This honey mustard dressing recipe is simple to prepare in just minutes and then drizzle over everything! The honey mustard vinaigrette is sharp, tangy, and sweet with a robust flavor and hint of spice, and can be made into a healthy creamy version (with or without mayo) and even vegan honey mustard!
Recently, I’ve started sharing a lot of fresh summery salads on my blog, including a roasted beetroot and goat cheese salad, simple avocado cucumber tomato salad, Panzanella salad (Tuscan bread salad), and Thai green papaya salad. With the influx in salads, I thought it was the perfect time to increase my collection of salad dressings. So, here’s introducing this delicious honey mustard salad dressing.
While I admit, lots of the time, I’m perfectly pleased with a simple olive oil vinaigrette, I know that isn’t the same for most people, and even I sometimes crave something a little creamier, richer, or sweeter. So, along with a creamy avocado cilantro sauce and several berry salad dressings, including raspberry, strawberry, and blackberry dressing – now it’s the turn of this sweet and tangy honey mustard dressing recipe!
This honey mustard dressing contains just four ingredients (all of which are pantry basics – plus salt and pepper). It’s also ready in practically two minutes and even doubles as a sauce/dip. It’s tangy and bold, with a mixture of tart, sweet, and tangy flavors, with a hint of spice from the mustard that pairs wonderfully with leafy salads and roasted veggies. Better yet, unlike most store-bought options, this homemade dressing is refined sugar-free and contains nothing artificial!
Best of all, within this post, I’ve included a method for a simple honey mustard vinaigrette, a creamy honey mustard dressing, and even a vegan no honey mustard salad dressing! So make whichever you’re in the mood for and tweak any of the ingredients to personal preference (another bonus for making it homemade), then enjoy! It will add a wonderful tangy burst of flavor to whatever you eat it with!
The Ingredients
- Olive oil: this will help to emulsify the honey mustard dressing for a silky mouthfeel. I recommend a good quality extra virgin olive oil with a light flavor.
- Vinegar: I used white wine vinegar; however, you could also use apple cider vinegar. You could also use a combination of vinegar and lemon juice for added brightness.
- Honey: honey wonderfully balances the tangy flavor from the mustard and vinegar. I use high-quality honey for the most health benefits.
- Mustard: I use wholegrain mustard. A good quality Dijon mustard can also be used (honey Dijon dressing is delicious!). Avoid generic yellow mustard (technically, it’s OK to use, but the results just aren’t as good!) or mustard powder.
- Salt & Pepper.
Optional Add-Ins and Variations
- Vegan honey mustard: there are two ways to enjoy vegan honey mustard. The first is to use a vegan honey alternative, like dandelion “honey”, which is similar in taste. Alternatively, you can make something similar using maple syrup.
- Creamy honey mustard: if you want a creamy version of this dressing, you can reduce the oil somewhat (to ¼ cup) and add Greek yogurt or sour cream (start with ¼ cup and increase to taste) or mayo, but yogurt is much lighter. For a dairy-free option, use a dairy-free Greek-style yogurt or coconut yogurt. I prefer to use at least 2%+ fat, but you can use fat-free if desired.
- Honey mustard sauce: omit the olive oil entirely and combine the honey, mustard, and Greek yogurt (or mayo).
- Garlic: feel free to add a little fresh minced garlic or garlic paste (to taste) to the dressing. Alternatively, you can substitute the regular olive oil for garlic-infused oil. I recommend using one clove to begin and increasing to taste.
- Shallot: like garlic, shallots help to add depth of flavor and a little extra texture. I recommend 1 tablespoon minced shallot to begin, increased to personal preference.
- For spice: you can use hot mustard or combine hot mustard with regular to add more spice to this recipe.
- Herbs: while adding herbs will impact the shelf life negatively (aim to use within a week at most), they can add extra flavor. I recommend parsley as my favorite option, though chives would also work.
How to Make Honey Mustard Dressing
Place all the ingredients either in a small bowl or a jar with an airtight lid. If using a bowl, use a small whisk to whisk together the ingredients (or a handheld frother). If using a jar, seal the lid and shake vigorously for several seconds until all the ingredients are well mixed.
Taste and adjust any ingredients to personal preference, and then use the honey mustard vinaigrette immediately or save for later.
How to Store
Store the honey mustard salad dressing in an airtight glass container like a mason jar for up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator. Give it a good shake each time before using as the emulsion can separate somewhat in the fridge.
How to Use Honey Mustard Dressing?
There are several ways to enjoy this honey mustard vinaigrette/dressing, including:
- As a salad dressing – especially with lots of leafy greens and salads like this beetroot goat cheese one.
- Over grains and grain bowls – I love to make quick grain bowls combining leftover quinoa, brown rice, etc., with leftover veggies and greens for a simple, nutritious mid-week meal.
- To dress a cold pasta salad (perhaps with homemade egg pasta, vegan pasta, oat pasta, or even beet or spinach pasta).
- Use to marinate, baste, or glaze meats and tofu.
