I don’t know about you, but I love a good salad dressing. I really like any kind of condiments; dips, spreads, sauces, I need something to add to my salads, sandwiches, etc.! So a lot of my condiment recipes that I create are oil-free, and they’re all vegan of course, as well. They’re usually nut-based or tofu-based, so you don’t have to skimp on them to be eating “healthy”!

You could use the oil-based dressings (or even ones with dairy if you aren’t plant-based) and measure a measly tablespoon or two, or you could make this oil-free, dairy free, *guilt-free* Vegan Ranch Dressing and indulge the way you really want to. You can use this any way you would use traditional ranch dressing; on salads, with vegan wings, or even as a dip for pizza.

I’ve found that ranch dressing is one thing that’s been more challenging to find a vegan version of that really compares in taste to the “real thing.” There are plenty of store-bought vegan ranch dressings, and homemade recipes that taste great, but they may not taste very much like actual ranch. This recipe took me some time, and is very comparable in taste to traditionally non-vegan ranch! And because it’s homemade, it’s easy to make large batches of it so it’s always available, and it’s so much more cost-effective than buying any kind of bottled ranch dressing in the store, vegan or not!

Depending on the type of blender you have, you may want to soak your cashews in warm water for at least an hour, up to 8 hours or overnight. However, with a high-speed blender you don’t need to soak them at all. Typically a high-speed blender is considered anything over 1,000 watts, I had to call Vitamix to find out the wattage for mine though because it wasn’t listed on the blender! When talking to them I learned that all Vitamixes are high-speed. Many Ninjas, NutriBullets, and other brands have high-speed options, as well. If you know your blender well enough, you will know if it can handle things like raw nuts, even ice and frozen fruit, etc. Otherwise, the worst case scenario is that your ranch dressing is a little gritty and you know for next time to soak your cashews or just blend a little longer. You don’t need to overthink it!

Cashews: You’ll want raw, unsalted cashews. These can be bought in bulk at most “mainstream” grocery stores, or more commonly at health food and specialty grocery stores. If you’re having a difficult time finding the raw, unsalted variety in stores you can always find them online. I always buy my cashews in bulk on Amazon, they’re delivered to my house in a day or two and they’re much cheaper this way, too!

Water: The amount may need to be adjusted depending on your consistency preference.

Lemon Juice: Necessary in many dressing recipes, neutralizes the apple cider vinegar and provides wonderful flavor. (You can’t replace this with lime juice in every recipe, I learned that the hard way!)

Apple Cider Vinegar: Adds a tangy and slightly sweet flavor, really “makes” the dressings and adds an extra something.

Maple Syrup: In many dressing recipes, you can add a little extra maple syrup for more sweetness and it really improves the flavor profile. However, for this recipe, I do not recommend adding more maple syrup than is suggested here, unless you try the dressing once everything is incorporated and blended and you decide you would like it to be sweeter. Ranch dressing is typically not very sweet at all.

Garlic Cloves: Just peel and add to the blender, you don’t need to bother with chopping them since they’re going to be blended well. If you don’t have garlic cloves you can use garlic powder; ¼ tsp for each clove, so for one batch of this recipe you would want to use ½ tsp of garlic powder.

Dried Dill: The star ingredient in ranch dressing! Feel free to add extra if you’d like, it’s a subtle taste so I usually end up pouring it in heavy.

Onion Powder: This, along with the garlic, adds pleasant complexity to the flavor profile. You can actually use fresh onion if you don’t have onion powder; about 2 T of fresh, chopped onion for every teaspoon of onion powder, although this may change the overall consistency a bit since you’re adding moisture, so less water may be necessary.

Dried Parsley: With enough dill, this could be omitted if necessary. But parsley does add extra depth of flavor, so include it if you can!

Salt and Pepper: feel free to taste test once the dressing is blended and adjust the salt and pepper amounts to your preference.