If you want to change up your salad game, the easiest way is to use a new salad dressing. This Peanut Lime Salad dressing is sweet, savory, tangy, and creamy all in one! And vegan, too! It’s the perfect dressing for any Asian inspired cabbage salad, but can also be drizzled over grilled chicken, shrimp, or vegetables.
What Type of Oil Should I Use?
I’ve listed “neutral oil” in the ingredients list to give you some flexibility. A neutral oil is any oil that is not heavily flavored. They tend to be light in color and carry no overpowering flavor, making them great for sauces and dressings. I used an avocado oil today, which is a bit more expensive, but you can use canola, vegetable, grape seed, corn, peanut, sesame (not toasted), or safflower, among others.
How Long Does Peanut Lime Dressing Last?
Because this dressing contains fresh ingredients, like garlic and ginger, you should only keep this dressing for about 5 days in the refrigerator. Luckily, this makes a fairly small batch, so hopefully you’ll use it all up by that time!
What Should I Serve Peanut Lime Dressing With?
I love it with crunchy cabbage salads, but it’s also great on noodles, tofu, grilled chicken or shrimp, or even grilled or roasted vegetables. I think once you give it a taste you’ll start pouring it on just about everything. ;) Here are a few recipes where I’ve used this Peanut Lime Dressing:
- Cold Peanut Noodle Salad
- Baked Sweet Potato Fries with Peanut Lime Dressing
- Peanut Tofu Noodle Bowls
2019 Updates: I made two small adjustments to the original recipe from 2013. First, I added 1 Tbsp more peanut butter to make the dressing thicker (I’m using a different brand of peanut butter than I originally did, so that may account for the different texture). Second, I added a little fresh ginger because I thought that would add just a bit more pizazz!
Peanut Lime Dressing
Servings 4 about 2.5 Tbsp eachIngredients
- 3 Tbsp natural-style peanut butter ($0.21)
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.04)
- 1 clove garlic, minced ($0.08)
- 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger ($0.05)
- 1 medium lime, juiced (2 Tbsp juice) ($0.69)
- 2 tsp soy sauce ($0.08)
- 1/4 cup neutral oil* ($0.82)
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients in a bowl or blender. Whisk or blend until smooth.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to five days.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
Scroll down for the step by step photos…
How to Make Peanut Lime Dressing – Step by Step Photos
First juice the lime. You’ll need about 2 Tbsp juice. Roll the lime on your countertop while applying pressure before cutting it open to maximize the amount of juice you get from the lime.
Combine 3 Tbsp peanut butter, 1 Tbsp brown sugar, 1 clove of garlic (minced), and about 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger in a bowl or blender.
Also add the 2 Tbsp lime juice, 2 tsp soy sauce, and 1/4 cup neutral oil. I used avocado oil, but if you want a more budget friendly option you can use canola, vegetable, safflower, peanut, or grape seed oil.
Whisk or blend the ingredients together until smooth. If you are whisking by hand it may look a little chunky at first, but keep whisking and it will form a smooth emulsion.
Use the peanut lime dressing immediately, or refrigerate for up to five days. See this recipe used in my Cold Peanut Noodle Salad!
Ooooh. Swap the canola for a toasted sesame oil- you’ll die and go to heaven!!! 😳
What an easy, mouthwatering recipe that no one could guess is also frugal. Thank you so much for sharing it. I’m looking forward to trying it soon, and featured it as Recipe of the Day today on my Facebook foodie page, Cooking with Whole Grains & Real Whole Foods.
When I first made this dressing, I had neither a neutral oil nor garlic on hand. So I skipped the garlic and adjusted the consistency with water instead. The fat in the peanut butter was more than enough to create a rich mouth-feel and creamy consistency for me. It became my by far most favorite dressing instantly.
Since it was gone in no time, I made a 2nd batch with garlic. Maybe it’s because of the water substitution, but the garlic was very strong even though I used just one clove. So at least for me I’ll go back to leaving the garlic out and let the peanut butter run the show. In any case this is going to be a staple at my house from now on!
I’ve made a ton of budget bytes recipes, and this was on my “to-try” list for a long time now. I finally made it tonight, and DAAAAAYAMN, THIS DRESSING IS SO GOOD. It blew my mind. I ate it on the crunchy Asian salad, as per recommendation, and OH MY GOD. It was absolutely life-changing. I don’t usually leave reviews, but I just had to today. This dressing was too good. I’m off to tell everyone I know about this dressing.
I love food, and I love BudgetBytes. Thank you, Beth.
would this be good with a salad with cheese on it
Hmm, I can’t think of a cheese that I think would pair well with this dressing.
Yumm!!!!!! I LOVE peanut butter, this is amazing even as a simple salad dressing!
Hi Beth, I made this dressing to go with your Asian slaw and it was a huge hit in our house! I’ve made it a couple if times this week. Definite keeper!
This stuff is like crack! I look forward to eating salad with this as a topper and disdain all other dressing now. Thanks for another homerun, Beth!
Delicious ! Can’t stop eating it. Chopped up all my veggies and then realized we had no soy sauce so I substituted soy/ginger sauce instead. Recipe is definitely a keeper.
Ohhhhhh myyyyy goodness. As if I don’t already love your teriyaki meatballs with coconut rice… Adding this has taken them to an all new level! Just like the other commenters, I was literally licking this one out of the blender!
I made one huge mistake when I made this tonight – I only made one batch! Next time I’m going to have to double or triple it so I have it stored for the week. Absolutely delicious!
OMG! This stuff is AMAZING! I tossed it into my crunchy Asian slaw but couldn’t wait for dinner to try it, so I ate some of the slaw out of the blender container just so that not a single drop of the dressing went to waste. I made the mistake of preparing dinner a few hours in advance and now I’m not sure there will be any of the slaw left to serve my family! Yet another win!
I made this dressing to top the crunchy Asian salad for dinner to serve alongside your teriyaki meat ball bowls (which were AWESOME by the way!) and it was just fantastic. I made it in the food processor and was licking the blade attachment it was that good!
I did add the zest from the lime as well – it added a nice floral lime flavour. Thank you for this fantastic meal – can’t wait for your cookbook!
Can you substitute olive oil?
You can, but it will change the flavor. Maybe try a light olive oil instead of extra virgin. You don’t want to use anything that is strongly flavored.
You and I use the same natural peanut butter – that brand is tops! I buy the large jar. Find it pretty cheap at evil mart. I read somewhere to store it upside down – which I do – and never have to mix it up. I also use it so quick I don’t store it in the fridge…I have everything on hand so I’ll give this dressing a try – thanks!