10 Must-Try Vegan Salad Dressings That Will Elevate Your Summer Salads Instantly!

Salads are great all year round, but when summer comes, they are extra-special. Filled with lots of fresh, seasonal fruits and veggies – maybe even from your garden – nothing is more refreshing than a big summer salad. Check out all our tips for making great salads like this 5-Step Guide to Making Vegan Super Salads and 10 Easy Tricks to Make Salads Taste Better Instantly. Once you’ve gone to all the effort to make a beautiful and healthy salad, don’t toss some store-bought dressing on it. Not when you can easily make your dressing that not only tastes better but is better because you choose the ingredients.

We have lots of tips to help you create amazing salad dressings at home. Learn How to Make Oil-Free Vegan Salad Dressings, The Secrets of Homemade Salad Dressing, and the 5 Ingredients That Make an Amazing Salad Dressing. We also have tons of recipes for tasty salad dressings that will turn your salad from ordinary to extraordinary. Find out 10 Ways to Make Amazing Salad Dressings and take a look at these 19 Salad Dressings You Won’t Believe are Vegan. Cutting back on oil? Try these 5 Oil-Free, Dairy-Free Salad Dressings that are low on fat and big on taste. And we have even more. Here are 10 amazing salad dressings for all your summer salads.

1. Raw Gado Gado Dressing

Get carried away to tropical breezes and sunny days when you try this Raw Gado Gado Dressing. Tossed with a salad or drizzled over tofu or raw veggies, this peanuty dressing, this will be your new summer favorite.

2. Caesar Dressing

If you’ve been missing Caesar salads, this vegan Caesar Dressing will give them back to you. Tahini, Dijon mustard and capers make this dressing creamy, tangy and salty just like original but better.

3. Blue Cheez Dressing

Whether you use this Blue Cheez Dressing for a salad, slather it on a burger or use it for dipping, you’ll love the rich cheesy flavor. It’s made with a homemade tofu cashew mayonnaise so you get two recipes in one.

4. Sweet and Tangy Green Chile-Chipotle-Cilantro Dressing

This Green Chile-Chipotle-Cilantro Dressing packs a punch but it does it without any added oil. Made with cashews and pepitas, it’s rich from the natural fats. Green chiles, chipotle, cumin and chili powder add spice while dates add natural sweetness.

5. Creamy Vegan Dandelion Greens Dressing

Other people may think dandelions and their greens are just weeds, but you know better. You know you can combine them with cashews, sunflower seeds and lemon juice to make this rich Creamy Vegan Dandelion Greens Dressing. Well, if you didn’t, you know that now.

6. Creamy Lemon Herb Dressing

Summer is all about sunny lemons and fresh herbs which come together to make this Creamy Lemon Herb Dressing with chives, dill and cilantro. The base of the dressing is hemp hearts which will have you saying you “heart” this dressing.

7. Caribbean Red Rice Salad With Chili-Apricot Dressing

Yes, this rice salad looks incredible but just for a moment, focus on the Chili-Apricot Dressing that would be delicious on just about anything. Made with dried apricots, sun-dried tomatoes, and dates, it has a lot of natural sweetness that’s balanced by the warm and spicy cumin, chili powder and paprika.

8. Hippie Goddess Dressing

This Hippie Goddess Dressing is made with hemp hearts that make it healthy and filling while fresh basil and lemon juice make it bright and fragrant. Use this dressing over your favorite salad or seasonal vegetables.

9. 5 Non-Dairy Tahini-Based Dressings You Have to Try

We could give you one delicious tahini-based dressing but we’re feeling generous so here are 5 Non-Dairy Tahini-Based Dressings You Have to Try. One is more incredible than the next so you’ll just have to try them all and see which you love most.

10. Nut-Free Wild Garlic Pesto

If you think pesto is just for pasta or pizza, try it as a salad dressing. This Wild Garlic Pesto is like no pesto you’ve ever had. No nuts are in here. Fresh wild garlic and sunflower seeds give this bright pesto tons of flavor and its beautiful green color.

With all these recipes and tips on how to make salad dressings, you could have a different salad dressing every single day of summer and probably still have a few left when autumn begins.

Learn How to Cook Plant-Based Meals at Home

Reducing your meat intake and incorporating more plant-based foods into your diet is known to Support various health benefits, including reducing chronic inflammation, improving heart health, enhancing mental well-being, achieving fitness goals, meeting nutritional needs, managing allergies, and promoting gut health, among others. Dairy consumption also has been linked to many health problems, including acne, hormonal imbalance, cancer,  prostate cancer, and has many side effects.

For those of you interested in eating more plant-based, we highly recommend grabbing our favorite plant-based cookbooks and downloading the Food Monster App — with over 20,000 delicious recipes, it is the largest plant-based recipe resource to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals, and get healthy! And, while you are at it, we encourage you to also learn about the environmental and health benefits of a plant-based diet.

Here are some great resources to get you started:

• Weekly Vegan Meal Plans
• Plant-Based Health Resources
• Plant-Based Food & Recipes
• Plant-Based Nutrition Resources
• The Ultimate Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition
• Budget-Friendly Plant-Based Recipes
• High Protein Plant-Based Recipes
• Plant-Based Meal Prep
• Plant-Based Cookbooks 

For more Animal, Earth, Life, Vegan Food, Health, and Recipe content published daily, subscribe to the One Green Planet Newsletter! Lastly, being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing you with high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!