Best Homemade Vegan Ranch
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Tangy and oh-so-creamy vegan ranch dressing that is easy to make at home! Soaked cashews work their magic to create the creamiest, dreamiest ranch dressing or dip that is totally plant based and dairy free.
Can vegans eat ranch?
Don’t worry! You can still have your favorite salad dressing even once you’ve given up dairy. And this vegan ranch tastes creamier and better than the original!
It seems like ranch is THE universal salad dressing for kids. Whether on a bed of lettuce or with some carrot sticks and cucumbers for dipping, is there anything better? All three of my kids love it.
Make a batch of this vegan ranch to use all week long! I suggest using a high powered blender like the Vitamix or If you don’t have one, just soak your cashews in hot water for at least an hour before blending.
How do you make vegan ranch?
It’s so easy and takes about 10 minutes total.
First, measure out 1 1/2 cups of raw cashews. Pour boiling hot water over them (I use my tea kettle for this) and let them soak for at least 5 minutes.
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Drain the cashews and add them to a blender, along with all the other ingredients (EXCEPT the dill). Blend until very creamy and smooth.
Then simply add the fresh (or dried) dill and pulse a few times or stir in. That’s it! Store in the fridge for up to 1 week, if it lasts that long.
Ideas for using Vegan Ranch
I love using this dressing in a variety of ways, such as:
- A dip with cut up veggie sticks like carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes and broccoli.
- On a large salad with romaine, tomatoes, peas, broccoli, carrots, cucumbers, avocado chunks and chickpeas.
- Drizzled over pizza
- Making this Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
- And in veggie burgers, yum!
You could even dip potato chips or fries into it, if that’s your thing… 🙂
If you make this recipe, let me know how it goes! Rate it, leave a comment and tag a photo @nora_cooks_vegan on Instagram. Enjoy!
Best Homemade Vegan Ranch
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups raw cashew pieces
- 3/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- juice from 1 lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 cup fresh dill OR 2-3 teaspoons dried dill*
Instructions
- Soak the raw cashew pieces in hot water for 5-10 minutes. I heat up water in my electric kettle and pour it over the cashews to soak.
- Drain the cashews and add to your blender. Add the remaining ingredients except the dill, and blend until very smooth.
- Now add the dill, and pulse a few times to combine. You don't want to blend the dill or it will end up very green.
- Serve on salad or with fresh vegetables for dipping. This will keep for up to a week in the fridge. It will thicken in the fridge, just thin out with water until it reaches the consistency you prefer.
Notes
- If you don't care for dill, you may substitute with parsley (1/3 cup fresh chopped small, or 2-3 teaspoons dried).
- For Sriracha Ranch, add 2-3 teaspoons Sriracha, or to taste when blending.
Nutrition
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128 Comments on “Best Homemade Vegan Ranch”
Oh! Also wanted to add that I had no rice wine vinegar but white wine vinegar made an excellent substitute. And 2 tsp of dried dill was the perfect amount.
Thanks again!
Oh. Hella. Yeah!
This is amazing. Perfect blend of flavors and very, very easy.
I had to add about 1/4 c extra water as it was blending bc it was just way too thick to chop up the cashews at first. I’m thinking it’s more that I have a pretty weak blender, lol. I may not have measured quite accurately either but in any case I love that it’s fixable! Ty for a wonderful addition to our dairy-free pantry!
Hi Debra! I’m glad you love my ranch dressing! Thank you for your great enthusiasm, and for taking the time to share!
Any substitute for cashews in the vegan ranch recipe? We have a nut allergy in the family.
Hi Melanie, sorry I haven’t tried it with anything else so I’m not sure. Raw slivered almonds or sunflower seeds may work, possibly even hemp seeds, if those are not an allergy food for your family. But I haven’t tested it to know for sure.
This was so amazing and my first attempt at ranch dip with cashews! Could you please share how much a serving size is? Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe!
Omg best ranch dressing ever !!! Thanks Nora 🙂
Thank you! 😍
I love this recipe for my salads & dipping veggies!!! I do have a question though, how long does it last in the fridge?
I’m so happy you are enjoying it! It will last about a week in the refrigerator.
Okay, so I’m giving this 5 stars because I know it has 5 star potential- the texture and consistency are perfect…however mine turned out way too lemony to truly taste like ranch. I’m sure that is my fault for picking too large of a lemon, but your recipe call for such. Could you, or others how have had success, possibly give me an idea of how many TBS of lemon juice you use so I can make the recipe a bit more precisely. Thanks!!
Thank you so much! I updated the recipe, because you are correct it can vary a lot! About 2 tablespoons is all you need (a little more if you want more tang). That should help!
Just want you to know this came out amazing!!! Thank you for this recipe! I added a lil but IOC mable syrup to balance out the bitterness oooh soo good!!
What can u sub for rice vinegar ?
More lemon juice or white vinegar works.
Tasty and very easy to make. It comes out rather thick.
We used this tonight for a creamy pasta salad! It was delicious! Thank you!
You’re welcome!
Im not really vegan but I love your ranch! It is so yummy I brought some to work along with cauliflower “hot wings”! Thank you
You’re welcome!
I may have an addiction to this! I use 5 fresh cloves of garlic, fresh dill and fresh italian parsley. First time I made it, I didn’t let it blend quite long enough. I have to add about 3 tbls extra of water to thin out in blender. This recipe is truly the best, I can’t say it enough! Thank you!
I’m so glad you are enjoying the dressing, thank you!
SO SO SO DELICIOUS – AND SUPER QUICK AND EASY TO MAKE!
Non vegan family members loved as well. Nora, you’re my new go-to vegan recipe source. Thank you!
You’re welcome! Thanks for the comment!