Creamy Beet Salad Dressing

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A Delicious Beet Salad Dressing That Brightens Taste and Color

Do you want to use less oil in your homemade salad dressings?

Then blended beets are your knight in shining armor.

This beet salad dressing swaps out your usual fat like oil, yogurt, or mayo for tender roasted beets. The beets and other ingredients are the tossed in a blended to create a beautiful, silky smooth veggie salad dressing.

Quick and easy to make, this beet salad dressing is incredibly healthy. Since you use less oil, you won’t feel bad about putting this dressing on everything. Plus, you’ll get the nutritional benefits of fiber, vitamin, and mineral rich beets.

I love that you can put this healthy dressing on anything. So, make a big batch of it, store it in a jar in your refrigerator, and use it all week to make everything taste better. It is perfect as a vegan dipping sauce, sandwich condiment, or to top grains and salads. You really can’t go wrong.

Once you make this vegan salad dressing, you’ll wonder why you don’t use vegetables as the base for all of your dressings. It has more vitamins, minerals, and nutritional value that will give you more energy to tackle your busy day.

What’s in This Beet Salad Dressing?

So, how are large, solid root bulbs transformed into a silky smooth and creamy salad dressing?

First, beets are cooked to tender perfection by boiling or roasting. Red wine vinegar, olive oil, tahini, garlic, salt, and water are then blended with the beet. This will create a creamy and colorful emulsion that you won’t be able to stop eating.

Beet Salad Dressing Health Benefits

The word “superfood” gets tossed around when talking about beets.

Beets have been shown to increase physical and mental performance. So, that is as good as it gets when it comes to health benefits.

Plus, beets are loaded with vitamins, minerals, and other plant compounds that provide many benefits to your body.

Nitrates in beets are converted to nitric oxide in your body. Studies like this one have shown nitric oxide helps increase blood flow and lower blood pressure. Because of this, beets have even been shown to increase athletic performance and brain health.

Beet’s beautiful color isn’t all for looks. Betalain, the pigment that gives beets their color, is an antioxidant that may help protect against cancer and reduce inflammation in the body.

Read this post on the health benefits of beets if you want to learn more about the health benefits of beets.

Tips for Cooking

How-to Cook Beets

In order to get a creamy, smooth, and slightly sweet dressing, you need to cook the beets before adding to a blender. There are multiple ways you can cook beets. I walk through each method in this Beets 101 cooking guide.

The biggest recommendation I have for cooking beets?

Always cook a batch of them. Cooking multiple beets at once, regardless of the method, is minimal extra work. And they keep for up to 5 days in the refrigerator for easy meal additions.

Boiling or roasting work best for this method. Boiling is arguably the easiest beet cooking method. But, roasting yields cooked beets that are slightly sweeter. I recommend boiling beets for this recipe.

To Boil Beets

Put unpeeled whole beet(s) into a large pot of boiling water. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 20-40 minutes until beets fork tender. Time depends on the size of the beet.

Let cool for a few minutes then peel skins.

To Roast Beets

I wrote an entire recipe on how to roast beets. That will walk you through the entire process, but here is the gist of roasting beets:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place unpeeled whole beets in a baking dish. Season with salt. Pour 1/4 cup water into dish. Cover tightly with foil and place in preheated oven. Roast 60-80 minutes until you can easily slide a fork in to the beets. Remove from oven and let cool covered. Peel.

How-to Control The Thickness of This Beet Salad Dressing

Want to use this dressing as a dipping sauce? Add a little less water. Salad dressing only? Add a little more water.

You have full control over the consistency of this sauce by adding water one tablespoon at a time.

Start by adding 1/4 cup water. I think the consistency with this amount is perfect for dipping. Add more water if you want to use this dressing for salads.

I like to add another 2 tablespoons of water. So, 6 tablespoons total. I think this consistency is the best all-purpose since I want to be able to use it on everything.

FAQs

How Long Will This Beet Salad Dressing Last?

This beet salad dressing will last 4-5 days covered in the refrigerator. The dressing will thicken up a bit when cooled in the refrigerator. Let sit out at room temperature for 15 or so minutes before using to loosen it up a bit.

How Should I Store This Beet Salad Dressing?

Store this dressing covered in a sealable jar or container in the refrigerator.

I love mason jars. I use them for everything from pickles to dipping sauces to dressings. These 16 oz. jars are the best size for dressings. They are big enough for a one or two week batches of dressing, but small enough to easily fit inside your refrigerator door.

Is This Beet Salad Dressing Vegan?

Yes, this dressing is vegan. Enjoy!

What Can I Use This Beet Dressing On?

Last night after making this recipe, I made grilled chicken, sweet potato fries and a simple lettuce salad for dinner. I set out the beet dressing on the table for the salad. But, it ended up that the chicken was speckled pink and the sweet potato fries were being dipped into the dressing. It’s that good with everything.

You’ll be surprised at how bright and tangy this beet dressing tastes. Here are a few ideas to use this beet dressing on:

• Roasted Sweet Potatoes – Go full dipping sauce with this dressing and use it on this oven roasted sweet potatoes recipe.
• Sandwiches and wraps – Skip the mayo and use this dressing as spread on sandwiches and wraps instead. It is more colorful, healthy, and tangy.
• Salads – Do I really need to put this one? Top a simple salad with hearty greens like this one.
• Roasted Vegetables – Speckle crispy roasted vegetables like this roasted broccoli or roasted vegetable salad for an eye popping display.

What Type of Blender Should I Use?

Unfortunately, the function of a blender is one of the few things in your kitchen that can’t be replicated without an appliance.

Blenders combine liquid ingredients and softer solids into a smooth and uniform emulsion. They are the one tool you need to make smoothies, soups, dressings, purées, and/or nut butters.

Luckily, there are great blenders for whatever your budget is. Check out this article that details the Best Blenders for Every Budget to find out which one is right for you.

Ready to Turn up the Beet on Your Salads?

I just can’t get enough beets right now because of their health benefits. Plus, they taste delicious. This beet salad dressing is a perfect way to get more beets in your diet.

The other thing I really like about this dressing is that it replaces fat (typically oil or mayo) with veggies. If you like this method too, check out this creamy carrot and lime salad dressing that uses a similar cooking method.

For creamy dressings like this one, you’ll need a blender. My cheap blender is currently on it’s last days. So, I’ll be ready to buy a new one soon once that one kicks the can (or should I say pitcher?).

I documented all of my research and wrote this article. It details the Best Blenders for Every Budget to figure out which one is right for us.

More Beet Recipes

Here are more beet recipes to keep your brain and body at peak performance.

• Beet and Berry Smoothie
• Roasted Beet and Avocado Salad
• Grilled Beet Salad with Lemon and Herbs
• Oven Roasted Beets: How to Cook a Batch in the Oven
• Roasted Beet Dip
• Beet and Carrot Slaw with Raisins and Nuts
• Beet Pickled Eggs
• Refrigerator Pickled Beets