Creamy Herb Yogurt Salad Dressing

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Creamy, tangy, and made with any fresh herbs you have on hand, Creamy Herb Yogurt Salad Dressing is super versatile. Serve it on green salads, for dipping vegetables or pita chips, or tossed into a pasta salad.

Yogurt Herb Dressing in a small mason jar

This is a dressing that I started making years ago in the summer. I buried it in this recipe for Spring Cobb Salad but have been making it so much lately that I wanted to bring it back with a little extra love. This dressing is the kind that I love having in the refrigerator because I use it just about any time we need something for dipping, topping, or tossing. It’s very light – made mostly with plain yogurt – so it really works in a variety of ways. It’s also super easy to make. Here’s how!

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ingredients for yogurt herb dressing -- honey, yogurt, dijon mustard, garlic, lemon, cilantro, and basil

Ingredients for Creamy Herb Yogurt Dressing

  • Fresh Herbs – These give the dressing most of its flavor, and just about any fresh herbs will work. I love to combine any leftover fresh herbs I have in the fridge to make different flavor combinations. Basil, parsley, green onions, mint, chives, and cilantro are all good options. (Tip – a combination of basil, chives, and a bit of fresh dill here makes a dressing that tastes a bit like Ranch Dressing.)
  • Garlic – Add a clove of garlic here for savory flavor. 
  • Plain Yogurt – I use plain, nonfat yogurt here (either Greek or regular). The only thing you have to watch for is that the type of yogurt you use will affect the thickness of the dressing. Greek yogurt is thicker than most regular yogurt, so you may need to thin the dressing out with a tiny bit of water if you use the Greek variety.
  • Mayonnaise – While you can skip the mayo here, a little bit goes a long way to give the dressing a creamy, rich texture and flavor.
  • Dijon Mustard, Lemon Juice, and Honey – These ingredients give the dressing a balance of tart, tangy, and sweet flavors. It’s a good idea to taste the vinaigrette and adjust these to fit your preferences.

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Pouring herb yogurt dressing into a small mason jar

How to Make Creamy Yogurt Salad Dressing

Unlike many other vinaigrettes and salad dressings, there’s no oil in this one, so no need to worry about emulsifying the dressing (adding the oil slowly so that you get a smooth dressing). Just combine all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. If you have an immersion blender, use that to blend everything together in a jar or small bowl. (Note: if using a larger blender, you’ll need to be sure that the blades of the blender or food processor sit low enough to be immersed in the ingredients as they blend.)

As noted above, the thickness of the dressing will change depending on the type of yogurt you use. If using a thick type of yogurt, you may need to add a tiny bit of water to thin the dressing out.

The most important step is to taste the finished dressing and adjust to your preferences. Depending on the type of herbs you use, you may want to alter the flavors to add some sweetness from more honey or more sour flavor from lemon juice.

overhead image of ingredients for herb salad dressing in a glass jar

Ways to Use Creamy Herb Dressing

  • Dipping Vegetables
  • Dipping chips or pita bread
  • Dressing pasta salad (it goes well with a pasta salad like this one) 
  • Dipping appetizers (I’ve got a good one coming tomorrow!) 
  • Serving over roasted or grilled vegetables
  • Drizzling over cooked meats

More Homemade Sauce and Dressing Recipes

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Yogurt Herb Dressing in a glass jar
4.60 from 5 votes

Creamy Herb Yogurt Salad Dressing

Creamy, tangy, and made with any fresh herbs you have on hand, Creamy Herb Yogurt Salad Dressing is super versatile. Serve it on green salads, for dipping vegetables or pita chips, or tossed into a pasta salad.
Want to adjust the servings in this recipe to make more or less? Click on the number next to servings below.
Prep: 10 minutes
Total: 10 minutes
Servings: 4

Equipment

  • Immersion Blender

Ingredients 

  • 1 Tablespoon Chopped Fresh Herbs (any mix of herbs like basil, parsley, green onions, cilantro)
  • 1/3 cup Plain Yogurt
  • 1 Tablespoon Mayonnaise
  • 1/2 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
  • 1 teaspoon Lemon Juice
  • 1/4 teaspoon Honey
  • 1 clove Garlic, peeled

Instructions 

  • Combine fresh herbs, plain yogurt, mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, honey, and garlic clove in a jar (if using an immersion blender) or the bowl of a food processor or blender.
  • Blend until smooth. If the mixture is too thick to use as a salad dressing (thickness will vary depending on the type of yogurt used), add water a bit at a time and continue to blend until smooth and pourable.
  • Taste the dressing and adjust if needed. Depending on the type of herbs you use, you may want to alter the flavors to add some sweetness from more honey or more sour flavor from lemon juice.
  • Can be made up to 4 days ahead. Stir well before serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 40kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 4mg | Sodium: 39mg | Potassium: 32mg | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 104IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Author: Jess Smith via Inquiring Chef
Cost: $3.00
Calories: 40
Keyword: herb salad dressing, homemade dressing, homemade sauce, salad dressing
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About Jess Smith

Jess is the recipe creator and photographer at InquiringChef.com. She spent nearly a decade as the Chief Recipe Developer for the award-winning meal planning app Cook Smarts. Her colorful, healthyish recipes have been featured in popular online publications including Parade, Hallmark, and HuffPost.

4.60 from 5 votes (5 ratings without comment)

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3 Comments

  1. I just made yogurt for the first time and since the quantity was too much for one person, I decided to look for recipes for salad dressing with yogurt. I tried and I loved it! Of course I doubled the garlic as I love garlic. I was too lazy to haul out the processor and so despite just chopping up basil (from my balcony garden), it was OK in texture. Thank you!