gathered nutrition

Spicy Cashew Dressing

by 50 Comments

kale salad with sliced chicken breasts on platter

Inspired by my favoriteee dressing at Sweet Green! The best creamy spicy cashew dressing (paleo and vegan, too)!

If you’ve had the cashew dressing at Sweet Green and are obsessed like I am, this will now be your new favorite recipe. It tastes like the real deal, and it’s easy to make! No soaking of cashew required, as long as you’ve got a high speed blender!

kale salad with sliced chicken breasts on platter
kale salad with sliced chicken breasts on platter

One bite of this and you’ll be hooked!

You just toss everything into a blender, and in a minute or so you’ve got the best ever creamy dressing. The flavor is insane, and it goes so well with so many salads and bowls. Pictures here with some kale and blackened chicken, but you can toss it with any salad, or try it on veggie + rice/quinoa bowls! I love having a batch of this in the fridge at all times. So good!

kale salad with sliced chicken breasts on platter

Homemade dressings are the way to go! It helps to avoid unnecessary additives, weird oils, or any other junk you might find in store bought. This dressing also provides a good source of healthy fat to your meal, making whatever salad or bowl you’re having more filling and satisfying. It’s a flavor win, AND a nutrition win!

I know so many of you have been waiting for me to get this transferred from the old site! Forgive my slowness and thanks for waiting šŸ™‚ You guys are the best!

Enjoy! xx

Print
clock clock icon cutlery cutlery icon flag flag icon folder folder icon instagram instagram icon pinterest pinterest icon facebook facebook icon print print icon squares squares icon

Spicy Cashew Dressing

★★★★★ 4.9 from 28 reviews
  • Author: Mia Zarlengo
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Total Time: 5 minutes
  • Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
  • Category: Lunch, Dinner
Print

Description

The best spicy cashew dressing!

Scale

Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup + 2 tbsp raw cashews
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 3 tbsp filtered water
  • 2 tbsp rice vinegar (can sub white vinegar)
  • 2 tbsp tamari or coconut aminos (can sub soy sauce)
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tsp ginger, minced or grated
  • 1 tsp siracha (more for more spice)
  • Sea salt, to taste
  • Optional: 1 tsp of red pepper flakes (if you like more spice)

Instructions

  1. Add all ingredients to a high speed blender. Blend until smooth.
  2. If dressing is too thick, add up to 2 more tbsp water. Taste and adjust salt/spice level to preference.Ā 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  7. I literally make this all the time! And every time I do someone asks for the recipe! So yummy. Good as a dip or a dressing šŸ™‚

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  10. Obsessed with this dressing! I looked around for a long time online after trying to find a good, easy to make version of this dressing from Sweetgreen. I was thrilled after trying this, and have now made it so many times since I can’t even keep track. SO good, thanks, Mia!!!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  11. Canā€™t wait to try making this tomorrow! Do you know the calories for this? Also what do you do with 2 tbsp raw cashews or 1/3 cup plus 2tbsp? Thank you!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

    • I don’t know the calories on this! Also, do you mean the 1/32 cup + 2 tbsp cashes in the ingredient list? They go in the blender as well!

      Reply

  12. You got this right on! Sweetgreens is my favorite and their spicy cashew dressing is what makes me keep coming back for more. I made yours and instantly knew you got the proportions right. I always throw a little more Sriacha for a spicier twist! Thank you!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  13. Hello! I’ve been searching for the Sweet Green Spicy Cashew dressing for ages and stumbled across your recipe…I just tried it and it tastes EXACTLY like the one used in their Spicy Thai salad. Thank you ever so much šŸ™‚

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  14. this is delicious! I did not add siracha to mine. For those of you that a calorie counting, I put it in my app and it came to 51 calories per tablespoon. 1.4g protein, 3.8g fat, 3.1g carbs.

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  15. This is the best addition to all of my meal prep plans! Easy to make, good enough to eat with a spoon (which I definitely did), and was so great to have on hand for not only salads, but to add to roasted veggie bowls or drizzle on tacos. Iā€™d say itā€™s better than sweetgreenā€™s, and I love knowing exactly whatā€™s in it!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  16. My favorite salad dressing!!! I always make a double (or triple…) batch. So creamy, and I used a little bit less water than called for so this could double as a dip with veggies. Delicious!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  17. Hi,

    Love the recipe thanks, could you recommend anything else instead of the siracha sauce, for the spice ? trying to get it close to sweetgreens spicy cashew !

    Thanks !!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  18. Hi! Can’t wait to make this! Can I used cashews that have been soaked? I soaked too many for my Cashew Cream!
    Thanks!

    Reply

  19. I had to make a couple of edits to this recipe due to available ingredients/preferences. I subbed the sriracha for Olek Sambal Chili Paste (and I added a lot because I love spice!) and I left out the Nutritional Yeast because my stomach can’t tolerate it, but this was absolutely delicious and will totally satisfy my Sweetgreen cravings! Finally!! The only problem is I now have a ton of dressing to get through in one week – any idea how well this freezes?

    ★★★★★

    Reply

    • I’m so glad you enjoyed this!! I actually have not tried freezing it so I can’t say for sure, but it may be ok!

      Reply

  20. I made a homemade vegan version of ‘shroomami salad and added this dressing. Omggg, delicious! And maybe even better than sweetgreen šŸ¤«šŸ˜! All I had on hand for sesame oil was a hot pepper sesame oil, which for me the spicier the better! Thanks!

    Reply

  21. I don’t understand how this recipe has so many five-star reviews. Unfortunately, this was a serious miss for me. The texture was like watered-down cashew butter, and the flavor of the nutritional yeast was overpowering everything else. Most importantly, the flavor was completely off from what this recipe claims to be a “copycat” of. It was so unpalatable that I threw it away even after multiple attempts to improve.

    ★★

    Reply

  22. So good! Tastes just like the dressing I absolutely love from my favourite restaurant in town! Thank you! šŸ™‚

    ★★★★★

    Reply

    • for this recipe there isnā€™t a great sub, but in a pinch you can leave it out but you will probably need to season it more for better flavor! i havenā€™t tried it without it!

      Reply

  25. This dressing is amazing it tastes exactly like the one at Sweetgreen!! I will make this in the future for sure!

    Reply

  28. OMG can’t believe I waited so long to try this. I used Sambal Oelek instead of Sriracha (not a huge sriracha fan) and its amazing!

    Reply

  31. I was eating this by the spoonful!! I put it on some roasted winter veggies and omgggg. I also threw some on a salad. I also stirred some into cauliflower fried rice. Amazing!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  32. Was looking for a re-creation of the spicy cashew dressing from Sweet Green and this is spot on!! Did add a few tbs of water to thin it out. So good!!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  33. Thank you for this recipe! Iā€™ve made it four times this month, and I keep experimenting with different forms of heat as substitute for sriracha. My favorites so far have been 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper (for a real kick), and a teaspoon lao gan ma for a more subtle heat and earthy flavor. I look forward to checking out your other recipes!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Mia Zarlengo Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *