Indulge in this fresh and delicious vegan Caesar salad. Made with crisp romaine lettuce, crunchy chickpeas, and crusty bread, this vegan version is sure to be everyone's new favorite salad. Drizzle it with creamy vegan Caesar dressing for the perfect side dish or a delicious lunch on its own!
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💭 Why you'll love this recipe
- Vegan twist. Skip the classic Caesar salad and make this vegan version instead! This easy salad recipe is made with healthy and flavorful ingredients without any dairy, anchovies, or eggs.
- Quick and easy side dish. This recipe is super easy to put together! In less than 20 minutes, you'll have a delicious side for three to five people.
- Make the dressing ahead. This recipe comes with the best vegan Caesar dressing that you can make ahead for easy meal prep throughout the week.
📋 Ingredients and notes
To make vegan Caesar salad recipe, you'll need romaine lettuce, chickpeas, crusty bread, fresh parsley, chives, red onion, salt, and black pepper.
To make vegan Caesar salad dressing, you'll need raw cashews, water lemon juice, capers, dijon mustard, red onion, garlic, water, salt, and pepper.
Notes and variations
- Lettuce. I like to use fresh and crispy romaine lettuce to add crunch to the Caesar salad, but you can also use kale.
- Chickpeas. I like to use raw chickpeas but you can also use roasted chickpeas to add flavor and more crunch to the salad. This doubles as a gluten-free option for the croutons. For a nut-free option, you can use any white beans such as cannellini beans or lima beans.
- Cheese. I didn't use any cheese for this recipe, but you can sprinkle it with some vegan parmesan to make it more flavorful and cheesy!
- Raw cashews. For the dressing, I used raw cashews, but you can also use sunflower seeds to make the recipe nut-free.
- Dijon mustard. I used Dijon mustard for this recipe but you can also use spicy brown mustard or yellow mustard, if in a pinch. And if you want to keep the dressing vegan, don't use honey mustard!
📖 Make the best vegan caesar salad!
Make the dressing:
In a blender or food processor, combine the soaked cashews, water, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, chopped capers, salt, and black pepper to taste.
Blend the dressing ingredients until smooth and creamy. Place in the fridge to chill while you make the croutons. You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Assemble the salad:
Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
Cut or tear the crusty bread into bite-size pieces and place them on a baking sheet. If you don't want to use bread here, you can also make roasted chickpeas as an excellent gluten-free alternative for croutons!
Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the bread is crispy and golden.
In a large mixing bowl, toss lettuce with the chopped parsley, chives, red onion, crispy chickpeas, and crusty bread pieces into the mixing bowl.
Drizzle the homemade vegan Caesar dressing over the salad.
👩🏽🍳 Tips for the best vegan caesar salad
To make the best version of this vegan caesar salad, make sure to follow these expert tips!
- Buy fresh vegetables before serving them for the best results. If you are not going to use them immediately, keep the vegetables fresh in the refrigerator until ready to serve. It's best to keep the vegetables separate in secured containers.
- Mix greens for more crunch. Mix romaine lettuce with kale, arugula, or even butter lettuce for a crunchier bite. Check out this crunchy lemon garlic kale salad or these kale salads for other great salads with a bite!
- Chill the delicious dressing for at least one hour before serving to achieve a thicker consistency and a creamier texture.
- Adjust the acidity of the dressing. Add more lemon juice for a tangier flavor or add more water to dilute the acidity.
- Adjust seasoning to your taste buds. Season with sea salt and black pepper to your liking. Add as much vegan parmesan cheese, lemon juice or lemon zest, and olive oil as you like!
- Store them properly. To keep vegan caesar salad fresh for longer, make sure to keep the ingredients separate in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
👩🏽🍳 Troubleshooting FAQs
No, classic Caesar salad is not vegan because it contains eggs, anchovies, and cheese. But it's super easy to make a vegan version that's just as delicious!
Absolutely! You can add as many vegetables as you like. Avocados, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, and mushrooms are some of the popular options.
Vegan caesar salad is best assembled before serving to keep the vegetables fresh and crisp. However, you can make the caesar salad dressing ahead of time and chill it in the fridge. Drizzle it on the salad before serving!
Yes! The caesar salad dressing uses naturally vegan ingredients. Make sure to use Dijon mustard and not honey mustard to keep all the ingredients vegan.
🍴 Serve and store vegan Caesar salad
Serve vegan Caesar salad as an appetizer, side dish, or main entree. It goes well with almost any main dish that you enjoy. For instance, I love serving this with my vegan Shepherd's pie, or mushroom Wellington as a side salad.
Store the salad separately from the dressing in an airtight container until ready to serve. Place it in the refrigerator to last for up to 3-4 days. You can make the dressing ahead and store it in the refrigerator for up to five days. Once the salad is mixed with the dressing it will only last for a few hours since the lettuce tends to become soggy real quick.
I do not recommend freezing caesar salad as the texture of the vegetables will change after they have been frozen and thawed. But you can freeze the creamy dressing for up to a month in an airtight container.
🥗 More salad recipes:
For more easy and delicious vegetarian / vegan salad recipes, check these out:
- Lemon garlic kale salad
- Roasted beet salad with arugula and grapefruit vinaigrette
- Vegan Niçoise salad
- Spinach avocado salad
- Summer tortellini salad
- Mango avocado salad
📖 Recipe
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Caesar Salad with Dressing
Ingredients
Vegan Caesar Salad
- 1 head romaine lettuce
- ½ can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- ½ loaf crusty bread, torn into bite sized pieces
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
- ¼ cup red onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt, adjust to taste
- ½ teaspoon pepper, adjust to taste
Vegan Caesar Dressing
- ½ cup raw cashews, soaked in water for at least 2 hours
- ½ cup water
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- ¼ cup red onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt, adjust to taste
- ½ teaspoon pepper, adjust to taste
Instructions
Make dressing
- In a blender or food processor, combine the soaked cashews, water, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, chopped capers, salt, and black pepper to taste.
- Blend the dressing ingredients until smooth and creamy. Place in an airtight container in the fridge to chill while you prepare the rest of the salad ingredients.
Assemble salad
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
- Cut or tear the crusty bread into bite-size pieces and place them on a baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the bread is crispy and golden.
- In a large mixing bowl, toss the Romaine lettuce with the chopped parsley, chives, red onion, chickpeas and the crusty bread pieces to the mixing bowl.
- Drizzle the Caesar dressing over the salad.
Notes
- Mix greens or add more vegetables for more crunch. Mix romaine lettuce with kale, arugula, or even butter lettuce for a crunchier bite. You can also add tomatoes, cabbage, or other vegetables to the salad.
- Chill the delicious dressing for at least one hour before serving to achieve a thicker consistency and a creamier texture.
- Store separately. To keep vegan caesar salad fresh for longer, make sure to keep the ingredients separate in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
This sounds delicious. I'll let you know what we think after we try it. Thank you, Shruthi!
Hope this worked out well for you!