Green Goddess Dressing definitely wins the coolest name award for any dressing ever invented. And its flavor it’s pretty delicious too. This fresh, bright, and herbaceous dressing was first invented in the 1920s at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco by Head Chef Philip Roemer. The chef wanted to pay homage to actor George Arliss who was staying at the hotel while touring the US with his play “The Green Goddess”. Roemer served the dressing on a salad, and it quickly became a hit.The original recipe is heavy on mayo and sour cream and it also includes anchovies. We make a version of the Green Goddess Salad Dressing that is vegan, replacing anchovies with capers.
Ingredients
Green Fresh Herbs: you can really use anything green herb for this dressing. Most often we use flat-leaf parsley, basil, dill, mint, and chives. When we find it we add tarragon – a key ingredient in the original Green Goddess Recipe but that is hard to find these days, and sometimes cilantro. As I mentioned, don’t worry if you can’t find all the herbs. You can make this dressing with what you have.Capers: we use capers to replace the anchovies in the original recipe. They add saltiness, umami, and a pleasantly tangy and refreshing flavor.Garlic: a small clove is enough. We don’t want too much garlic flavor here. Plus, garlic gets more intense as the dressing sits in the fridge. You can even start with half clove if you want it less garlicky.Olive oil: to help blend the herbs and carry their flavor.Lemon juice: to brighten things up, and make the dressing fresh and light.Yogurt: you can use any type of yogurt, although we found that thicker yogurt works best. We like to use soy yogurt. Greek yogurt works really well too.Vegan Mayo: to make a lighter dressing you can skip the mayo and double up on the yogurt. However, green goddess dressing made with just yogurt is a little thin. We like to add our homemade vegan mayo to add a creamy texture, and make the dressing rounder, and silkier to the mouth. It’s optional, and we often leave it out if we make this dressing for our own meals. But we recommend it if you want to impress your guests.Salt and pepper: salt is necessary to bring out the flavor of the herbs. Freshly ground black pepper adds a nice aroma to it. P.s. This dressing is forgiving. Take our recipe as a guideline and change up the fresh herbs depending on what you have available at your local store or in your garden.
Serving suggestions
You can use green goddess dressing to season salads of course, but also as a dip or to drizzle on veggies and tofu: Tip: we find the core of the garlic hard to digest. Removing it makes the dressing lighter. To a blender or food processor add the fresh green herbs, garlic, capers, salt, pepper, olive oil, and lemon juice (no seeds, they are bitter).Tip: for parsley, coriander, basil, tarragon, and dill you can add the stems. For mint only add leaves. Pulse a few times till the herbs are blended. You might have to scrape down the sides of your blender. If your blender is struggling to catch on to the herbs, add the yogurt. Add the yogurt and the vegan mayo. Pulse a few times till well combined with the herbs. Taste and adjust for salt before serving.
Boiled and roasted vegetables: you can make a quick and easy side dish with sliced boiled potatoes and roasted peppers, drizzled with this delicious dressing. Roasted carrots, beets, and turnips also make a beautiful pairing with this dressing.
Vegan salad and grain bowl: the goddess dressing brightens up most salads from tofu salad, couscous salad, and quinoa salad.
Drizzled on broccoli: grilled, steamed, or with roasted broccoli.
With sweet potato: it’s fun and colorful with roasted sweet potatoes or drizzled on top of stuffed and baked sweet potatoes.
As a dip with fries: it goes with any type of fries; potatoes, zucchini fries, and carrot fries.As a sauce next to protein: it gives bold flavor to marinated tofu, vegan fish, and fried tofu
Quite frankly, the green goddess sauce is as versatile as you want it to be. It brightens up plant-based protein as well as fresh and cooked veggies.
Questions
Storage
Store green goddess dressing in the refrigerator, preferably in an airtight container such as a mason jar, for up to 5 days. This dressing does not freeze well.
Cilantro lime dressing: light and aromatic, this Tex-Mex sauce is perfect with salads and roasted veggies.Romesco sauce: a rich and bell pepper-packed condiment for anything grilled.Chipotle sauce: is great with most vegetable sides, think french fries, baked vegetables, and onion rings.Chimichurri sauce: herby and bold; a great addition to roasted veggies and chickpea salad.Mustard dressing: a classic salad dressing with steamed veggies, such as asparagus and artichokes.Vegan mayo: creamy, thick, and perfect as a dip with basically anything.Chili oil: perfect for a pungent infusion in soups, tofu recipes, and most pasta recipes.
