Turmeric Salad Dressing – Creating an Anti-inflammatory Turmeric Recipe for Salad Dressing just a whole lot easier. For quite a while, I have been working on this salad dressing recipe and now that I’ve done it, I am using it on everything.
Initially, I made this turmeric recipe to dress a spinach and goji berry salad but have since used it moisten and flavor my grain and veggie bowl lunch, as a marinade for chicken thighs and as the dressing for a white bean, carrot and quinoa side we had with dinner last night. I just can’t get enough of it!
3 Big Benefits of Cooking With Turmeric
Before we get into the ins-and-outs of this Turmeric Salad Dressing, I want to share with you why you should add turmeric into your diet! This is much more than just a spice to use for flavor. Turmeric has numerous health benefits to offer! Turmeric is an incredible anti-inflammatory agent for our bodies. Curcumin, the main active ingredient in turmeric is what brings out the powerful anti-inflammatory effects and acts like a strong antioxidant.
#1: Turmeric Curcumin is a known anti-inflammatory
In order to see the effectiveness of this spice, you would need to exceed 1 gram a day — which is tough to do if you’re not easy our salad dressing or other turmeric laden recipes. We don’t trust many, but we know this one supplement can be.
#2: Turmeric can increase the body’s antioxidant capacity
This spice can help fight chronic inflammation and is of utmost important when trying to preventing and treat chronic and inflammatory diseases.
#3: Using Turmeric can help prevent cancer
The major ingredient of turmeric powder is curcumin, which has normally been the subject of any medical research on this topic. Studies have shown that curcumin significantly slows the growth of breast cancer cells which were started by exposure to pesticides. And in combination with a soy protein the effect was even stronger. You can read more about it here.
Be Careful Cooking With Turmeric
My only regret with the turmeric recipe was that I made it while wearing my new white top. And I didn’t just spill a teensy bit either. If you’ve ever cooked with turmeric you are probably guessing I just threw the top out, which I would have done if it weren’t for Branch Basics Laundry Boost (it’s only $10 for 2 lbs — enough for 32 full loads!).
Turmeric Recipe Description
The funny thing is, as much as I love the salad dressing turmeric recipe I am having the hardest time ever trying to describe just what in the world it actually tastes like. I would say it is definitely savory and much more lemony and nutty than turmeric-y.
The thing is, as intensely colored as turmeric is, it’s flavor is not nearly as strong. I wouldn’t go so far as to say turmeric is super tasty, but it is a rather mild-tasting spice and that makes it great for sneaking into any number of recipes (we have a number of turmeric recipes on the blog, by the way.) In this particular salad dressing recipe, the flavors of the garlic, lemon and Dijon mustard overpower the turmeric. And that’s a good thing in my book.
For the record though, I do not set about putting the golden spice in my recipes because I love the flavor of turmeric. Instead, I’m really all about the health benefits. And there are SO many!! Just this one article alone shows how the benefits of turmeric trump at least 10 different medications. For example, did you know turmeric has been studied head to head against Prozac for the treatment of depression?
But really, you don’t need to be looking for an Rx alternative to make the salad dressing recipe because it really does taste good (if I do say so myself.)
How to Use Turmeric Salad Dressing
You might think the answer to question: “How do you use Turmeric Salad Dressing?” might seem quite obvious…on top of salad of course! And while our Turmeric Dressing does make a delicious salad drizzle, there are many other ways to use it as well!
Try our Turmeric Salad Dressing….
As a Dip: Don’t let that extra dressing go to waste…use it as a dip! Our Turmeric Dressing is the perfect dip for protein (chicken, turkey, etc.), or even veggies! We especially love this with Chicken Nuggets.
To Marinade Chicken: Throw your chicken in your leftover Turmeric Dressing for a seriously delicious chicken marinade with some extra health benefits!
As a Spread: When most people think of sandwiches or hamburgers, they automatically go to mayonnaise, ketchup, or other common condiments. However, our Turmeric Salad Dressing is a great, anti-inflammatory alternative that will add a unique flavor to your dish! We love it with our Hamburger Recipe on Grill.
To Top Loaded Baked Potatoes: Want to load your baked potato just a little bit more? Try drizzling our Turmeric Salad Dressing on for some extra flavor!
Try one of these anti-inflammatory turmeric recipes:
- Golden Latte
- Turmeric Salad Dressing
- Mood-Boosting Turmeric Smoothie
- Slow Cooker Turmeric Chicken
- Turmeric Detox Pops
- Pain-Reducing Turmeric Tea
- Turmeric-Ginger Detox Shots
Quick, easy, and oh-so-tasty, you’re going to love this recipe! Ready for the details? Let’s get into it.
Kitchen Favorites
Anti-Inflammatory Turmeric Recipe for Salad Dressing
Mild tasting turmeric recipe for salad dressing that is full of flavor and healthy. Great for salads, marinade for chicken, dipping sauce for vegetables and so much more.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Dressing
- Method: Food Processor
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil OR cold pressed (unrefined avocado oil)
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons raw honey
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons hemp seeds
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 unrefined salt
Instructions
Place all ingredients in a mini processor and process until smooth and creamy.
Chrissy says
Are the hemp seeds necessary? My mother inaw can’t eat seeds due to diverticulitis so would like to omit but not ruin the flavor
Madison Suttles says
Hi Chrissy,
The hemp seeds make this recipe creamier, but do not have a significant impact on flavor. Your dressing without hemp seeds may be a bit thinner, but should taste very similar to the original!
