Meet my latest salad dressing obsession! This mint dressing is as refreshing as they get. It’s made with freshly squeezed lemon juice, extra-virgin olive oil, and lots of fresh mint. Honey, Dijon mustard and garlic round out the flavors and make it irresistible.
This dressing is light like a classic vinaigrette, but offers loads of fresh mint flavor. It’s delicious on salads, of course, and I’ve listed some salad ingredients that play especially well with mint dressing below.
This “dressing” is also a fresh and lightly creamy sauce. I bet it would be great on orzo salad, in a pita sandwich, or on cooked fish, if you’re a fish eater. I’m eager to hear how you put it to use.
One of my favorite local salads features a fresh mint dressing (the chisaya mama at The Mixx, which is made with kale, arugula, quinoa, fennel, radish and Parmesan).
I finally developed one of my own for my fattoush salad recipe, but it’s so good that I decided it deserves its own post.
Homemade salad dressings, as a whole, taste infinitely better than the stale store-bought options. This one tastes particularly fresh since it’s loaded with fresh mint!
Mint Dressing Salad Suggestions
This mint dressing would be lovely with any of the following ingredients:
- Greens: kale, arugula, romaine, spring greens
- Berries: blueberries, raspberries, strawberries
- Melon: watermelon, honeydew, cantaloupe
- Peaches
- Radish
- Fennel
- Cucumber
- Carrots
- Tomatoes
- Bell pepper
- Summer squash
- Red onion or green onion
- Fresh herbs: basil, cilantro, chives, dill, parsley
- Beans: chickpeas, lentils
- Whole grains: quinoa, farro, wheat berries
- Cheese: Parmesan, goat cheese, feta
Please tell me how you like this dressing in the comments! If you ever want to change things up, try my green goddess dressing, which is made extra-creamy with Greek yogurt.
Fresh Mint Dressing
- Author:
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 cup 1x
- Category: Salad dressing
- Method: Blended
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
This mint salad dressing recipe is refreshing, delicious and easy to make! You’ll need fresh mint, lemon juice, olive oil, Dijon mustard, and honey or maple syrup. Recipe yields a little over 1 cup.
Ingredients
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
- ¼ cup packed fresh mint (spearmint) leaves (about half of a ⅔ or ¾-ounce package)
- 3 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 10 twists of freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine all of the ingredients and blend until smooth. Taste, and add more salt and/or pepper if necessary. Use as desired!
- This dressing will keep well, covered and refrigerated, for up to 1 week.
Notes
Recipe inspired by The Mixx in Kansas City, and adapted from dressing recipes in my cookbook, Love Real Food.
Make it vegan: Use maple syrup instead of honey.
Vegetable enthusiast. Dog lover. I'm probably making a big mess in my Kansas City kitchen right now. 
Sarah
The recipe was easy to follow and turned out perfectly! I’m not a natural in the kitchen, so this felt great. I’m always assigned the green salad at supper club (guess why!)and even my foodie friends were impressed and wanted the recipe!
★★★★★
Kate
I’m happy it was such a hit! Thank you for your review, Sarah.
Missy
Truthfully, I haven’t made this yet but I certainly shall. The basic vinaigrette is a familiar friend. But the addition of mint is a beautiful, fresh idea.
Fresh mint is absurdly expensive in Dallas grocery stores, unless you drive out to an ethnic shop in the suburbs. Well, I got me a bunch of it right now and I’m delighted to find your recipe
★★★★★
Leptosiphon
Amazing. Seriously. I wanted to just drink the entire batch! Brings salad to life. Amazing.
★★★★★
Kate
I’m glad you loved it! Thank you for your review, Leptosiphon.