil-Free!)
Ingredients
- ½ cup raw tahini
- 4 to 6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
- 3 garlic cloves , minced
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ cup water
Instructions
- In a 14-ounce jar or larger, add the tahini, 4 tablespoons of lemon juice, minced garlic, onion powder, salt, and black pepper. (Use a microplane to finely mince the garlic directly into the jar.) Stir well, then add the water and stir again.
- Taste the dressing and add more lemon juice, just one tablespoon at a time, if you'd like a more tart flavor. If you don't want to add more lemon juice, you may want to add another tablespoon of water to thin the consistency. Once you're happy with the flavor and texture, it's ready to serve.
- Secure the lid on the jar and store the dressing in the fridge for up to a week. It will thicken when chilled, so you may want to add another tablespoon of water to thin the consistency when you use it later.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
More REcipes to Try
- Zucchini Hummus
- Make-Ahead Vegan Lunch Bowls
- Vegan Green Goddess Dressing (Oil-Free!)
- Tahini-Dill Salad Dressing
- Cucumber Tahini Salad Dressing
If you try this tahini dressing recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below to let me know how you like it.
I just now made this dressing and am enjoying it over roasted cauliflower.. what an amazing dressing. I love how easy this was to make. I had to make one slight change to the recipe.. I didn’t have onion powder but I did have dried minced onion so I used that instead. I know you stated that you don’t need a blender but I used my Magic Bullet.. it is just so much faster. All the previous lemon tahini dressings that I made before had soy/tamari sauce or other ingredients that seemed to make it more complicated. So.. let me tell you that when I came across your recipe I jumped at the chance to make it.. and it is perfect for the Wild Rose Herbal Detox cleanse that I am on right now. Thank you so much, Megan, for such a wonderful recipe!
Wow this was good!! BEST salad dressing recipe EVER and I’ve tried quite a few! Thank you so much for sharing:) I can’t wait to have another salad for dinner tomorrow night!!
hi!! great recipe! for those of us that are salt, oil ,sugar free I use no salt as a salt substitute and even do it without and add a little more lemon juice instead or some nutritional yeast. delicious!! thank you.
Delicious. I didn’t have a single lemon in the house the second time I made it. I used pomegranate juice. Wow. Delicious I like it with roasted beets and oranges over black rice and also over lentil patties.