I love this recipe because you don't need a blender or any fancy equipment– just mix all the ingredients together in a bowl for the perfect tahini caesar dressing! This vegan dressing has no mayo or oil but has all the delicious flavor, tanginess, and creaminess of a traditional caesar dressing.
You’ll love this tahini caesar because it’s made with simple ingredients and can be whipped up in about 5 minutes! I’m a big fan of using tahini for creamy sauces, like my vegan roasted red pepper sauce, and it worked perfectly here too. It makes it creamy, tangy, and delicious without the need for any oil, dairy, or eggs!
While testing this recipe, I faced the challenge of making it taste more like a caesar dressing rather than a lemon tahini sauce, although it uses similar ingredients. I used a few techniques to nail the flavor: grating the garlic rather than mincing it so it blended seamlessly, mincing capers to mimic the flavor you would get from anchovies, mellowing it out with some maple syrup, and adding non-dairy milk for creamy richness. The result was so good, you would never guess it was dairy, oil, or egg free!
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Ingredient notes
You’ll just need a handful of simple ingredients for this recipe.
- Tahini: Use a smooth, pourable tahini like Tarazi. Tahini is the main ingredient in this recipe, so I don’t recommend any substitutions.
- Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice adds the best flavor for this recipe.
- Capers: We’ll use both the capers and some of the canned capers’ juice in this recipe.
- Mustard: Dijon or brown mustard adds the sharpness needed for this dairy free caesar dressing.
- Maple syrup or agave: This is important to mellow out the tart flavor. Make sure to use pure maple syrup if using.
- Garlic
- Unsweetened non-dairy milk: I use almond, but any non-dairy milk that is unsweet should work just fine.
See the recipe card for exact quantities.
How to make vegan caesar dressing
Making this dressing is so simple. I love that you don’t need a blender to make this deliciously creamy sauce!
Simply grate your garlic and mince your capers to add in later. Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl, saving the non-dairy milk for last. Adding the milk at the end helps keep the dressing smooth and prevents the tahini from becoming grainy, especially if your liquids are cold.
Top tips
- Taste and adjust for more maple syrup or non-dairy milk if needed.
- If you want to add a cheesy boost like you would get from parmesan cheese, add 1-2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast!
FAQs
While traditional caesar dressing is not vegan, as it typically contains mayo (which has eggs), parmesan cheese, and anchovies, it’s easy to create a similar taste with tahini. This vegan tahini caesar dressing is dairy free and egg free. I make this caesar dressing with capers to mimic the salty, fishy flavor of anchovies.
If you don’t have capers, the best substitute is seaweed flakes like nori or dulse, which offer a similar ocean-like flavor. Finely minced green olives can also work, though the flavor will be different. For the caper juice, you can swap it for pickle juice, white vinegar, or apple cider vinegar to maintain the briny flavor.
Storing
It keeps well in the fridge for up to 5 days. If it thickens in the fridge, just thin it with some water and whisk until smooth again.
Ways to use this dressing
This tahini caesar is versatile and can be enjoyed in many different meals!
- This caesar is the perfect dressing for hearty salads like my savory kale salad.
- It’s delicious with romaine lettuce like for a classic caesar salad. My chickpea caesar wraps are my twist on a classic caesar salad– a great way to turn a salad into a meal!
- It’s so good with a protein like tofu or seitan. Use it as a sauce with my vegan chicken cutlets!
- It’s delicious as a vegan sauce for fries as well as roasted veggies. Try it with crispy roasted broccoli or potatoes.
More dressings and sauces you’ll love
If you made this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! Don’t forget to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating and review below.Pin it on Pinterest for later or share your recreations with me on Facebook or Instagram @zenandzaatar! 🥰 I can’t wait to see how you serve it!
Recipe
Easy Tahini Caesar Dressing (No Mayo, Vegan)
Ingredients
- ¼ cup tahini
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon caper juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon or brown mustard
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup or agave
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon capers minced
- 1 small clove garlic grated
- 2 tablespoon unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use almond)
Instructions
- Grate the garlic clove and mince the capers.
- In a bowl, whisk together all ingredients except the non-dairy milk until smooth.¼ cup tahini, 3 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon water, 1 teaspoon caper juice, 1 teaspoon Dijon or brown mustard, 1 teaspoon maple syrup or agave, ¼ teaspoon sea salt, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon capers, 1 small clove garlic
- Add the non-dairy milk and whisk again until creamy and well combined. Enjoy!2 tablespoon unsweetened non-dairy milk
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