This creamy vegan ranch dressing is made by blending silken tofu with lemon, herbs and spices.
A friend of mine went to a yoga retreat a while back. I’m sorry to admit that, despite being a yoga lover, I was secretly afraid to do such a thing myself. I’ve always thought of it as one of those things that I might sign up for but then end up being all “What did I get myself into?!” upon arrival. I imagined the worst. Will I be subjected to grueling 105 degree yoga practice for fifteen hours a day? Will I have to take a vow of silence for the duration of my stay? Perhaps most importantly, what will they feed me? I’ve heard rave reviews of the “healthy food” served at many a yoga retreat, and somehow I took that to mean that they essentially don’t feed you, which would be extra awful, given the fifteen hours of hot, hot yoga I’d be doing every day.
Monday after my friend’s arrival home from her yoga retreat she arrived at work all glowy and relaxed. Hmmm…maybe starving and yogaing all day really is good for you? Maybe I just had this whole yoga retreat thing figured wrong.
I was wrong. So wrong. About everything. Apparently, at this retreat at least, the classes are easy and relaxing. You’re allowed to talk as much as you want. And then there’s the food…
She raved about the food. Healthy food, but not of the healthy food=no food variety. More like healthy food=lots of the stuff I like…all vegetarian…the kind of stuff I blog about. I vowed to get my butt to a yoga retreat some time soon.
The food item that I heard the most about was the vegan ranch, which was apparently made from tofu. This called for some kitchen tinkering.
What I ended up with was most definitely ranch, but way healthier and better than any ranch I’d ever tasted. If you’ve ever had a low-fat variety of ranch before, you know that it’s lighter in consistency, but what’s removed is replaced with something…eh…artificial tasting. Think light ranch without that artificial taste and that’s what you’ve got here. Clean ranch, but still delightfully flavorful and creamy. The best part, I soon discovered after making this, is that you don’t really feel guilty about dousing your salad with it. It’s like “Oooohhh, I drenched my salad in tofu.” Big whoop. Enjoy.
Oh, and if tofu isn’t a part of your diet, don’t worry! Check out this cashew-based vegan ranch dressing.
Silken Tofu Vegan Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 lb. silken tofu
- 2 tbsp. fresh chives chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1/4 tsp. onion powder
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. pepper
- 1/4 cup unsweetened unflavored non-dairy milk
- juice of 1 lemon about 3 tbsp.
- 1 tbsp. vinegar
Instructions
- Place tofu in blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
- Add remaining ingredients and blend until completely mixed.
Bean A Foodie says
March 19, 2014 at 2:12 PMI love making homemade dressings!! I’ve never used silken tofu before – always greek yogurt – but I think this would be a lot less tangy and probably taste more like legit Ranch. How long would this keep in the fridge?
Alissa Saenz says
March 19, 2014 at 7:54 PMI’ve never tried ranch with yogurt before, but I think you’re right. The tofu is pretty flavor neutral, so the chives and garlic really shine through. I actually added the lemon and vinegar for the purpose of making it more tangy. I haven’t kept this around for more than a week (tending to drench my salads in it). I don’t think it would keep much longer than that, as tofu usually gets funky after a week. I hope you enjoy this if you try it out!
Rebecca-Lynn says
March 22, 2014 at 5:07 PMwould this freeze well?
Alissa Saenz says
March 22, 2014 at 5:32 PMUnfortunately, probably not. The texture of tofu changes when it’s frozen, so this probably wouldn’t retain it’s smooth consistency. If you’re concerned about how long it will keep, my suggestion is to cut the recipe in half. Thanks for your question!
KC says
March 30, 2014 at 11:24 PMI just made this! I am on the ideal protein diet and tofu is an allowed food for the phase I am in. One thing we can have on this diet is unlimited lettuce. Because I am not a rabbit I need dressing on my lettuce and I could not find any dressings that were allowed AND taste good. It was either cheat(not an option) or eat my dressing with my nose plugged. Anyway, this is a perfect dressing!! It taste a little like guacamole to me which is fine because I like guacamole. I like the tang and can’t wait for lunch tomorrow to eat a REAL salad! I think because I could not find fresh chives (I went to the grocery store when most normal people are asleep so I probably missed it) I bought some dried in a jar. I may need to add more next time. Thank you for sharing the recipe, you are a salad saver!
Alissa Saenz says
March 31, 2014 at 10:15 AMYay! When I made this I was excited just about the fact that it’s vegan, but I figured it would be great for people on special diets…I’m so glad to hear that it was!! I was wondering if dried chives would work – I’ve been making this quite a bit and it’s hard to keep fresh chives on hand all the time without them going bad. Thanks so much for sharing and enjoy your salad lunch today :)
terrilovellrn says
May 19, 2014 at 8:57 AMGreat post! I can’t wait to try this :)
Alissa Saenz says
May 19, 2014 at 10:51 AMThank you! I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!!
Leslie Rouder says
June 26, 2014 at 8:22 AMIs there anything that can be used to substitute the unflavored milk? I usually have almond milk in the house, but I am guessing that would add additional flavor that might not work well with the ingredients.
Alissa Saenz says
June 26, 2014 at 11:37 AMYou could leave the milk out completely. I’ve done this when I don’t have any unflavored milks on hand. The dressing will be a little thicker, but still delicious. Your other option would be to just use a splash of water. I’d suggest going with the first option and then adding the water a bit at a time if it seems too thick – probably just don’t go with the whole 1/4 cup because it might end up being runny. Good luck!
Jackie says
July 9, 2014 at 5:25 AMI used apple cider vinegar and it tasted very good!
Alissa Saenz says
July 9, 2014 at 8:59 AMNice! I get a lot of questions on substitutions for this recipe, so I appreciate the feedback. Thank you so much for sharing :)
Angela W Broyles says
November 14, 2017 at 4:53 PMreally good! I added some ground chipotle to make it chipotle ranch!
Alissa Saenz says
November 15, 2017 at 8:52 PMOh yum! That sounds delicious! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Kara says
April 18, 2018 at 3:02 PMAwesome post! Thank you so much for sharing. I can’t wait to try this!!!
Danni says
May 21, 2018 at 8:03 PMI used cashew milk, apple cider vinegar, and skipped the onion powder since I ran out. I have to admit I didn’t measure anything except the milk. The way I made it didn’t quite remind me of ranch but I still love it! Nice and refreshing, ate it with some buffalo cauliflower and it was the perfect addition. I will definitely make this again :)
Alissa Saenz says
May 26, 2018 at 10:58 AMSounds delicious! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Joanna Pickelsimer says
July 25, 2018 at 1:20 PMI just added 1 very ripe avocado (mashed) and used cilantro in place of the parsley and a few drops of sriracha sauce for a south west kick. Great on taco salad! or a baked potato.
Alissa Saenz says
July 27, 2018 at 4:45 PMThat sounds delicious! I’m glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Joanna!
Doreen Kerwin says
December 6, 2018 at 1:56 PMI have not made this yet but I have made Whipped Tofu Cream and frozen that. It was just as delicious as the fresh and I personally didn’t notice any difference in texture. My guests loved it.