Peanut Dressing
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Last updated on Jun 29, 2024
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The most amazing peanut dressing with creamy peanut butter, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger and maple syrup. It’s savory, sweet and perfectly balanced.
If you love peanut butter or peanut sauce, you are going to love this dressing. It’s creamy and slightly sweet, but also savory with a hint of spice! It has a ton of flavor and is so versatile.
Not only is it great for drizzling over salad, but it can be used as a sauce for bowl meals and as a dip for lettuce wraps and spring rolls.
Trust me when I say that unless someone hates peanuts (or has a peanut allergy) they will LOVE this dressing. It has become a highly-requested recipe with our family and friends!
Ingredients and Substitutions
Here’s what you’ll need for this easy peanut dressing:
- peanut butter – peanut butter gives this dressing the most flavor, but you can totally use a different nut or seed butter in place of peanuts. Almond or cashew butter would be delicious and for a nut free option, sunflower seed butter is the perfect sub. When shopping for peanut butter, look for one with just 2 ingredients: roasted peanuts and salt! Skip the added oils and sugar.
- garlic clove – fresh garlic is best and makes this dressing so flavorful.
- fresh ginger – definitely don’t skip the ginger in this dressing. It adds so much flavor.
- rice vinegar – I prefer rice vinegar in this to stick with Asian flavor, but you can also use apple cider vinegar if needed.
- low sodium tamari – this adds the perfect amount of salty, umami flavor. Tamari is just gluten-free soy sauce… feel free to swap with regular soy sauce or coconut aminos.
- maple syrup – maple syrup adds a hint of sweet to tie the dressing together. You can also use honey.
- cayenne pepper – this is optional but I like throwing in a pinch for a little kick!
What to Serve with a Peanut Dressing?
Once you try this dressing, you are going to want to put it on everything… trust me! Here are the recipes it pairs really well with:
- Kale Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing – This kale salad is the perfect base for peanut dressing. Add grilled protein for a full meal-sized salad.
- Kale Sweet Potato Brown Rice Bowls – This is one of my all-time favorite bowl recipes! This peanut dressing is the perfect pairing.
- Fresh Spring Rolls – If you haven’t made your own spring rolls before, you need to try it! Dip your rolls in this peanut dressing for the ultimate appetizer.
- Baked Peanut Tofu – Can’t get enough peanut butter? Drizzle this peanut dressing on my baked peanut tofu. Mmm, another one of my faves!
- Lettuce Wraps – This dressing is the perfect dip for my healthy Asian lettuce wraps.
How to Store Peanut Dressing
This peanut dressing can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. The dressing will likely thicken as it sits in the fridge. Add water to thin if needed!
More Salad Dressing Recipes
- Healthy Caesar Dressing
- Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing
- Mexican Goddess Dressing
- Maple Dressing
- Avocado Ranch Dressing
- Lemon Vinaigrette
- Turmeric Tahini Dressing
- Avocado Caesar Dressing
- Chili Almond Dressing
- Creamy Honey Mustard Dressing
- Creamy Southwest Dressing
Be sure to check out my top healthy salad dressings as well as my favorite healthy store-bought salad dressings.
If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below.
Peanut Dressing
Ingredients
- ¼ cup peanut butter
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger, chopped
- 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons low sodium tamari or soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper, optional
- water, to thin
Instructions
- Whisk or blend: Add all ingredients into a bowl and whisk to combine or alternatively add all ingredients into a blender and blend until combined. Add water to thin and serve.
- Store: Store dressing in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made this, it’s delicious. I’m getting a bit older and I find myself always adding stronger flavors to nearly everything, my taste buds are getting older with me! That said, I added a 1/2 t. turmeric and a 1/2 t. of sumac. The flavors all got along very well. Thanks for the recipe!
Yay! So glad you loved this dressing, Marie. Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it!
I searched for salad dressings and found your lovely website. I will certainly pay you another visit. Greetings from Putney, London, UK
Hi Kate, I’m so happy you’re here! You’ll have to come back and let me know which salad dressing recipes you try.
delish! I’m having it with shredded red cabbage & carrots. might add some lemon juice. thank you from Brussels!
Brussels, wow! Thank you so much, Johanna. I’m glad you’re enjoying the peanut dressing!
Do you have sodium levels for the peanut dressing.
Hi Cheri, it’s around 345 mg per serving! I’ll update the recipe card. To keep sodium low, make sure to use low sodium tamari and find a peanut butter with no or little salt added.
This was great and so easy to put together. We made Pad Thai with it. It was wonderful.
Woo! So glad you loved this dressing, Joy. Thanks for making it and for the review. I appreciate it!
Delicious. I used a date instead of maple syrup, and used almond butter, and coconut aminos because that’s what I had. So delicious. Over sweet kale mix and shrimp.
So glad this dressing was a hit, Becky! Thanks for making it and for coming back to share what subs you made, I so appreciate it!
Fabulous and Delicious
This was excellent! Super, super delicious!! 5 stars!