Keep this lemon tahini dressing on hand in the fridge, and you'll eat more salad than you ever have before! It's creamy, nutty, bright, and delicious.
Of all of the homemade salad dressings out there, this lemon tahini dressing might be the one I make most often. It’s really versatile – it tastes just as good with tomatoes and cucumbers in the summer as it does with roasted sweet potatoes, cauliflower, or broccoli in the fall. It consists of a short list of ingredients that I always keep on hand, and it’s super easy to stir together. No blender or food processor required!
Nowadays, most home cooks I know are familiar with tahini, but in case you haven’t heard of it, it’s a paste made from ground sesame seeds that originated in the Middle East. It’s what makes dips like hummus and baba ganoush so velvety and rich, and if you’re a fan of falafel, there’s a good chance you’ve drizzled nutty tahini sauce on top. In my kitchen, I use tahini on oatmeal, in cookies, ice cream, and more, but I especially love it in this simple tahini dressing recipe. It’s creamy, rich, nutty, and bright. I like to keep it on hand at all times, and once you try it, I think you will, too.
Tahini Dressing Recipe Ingredients
Ready to make tahini salad dressing? You’ll need these simple ingredients:
- Tahini – It makes up the dressing’s creamy base. For the best results, use really smooth, runny tahini here, not the dry, stiff stuff that you might find at the bottom of a jar. Tahini’s consistency can also vary from brand to brand; my favorites are Soom, Cedar’s, Trader Joe’s, and Seed+Mill.
- Fresh lemon juice – It makes the dressing nice and bright.
- Sesame oil – It highlights the tahini’s rich, nutty flavor.
- Garlic – For sharp depth of flavor.
- Maple syrup – For balance! It tames the bright lemon juice and sharp garlic.
- Extra-virgin olive oil – It adds body and richness.
- And sea salt – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Add the ingredients to a small bowl along with 3 tablespoons of water, and whisk to combine.
As the dressing starts to come together, the tahini will seize up, and the sauce will thicken. Don’t worry about it! It’s totally normal. Keep whisking, and you’ll have a smooth, creamy tahini salad dressing in no time.
If the dressing is still thicker than you’d like it to be, add more water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches your desired consistency. Season to taste with more lemon juice, salt, maple syrup, or sesame oil, and enjoy!
How to Use Lemon Tahini Dressing
Clearly, this lemon tahini dressing is fantastic on salads. I call for it in this Sweet Potato Salad recipe, but it’d also be great on this kale salad, this roasted cauliflower salad, this pomegranate salad, this beet salad, or this butternut squash salad. Not in the mood for salad? No problem. Here are a few more delicious ways to use this tahini dressing:
- Drizzle it over roasted veggies like Brussels sprouts, butternut squash, acorn squash, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes, or beets. I also love it with grilled eggplant, zucchini, and mixed grilled vegetables in the summertime.
- Spoon it over falafel or a chickpea shawarma wrap.
- Add it to a bowl. Try it in this Buddha bowl or this sweet potato quinoa bowl, or make your own bowl with your favorite veggies, a grain like farro, quinoa, or brown rice, and a protein like baked tofu, lentils, or roasted chickpeas.
How do you like to use lemon tahini dressing? Let me know in the comments!
More Favorite Dressings and Sauces
If you love this tahini dressing recipe, try one of these flavorful dressings next:
- Lemon Vinaigrette
- Homemade Italian Dressing
- Greek Salad Dressing
- Vegan Ranch
- Green Goddess Dressing
- Homemade Caesar Dressing
- Cilantro Lime Dressing
- Coleslaw Dressing
Tahini Dressing
Ingredients
- ¼ cup smooth tahini*
- 3 tablespoons water, plus more if needed
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 small garlic clove, grated
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the tahini, water, lemon juice, olive oil, maple syrup, sesame oil, garlic, and salt until smooth.
- If the dressing is too thick, add more water, ½ tablespoon at a time, until it’s a drizzleable consistency.
Yummy dressing.
Used it also as a dipping sauce for grilled chicken breast. Delicious!
Also, I second Maryam’s question: Does this dressing need to be refrigerated?
hi, does this dressing last well outside the fridge?
There was a restaurant in Adams Morgan in Washington DC back in the 90s that bottled their homemade tahini salad dressing and it was the bomb. Of course the restaurant has long been closed, but I have been looking for a tahini salad dressing recipe that came close. I followed this recipe to a tee and wonderful memories flooded back. Perfect❤️
Hi Mary Beth, I’m so glad you loved the dressing!
This was so easy and delicious! I used it as a sauce for my own roasted chicken. So good! Thank you!
Even though the tahini I used was very smooth, when I first mixed the ingredients with a spoon, it did not look homogenous at all, it looked like curd. I had to mix it thoroughly with my immersion blender to get a creamy consistency. The first thing I added to the tahini was the lemon juice, like when you make hummus. Perhaps, the order in which you mix the ingredients is relevant? I replaced the maple syrup with more olive oil because I didn’t want it to be sweet. I was poring it over some broccoli to go with some teriyaki salmon, which is already a bit sweet. Still, a delicious recipe.
Hi Isabel, that happens with tahini – when you start adding the other liquids it seizes up at first, if you keep stirring as you add the rest of the liquids it loosens up.
Easy and delicious
So glad you enjoyed it, Patricia!
Excellent! Absolutely delicious, quick and easy to make. I was a little skeptical about maple syrup, but yum. All the ingredients work perfectly together. Thank you!
Hi Ann, I’m so glad you loved the dressing!
Simple, light, and perfectly delicious.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the dressing, Marnie!
Really, really good. I love it. The flavors blend well together. I was worried the sesame oil would overpower the other ingredients but it didn’t at all. So good! Thank you so much.
Loved this recipe and it’s a very tasty way to add fat to my toddlers recent obsession with salad.
I’m so glad you (and your toddler) loved it!
Added dill and put on a quinoa / veggie bowl. Delicious – super balanced flavors.
Any idea how long you can store this And if it needs to be refrigerated?
Hi Lulu, I store it in the fridge for up to 5 days.
this dressing is BOMB!! Simple, easy to make, and delicious.
Hi Lily, I’m so glad you loved it!
Love this! I also add the zest of a lemon and Herbes De Provence. So far, I’ve drizzled it on Buddha bowls and salads. I’m sure I’ll find other things to use it on. ? So yummy! Thanks for sharing ?
Hi Sarah, I’m so glad you love the dressing! Sounds delicious with the lemon zest and herbes de Provence.
Sorry forgot to rate it.
This sauce is yum. I have also added a bit of grated ginger at times. Thank you
Hi Jo, I’m so glad you love the recipe!
This is the best tahini dressing…smooth, creamy, and very flavorful.
Hi Janet, I’m so glad you love it!
This sauce is incredible and so easy to make! ? It’s something that I’ve been making weekly since I found it in December and I can’t get enough of it! Thank you times a million for this!
Hi Ollie, that’s great to hear! I’m so glad you love the dressing.
Oh man oh man OH MAN!!! This recipe is freaking terrific. Just what I was after when I googled “lemon tahini dressing”. I also zested my lemon and added that to give it some extra fragrant oomph, but it would be just as good without the added step. Thank you for a fantastic recipe!
Hi Jack, I’m so glad you loved it!
How long can i keep it in the fridge ?
Hi Marjan, I keep it up to about 5 days.