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This Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing is creamy, healthy and bursting with fresh citrusy flavors! It takes minutes to make, plus it's oil-free and vegan too.
I love homemade dressing because it's so quick and easy to make. The big bonus is that it's much healthier and fresher than store-bought varieties. Plus, I love controlling the ingredients and making the dressing oil-free (like this Thousand Island Oil-free Dressing).
I'm not completely oil-free, but I like to limit it when possible (dressing rarely needs it). Don't get me wrong, I still use bottled dressing on occasion, but not as much as I used to. My latest homemade obsession is this Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing. It's wonderful on most any salad and even makes a yummy dip or marinade.
If you're a cilantro lover like me, then you will LOVE this flavorful dressing. However, if you're anti-cilantro, you may be wondering (in disgust) why you're reading this, and how anyone could like that nasty herb. Your time is not wasted though, you may like this Summer Zucchini Pesto instead.
I've met SOOO many people who dislike cilantro, and I never understood it. BUT a few months ago, I learned that it usually has something to do with your genes. If cilantro tastes like soap to you, then you probably have that gene.
Apparently, you can train your brain to like it though. Here's an interesting article about this mysterious soap gene.
Simple ingredients
This recipe calls for simple ingredients and takes less than 10 minutes to make. You don't need anything fancy to make this tasty dressing...just a few fresh ingredients, seasonings, and a blender or food processor. Here's what you'll need:
- Unsweetened dairy-free yogurt (I like So Delicious)
- Avocado
- Cilantro
- Fresh lime juice
- Agave
- Garlic powder
- Cumin
- Fresh cracked pepper
- Salt
- Filtered water
I didn't add anything spicy so I could keep the dressing kid-friendly, but If you'd like to turn up the heat, add Ā½ of a small deseeded jalapeño or you can also add ā teaspoon cayenne pepper. That will give it the kick you are looking for.
I love the extra creaminess and tang from the yogurt, but feel free to omit it if you don't have it. Just add another small half of avocado. You might need to add a bit more water to thin out (unsweetened soy milk works too).
You can also replace the garlic powder with fresh garlic. I'd use about 1-2 small cloves. If you would like a bit of onion flavor, you can use fresh green onion (about 1 stalk) or a Ā¼ teaspoon of onion powder.
Up next
You may have noticed red onion in the photos or the colorful dish in the background. It's for a recipe I'll be sharing tomorrow, and it's the perfect pairing with this tasty dressing (multitasking at it's finest). Stay tuned!
This Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing can be made into a thicker dip too. Just add another half of avocado and use less water (blend to desired consistency). It goes great with a veggie platter or works well on sandwiches too (like this Roasted Red Pepper Sandwich).
I’d love to hear from you
If you make this Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing, I’d love to hear what you think. It would really make my day. You can also follow me on Instagram and share your creation with me. Just tag me @veganhuggs and hashtag #veganhuggs so I don’t miss it.
š Recipe
Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing
Ingredients
- Ā¼ cup dairy-free yogurt , unsweetened
- Ā½ avocado
- 1 cup cilantro , packed
- 2-3 tablespoons lime juice , fresh-squeezed
- 1 teaspoon agave , more to taste (sub pure maple syrup or any sweetener)
- Ā½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Ā½ teaspoon cumin
- Ā½ teaspoon Himalayan salt , more to taste (or any salt)
- fresh cracked pepper , to taste
- ā -1/2 cup filtered water , as needed
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients into a blender or food processor. Start out with ā cup water, and add as needed. Blend until smooth. * If you want bits of cilantro in the dressing, reserve Ā¼ cup cilantro before starting. Now blend everything else until smooth and add reserved cilantro. Pulse until you've reached desired texture. Taste for seasoning and add as needed.
Notes
Nutrition
Smilia
Thank you for this recipe. It is delicious and very useful for many applications. I make pesto and cilantro pesto was always my favorite, but I haven't tried to grow it for awhile. Since I had just made a big salad with many of the ingredients in your grilled corn salad, I used it over gluten free pasta with fresh tomatoes from my garden and cubed avocados, like a summer pasta, and also on leftover grilled vegetables and rice. It gave the leftovers a wonderful boost. Both were so yummy! I am really happy to add this recipe to my repertoire!
Support @ Vegan Huggs
Hi Smilia! We are so happy to hear that you loved the recipe and were able to pair it with so many different dishes! Glad to hear it has become a go-to for you, thank you for sharing! š
Nicole
Delicious! I made your basic recipe and look forward to trying variations.
Melissa Huggins
I'm so happy you liked it. Thank you for giving it a try. š
Linda
This was delicious. Thanks for sharing! I can't wait to make this for my son when he comes to visit.
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Linda! So glad you liked it. š
Bett
Looks great! I'll probably tweak it a little, but I like the general idea.
A report from the front lines; I'm one of the cilantro-gene people, and I am successfully training -my- brain to like it. I'm also teaching my tongue to like hot food . . . a little at a time! š
This being said, I will probably substitute parsley for some of the cilantro, because for me the way to overcome a dislike is, as I said, a little at a time. I may add in some other herbs as well. Dill for sure, actually, and I'll experiment with others.
Melissa Huggins
I have a few friends with the same cilantro-gene. They hate it! I think it'll taste delicious with the various herbs you mentioned. Thank you for stopping by. š
Kaitlyn
how long does it stay good in the fridge? or should I place in ice cube trays and pull them out of the freezer when i want some dressing? Thank you
Melissa Huggins
Hi Kaitlyn, it's at optimum freshness between 2-3 days. I haven't tried freezing, so I'm not sure how it will turn out. It's worth a shot though. I wish I could be more help. I'd love to hear how it turns out for you. Thanks for stopping by š
Linda P.
Thanks so much for this no-added-oil version of this dressing. Can it be made ahead or will the dressing darken due to the avocado?
Melissa Huggins
Hi Linda, yes, you can make it ahead of time. The color will change slightly, but not much. The lime juice prevents the browning. š