I hope this helps,
Madison
Lois Crossman says
Thank you! I made this without the seeds and it was absolutely delicious!! Definitely a keeper!!
★★★★★
Aimee Niedosik says
Thank you for sharing Lois — it’s one of our favorites!
Pd says
Can’t wait to try this!
★★★★★
Madison Suttles says
We hope you love it! Please let us know what you think!
Madison
MamaBear says
Much better than I expected it to be. 👍🏻 I added it to my “keepers” file. I made the X3 recipe. I did add 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. I’m a sucker for a little tangy in my dressings. I didn’t have any hemp seeds so I did chia seeds instead.
★★★★★
MamaBear says
Since chia seeds swell, I did 9 teaspoons chia seeds instead of 9 tablespoons of hemp seeds.
★★★★★
Aimee Harris Niedosik says
Oh wow — thank you so much for the feedback and for telling us how you modified it. This will be so helpful to our visitors!
Lydia says
Can flax seeds be a substitute for hemp seeds?
Aimee Harris Niedosik says
Yes, absolutely. Great idea. I use them interchangeable too!
Lydia says
Thank you!
Suzy says
Thank you for sharing the recipe. Loved the flavor and nice to know how good it is for you. Made it just as it was written. Added it to my list of favorites.
★★★★★
Aimee Harris Niedosik says
You’re welcome Suzy — this is one of our favorites for reducing inflammation in our diet! So glad you loved it.
Phyllis says
Looking forward to trying this recipe…. my son loves salads of any kind and especially homemade dressings, which he makes himself
Ivy Larson says
Hi Phyllis! Oh I so hope he likes it =) Please do keep me posted!
brittany maples says
Yum! Made this tonight and served on a strawberry and chicken salad. No complaints from the kids! Will be saving and making a larger batch to keep in the fridge.
Madison Suttles says
That’s great to hear! We’re so happy everyone liked it!
carole says
I would like to know the fat and carb/sugar/calorie content of your recipes.
thanks.
carole.
Ivy Larson says
Hi Carole, I know this is a question a lot of readers ask but we purposely do not include calorie/ carb/ fat/ etc breakdowns. This blog post helps explain why: https://cleancuisine.com/calorie-counting-is-not-helpful-all-calories-are-not-equal/ Please do let me know if you have any additional questions after reading it. I hope it helps clarify!
Kylie says
This was great. The whole family (kids and adults) enjoyed it. Served it over bowls that had quinoa, avo, roasted sweet potatoes, shredded carrots and some misc brown rice and veggies. basically a really good sauce to use to clean out the fridge!
I found this recipe looking for a turmeric dressing and will check out this blog for more!
★★★★★
Ivy Larson says
Hi Kylie! Thank you so much for the positive feedback =) And I am thrilled to hear the kids like it too! Here’s another Turmeric recipe that’s great for summer that I think the kids might also like: https://cleancuisine.com/turmeric-smoothie/
Please let me know if you try it (or any of the others on the blog!)
Kaytee says
What brand of dijon mustard do you use? Whenever I look for mustard, they all have sugar in them.
Ivy Larson says
Hi Kaytee, I mostly use Annie’s brand organic…it definitely does not have sugar, but I am not sure about the other organic brands?
Kimberly Hoover-Frey says
Do you use fresh grated or powdered tumeric for this? I’d like to try fresh-grated but am not sure if I should use more or less than 2 teaspoons. Thanks.
Ivy Larson says
Hi Kimberly! I use powdered turmeric for this one. I do think fresh could work though (although to be honest, I don’t have as much experience cooking with fresh turmeric). However, I think powdered is definitely more potent so if you are going with fresh you may want to double the amount.
Please let me know how it turns out if you give it a try!
Kimberly Hoover-Frey says
Thanks, Ivy. I tried it with powdered and the taste is great but I couldn’t get the texture to be as liquid as yours appears to be. Mine was like a thick sauce. I first used my mini food processor that is an extension of a handheld immersion blender–not a true food processor–and that left chunks. I transferred it to the Vitamix, but the volume was too small to do anything except splatter it around the container 🙂 So, I did mix a bit into salad and my kids actually liked it. I’ll use the rest to bake with chicken and try again if I invest in a proper mini food processor. Thanks.
Ivy Larson says
Thank you so much for the feedback Kimberly! And I am SO glad the kids liked it (YAY!!) The part about the vitamix splattering made me laugh though because that happens to me more often than you might think lol 😉
Heather says
Just made this! Does it need to be refrigerated?
Ivy Larson says
Hi Heather, Yes! You should absolutely refrigerate it. I store mine in a mason jar and it keeps for about a week.
Angela says
I LOVE this dressing! I have RA so I am especially thankful for this recipe beyond the rich taste. Thank you.
★★★★★
Ivy Larson says
Hi Angela, oh so good to know! I am thrilled to know you like it so much. Thank you for letting me know =)
Stephanie Cahill says
This sounds amazing Ivy! I can’t wait to try it. Turmeric is such a great anti-inflammatory and I’m looking for other ways to incorporate it in my diet. Thanks!
Ivy Larson says
I so hope you like it Stephanie! And yes, the anti-inflammatory benefits are pretty amazing. I make a point to have turmeric in some form everyday and it really does make a difference.