- Use as a dip for crudites like peppers, cucumber, etc. You could also use it as a dip for fries, sweet potato fries, and crispy eggplant fries.
- Drizzle over sauteed, stir-fried, and roasted vegetables – like this roasted cauliflower.
- Drizzle over hard-boiled eggs and other egg dishes.
- The thicker “creamy” version works well as a spread over sandwiches and wraps.
Let me know in the comments what your favorite ways of enjoying this honey mustard dressing are!
FAQs
Surprisingly, yes, I would say so! Although this depends on how much you’re using in one go. It’s low-carb, gluten-free, refined-sugar-free, and filled with heart-healthy olive oil. Even better, the combination of sweet and sour and tangy makes for a wonderful honey Dijon dressing or dip that encourages you to eat more veggies, so that’s a win-win for sure!
You sure can. I tend not to when using wholegrain mustard, as I like the texture of the seeds and don’t want them broken down too much. However, when using a smooth Dijon mustard, then an immersion blender will whip the honey mustard vinaigrette into a perfect emulsion in seconds!
This seems to be a divisive topic. However, most vegans I’ve spoken to agree that any product where something is “taken” from an animal, even without it being meat (like eggs, milk, and honey), is all non-vegan. While it’s not technically derived from the animal, it’s still taken from bees and thus isn’t vegan. There are especially issues surrounding the way it’s harvested.
Recipe Notes
- Tweak the ingredients: since this honey mustard vinaigrette/dressing is homemade, it means it’s super easy to tweak to personal preference.
- Make this dressing vegan: it’s simple to adjust this to vegan honey mustard with the use of a vegan honey alternative like apple honey or dandelion honey. You could even use maple sauce (it won’t taste the exact same, but will have the same sweet and spicy/tangy flavor overall).
- Make sure to shake before using: this honey Dijon dressing can break immersion slightly in the fridge. So always shake it before each use!
Other Simple Sauce Recipes
- Creamy Roasted Garlic Dressing
- Authentic Chimichurri (plus variations)
- Homemade harissa paste
- Garlic and chili-infused honey sauce
- Quick gyoza sauce
- Ginger Salad Dressing
- The Best Asian Salad Dressing
If you try this simple honey mustard dressing recipe, I’d love to hear your thoughts/questions below. Also, I’d appreciate a recipe card rating below, and feel free to tag me in your recipe recreations on Instagram @Alphafoodie!
Honey Mustard Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup vinegar white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar. Or combo of vinegar and lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon honey or dandelion "honey" (for vegan)
- 1 teaspoon wholegrain mustard or Dijon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Check the recipe notes below for Optional Add-ins and Variations!
Instructions
- Place all the ingredients either in a small bowl or a jar with an airtight lid. If using a bowl, use a small whisk to whisk together the ingredients (or a handheld frother).If using a jar, seal the lid and shake vigorously for several seconds until all the ingredients are well mixed.
- Taste and adjust any ingredients to personal preference, and then use the dressing immediately or save for later.
How to Store
- Store the honey mustard dressing in an airtight glass container like a mason jar for up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator. Give it a good shake each time before using as the emulsion can separate somewhat in the fridge.
Notes
- Tweak the ingredients: since this honey mustard vinaigrette/ dressing is homemade, it means it’s super easy to tweak any of the ingredients to personal preference.
- Make this dressing vegan: it’s simple to adjust this to vegan honey mustard with the use of a vegan honey alternative like apple honey or dandelion honey or even use maple sauce (it won’t taste the exact same with maple but will have the same sweet and spicy/tangy flavor overall).
- Make sure to shake before using:Â this honey Dijon dressing can break immersion slightly in the fridge, so always shake it before each use!
- Vegan honey mustard: there are two ways to enjoy vegan honey mustard. The first is to use a vegan honey alternative, like dandelion “honey”, which is similar in taste. Alternatively, you can make something similar using maple syrup.
- Creamy honey mustard: if you want a creamy version of this dressing, you can reduce the oil somewhat (to ¼ cup) and add Greek yogurt or sour cream (start with ¼ cup and increase to taste) or mayo, but yogurt is much lighter. For a dairy-free option, use a dairy-free Greek-style yogurt or coconut yogurt. I prefer to use at least 2%+ fat, but you can use fat-free if desired.
- Honey mustard sauce: omit the olive oil entirely and combine the honey, mustard, and Greek yogurt (or mayo).
- Garlic: feel free to add a little fresh minced garlic or garlic paste (to taste) to the dressing. Alternatively, you can substitute the regular olive oil for garlic-infused oil. I recommend using one clove to begin and increasing to personal taste
- Shallot: like garlic, shallots help to add depth of flavor and a little extra texture. I recommend 1 tablespoon minced shallot to begin, increased to personal preference.
- For spice: you can use hot mustard or combine hot mustard with regular to add more spice to this recipe.
- Herbs: while adding herbs will impact the shelf life negatively (aim to use within a week at most), they can add extra flavor. I recommend parsley as my favorite option, though chives would also work.
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