This vegan Caesar dressing is rich, creamy, and loaded with flavor! It's super easy to whip up and absolutely delicious. You'd never guess it was dairy-free!
Is there any salad dressing more luscious, more delicious than classic Caesar? I don't think so!
Sadly, traditional Caesar dressing isn't vegan. In fact, it's not even vegetarian! You'll find all kinds of animal-derived ingredients in most Caesar dressings, including dairy, eggs, and even anchovies.
But that doesn't mean that Caesar salads are out if you're vegan. This vegan Caesar dressing is just as delicious and creamy as any non-vegan Caesar dressing, without any of the animal products!
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Ingredients You'll Need
- Raw cashews. These must be raw. Raw cashews have a neutral flavor, and when they're blended up they make an excellent dairy substitute. You can even make them into vegan cream.
- Garlic.
- White miso paste. Look for this in the international foods section of your supermarket. You could substitute another type of miso paste, but the flavor will vary a bit.
- Lemon juice. Make sure you're using fresh lemon juice. The bottled stuff won't add nearly as much flavor to your dressing.
- Vegan Worcestershire sauce. You can use a store-bought variety, such as Annie's or Edward & Sons brand, or make your own vegan Worcestershire sauce.
- Dijon mustard.
- Water.
- Salt.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
- Start by soaking your cashews to soften them up. Cover them with water, let them soak for several hours, then drain and rinse them.
Tip: If you forget to soak your cashews you can boil them for 15 minutes as an alternative. They won't blend up quite as smooth.
- Place the cashews into a blender or food processor with all of the remaining ingredients.
- Blend everything until smooth, then thin the mixture with additional water until it reaches your desired consistency.
Tip: If you don't have a high-powered blending device, place only ¼ cup of water into the vessel to start with. Blend your ingredients to a paste, then add more water and blend again. This will help you to achieve a nice smooth consistency.
- Give the dressing a taste-test and adjust the seasonings to your liking. This is usually where I add more salt!
- Drizzle your vegan Caesar dressing on a salad, use it as a dip for vegetables, or bottle it up for later!
Shelf-Life & Storage
Homemade vegan Caesar salad dressing will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for about 5 days, or in the Freezer for about 3 months.
Because the shelf-life is rather short, I like to divide my batches into smaller portions and freeze them individually.
Frequently Asked Questions
It can be! I'd recommend checking the label of your miso paste and Worcestershire sauce to ensure that both are certified gluten-free.
Try raw sunflower seeds or macadamia nuts. Both are often good substitutes for cashews, though I haven't tested either in this particular recipe.
The best way is to use a high-powered blending device, such as a Vitamix or Blendtec. If your device isn't that powerful, just be patient! It can take 5 or 10 minutes of blending to achieve maximum smoothness. Make sure to give your device a break every few minutes to ensure that it doesn't overheat.
More Vegan Salad Dressings
- Tahini Dressing
- Vegan Ranch Dressing
- Vegan Blue Cheese Dressing
- Poppy Seed Dressing
- Silken Tofu Dressing
Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!
📖 Recipe
Creamy Vegan Caesar Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water 4 to 8 hours, drained and rinsed
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoons white miso paste
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste (I use 1 full teaspoon)
- ¾ cup water, plus more as needed
Instructions
- Place all ingredients into a blender or food processor bowl. (Note 1)
- Blend until smooth.
- Thin with additional water to reach your desired consistency. Blend again.
- Taste test and add salt to taste. Adjust any other seasonings to taste.
Notes
- If your blending device isn't high-powered, I recommend starting with only ¼ cup of water. Blend the ingredients to a paste, the add the remaining water and blend again.
- This recipe makes about 1 ½ cups of dressing.
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This is the best vegan Caesar dressing I’ve had. I used 1/4 less cashews than the recipe called for and then I also added capers. After letting it chill in the fridge, it smelled and tasted just like classic caesar dressing. So yummy! Going to be a staple in my fridge now.
This is delicious! 😋 I omitted the salt altogether because I added some vegan parm to my salad which is already salty. I found that I did use double the serving size for a dinner sized salad, but that’s still only 150 (healthy) calories. This will be my new go to for a Caesar dressing!