Creamy Dijon Cashew Dressing (Vegan)

This dijon cashew dressing only uses 6 simple ingredients and is ready in 5 minutes (depending on your blender).  Use it on grain bowls, simple salads, or as a dip for veggies.  It’s vegan, oil-free, whole food, tangy, and creamy!  

Raw cashews are mild tasting and they blend up beautifully for dairy-free dressings or dips. For more cashew-based dressing try the vegan chipotle sauce, cashew lime crema, vegan honey mustard, or cilantro cashew dressing. Cashew salad dressings will thicken up once chilled, so they may need to be thinned out with a bit of water after you refrigerate them.

Ingredients

Raw Cashews - Use raw cashews, roasted cashews will give the dressing a roasted cashew flavor.  I haven’t tested it, but a ¼ cup of raw cashew butter should work instead of a ½ cup of raw cashews (I’ve tried this substitution in other recipes).

Water - Gotta have the water to blend the cashews.

Dijon Style Mustard - Dijon mustard or dijon style mustard has a sharp tanginess to it.  Brands vary in degree of sharpness, so adjust how much you use as needed.

Balsamic Vinegar - Adds a sweet, rich, tartness to the dressing.

How to Soak Cashews

If you have a high-speed blender, you may not need to soak your cashews. If your blender can’t handle raw cashews, then they need to be soaked for a smoother consistency.

• Option one: Place the cashews in a container with a lid and enough water to cover them by ½ inch (the cashews will swell as they soak) and soak the nuts for at least 4 hours or overnight. 
• Option two: Boil enough water to cover the cashews by at least ½ inch and pour the hot water over the nuts in a heat-tolerant container.  Soak for around 15-20 minutes.

If a smooth consistency is the least of your worries and you just want a quick dressing for your salad then don't worry about soaking the cashews for this recipe. Depending on your blender it might take a little longer to blend and not be as silky-smooth.

Tips

• If you're using the cashew salad dressing as a dip, keep it a little thicker to coat the vegetables.
• Add more water if you prefer a thinner dressing.
• I would stick to Dijon-style mustard and not substitute it with a different mustard. When I haven't had any Dijon on hand and tried to use a different mustard, the dressing came out bland. The Dijon just adds a punch of flavor!

Storage

The leftover dressing will last in the fridge for about 3-4 days.  If it has thickened too much once chilled in the fridge, thin it out with a little bit of water (as needed).

Serving Suggestions

• Grain bowls or tofu Buddha Bowls
• Chickpea Vegetable Rice Bowl
• Salads
• As a vegetable dip

More Recipes for Oil-Free Salad Dressings

• Strawberry vinaigrette (Oil-Free)
• Smoky tahini dressing
• Dijon tahini dressing
• Spicy Peanut Dressing
• Cilantro cashew dressing

I hope you enjoy this recipe for vegan cashew salad dressing! If you like the recipe feel free to rate it and leave a comment.

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