What are your favorite go-to sauces? Let us know in the comments below, we’d love to hear from you!
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title: “Green Goddess Dressing” ShowToc: true date: “2024-09-20” author: “Lynda Clark”
What is green goddess dressing? The original recipe was reportedly created in the 1920’s by chef Phillip Roemer at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. It features plenty of fresh herbs, like parsley, chives, and tarragon, and some variations contain anchovies or mayonnaise, too. This recipe uses simple pantry ingredients that you probably already have on hand, and it tastes like it came from a restaurant. It will quickly become one of your favorite sauces!
Why You’ll Love It
It’s quick to prepare. Just toss everything into the blender and blend until it’s creamy. It’s ready to serve in just minutes! It’s flexible. You can use practically any fresh herbs that you have on hand in this recipe. I’m partial to using a mix of parsley, cilantro, chives, and dill, but fresh basil, tarragon, green onion, or a touch of mint will work, too. It’s allergy friendly. Some recipes will use greek yogurt or sour cream for creaminess, but this version is made with tahini, instead. It adds creaminess and extra fiber, while keeping this salad dressing dairy-free and vegan friendly. It tastes amazing. The combination of fresh herbs adds so much flavor! Drizzle it over baked chicken breasts, roasted potatoes, and quinoa bowls, or serve it as a dip with sliced veggies.
Ingredients You’ll Need
What’s in green goddess salad dressing?
Fresh parsleyFresh cilantroChivesDillFresh lemon juiceGarlicOlive oilTahiniSalt
As I mentioned above, this recipe is quite flexible. If you don’t have a full 2 cups of fresh herbs, it will still turn out delicious. Just use what you have on hand, and taste as you go. Depending on how tart you like your salad dressing to be, you can use 3 to 4 tablespoons of lemon juice, so start with less, and add more if you prefer a more tangy flavor.
How to Make Green Goddess Dressing
- Add everything to the blender. Start by adding water, lemon juice, and olive oil to your blender, then add in the fresh herbs, tahini, garlic, and salt. You can add a pinch of black pepper, if you’d like a little extra spice, too. I usually toss in whole cloves of garlic, but if you don’t have a high-speed blender, you may want to mince them first, so they will break down quickly. You can also use a food processor instead of a blender, if that’s what you have on hand.
- Blend. Blend until the dressing is smooth, then taste and make any adjustments as needed. You can add an extra tablespoon of water to thin out the dressing more, as needed. Transfer the blended dressing to a mason jar with a lid, and store it in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
- Enjoy! You can serve this vegan green goddess dressing right away, or keep it stored in the fridge until you’re ready to serve. It’s delicious over salads (even potato salad!), pasta, and more. Note: This dressing will thicken even more when chilled. This is great if you plan on serving it as a dip, but you can thin it out again by running the sealed jar under warm tap water, or add a tablespoon of water and stir well, to make the creamy texture more runny again.
Substitutions and Common Questions
Do I have to use tahini? If you need to avoid sesame seeds, you can use almond butter or cashew butter with similar creamy results. You could also add avocado for creaminess, if you prefer. Can I make it oil-free? Yes, you can leave out the oil, and add more water to help thin out the dressing, as needed. The tahini still adds plenty of creaminess. (Make sure you buy a tahini with no added oil, too; the only ingredient on the package label should be sesame seeds.)
More Creamy Dressings
Looking for more salad dressing recipes to try? You’ll love these, too!
Vegan Ranch DressingTahini Dill DressingGreek Yogurt DressingVegan Caesar Dressing
Update Note: This recipe was updated in September 2022. If you prefer the original version, you can find it below. 1/2 cup raw tahini1/2 cup water2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped2 Tablespoons green onions, chopped1/2 teaspoon sea salt3 cloves garlic (or 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder)1 teaspoon tamari (gluten-free soy sauce)2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar Mix everything together in a blender or food processor, and then it’s ready to serve. If you try this green goddess dressing recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how you like it.
