Sun dried tomato dressing combines a handful of simple ingredients, giving it the most incredible flavor! Use the convenient make-ahead dressing for everything from green salads and pasta salads to roasted vegetables, chicken, and fish.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Say goodbye to store-bought salad dressings because this dressing is delicious and easy to make.
- It’s one of my go-to dressings for summer meal prep. It’s perfect for salad, vegetables, and BBQ recipes.
- All you need are a handful of ingredients and five minutes of your time to make the dressing!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes: Use oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes for a bold flavor or dried sun-dried tomatoes, depending on your preference. I highly recommend soaking dried tomatoes in water for at least 30 minutes to rehydrate them and add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil for a smoother dressing.
- Garlic: I use four fresh garlic cloves, but measure with your heart.
- Mayonnaise: Offset the acidity of the tomatoes and tangy vinegar with full-fat mayonnaise, like Duke’s or Hellman’s. Use plain Greek yogurt as a lighter-calorie option.
- Red Wine Vinegar: Tangy, fermented red wine vinegar is a perfect addition to the dressing.
- Dijon Mustard: The tangy Dijon mustard adds to the flavor and helps emulsify the dressing.
- Spices: Include simple spices like dried oregano, salt, and black pepper.
- Olive Oil: Depending on what type of sun-dried tomatoes you use, include a small amount of extra-virgin olive oil or oil from the can of sun-dried tomatoes to work alongside the mayonnaise and water.
- Water: Use as much or as little water as you need to get a pourable consistency.
Additions and Substitutions
- Add honey or agave nectar for a sweeter dressing or a pinch of red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper for a little bit of spice.
- Use balsamic vinegar, sherry vinegar (like I use for my sherry shallot dressing), apple cider vinegar, white wine vinegar, or fresh lemon juice instead of red wine vinegar.
- Replace the mayonnaise in the recipe with Greek yogurt and try tahini, or coconut yogurt for a dairy-free option.
- Take the flavorful dressing up a notch by adding dried Italian seasoning or blend the ingredients with fresh basil leaves or mint leaves.
Tools Used to Make This Recipe
You can use an immersion blender, food processor, or high-speed blender to make the sun-dried tomato dressing recipe. However, I highly recommend using an immersion blender when making salad dressings or sauces that require emulsification because I always have the best results.
Use the tall cup provided with the immersion blender (or one of these meal prep containers) to ensure the blender works properly and to avoid a mess. Transfer the leftover dressing to an airtight container or glass jar.
How to Make Sun Dried Tomato Dressing
The full recipe with measurements is in the recipe card below.
Step 1: Combine the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, mayonnaise, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, and spices with an immersion blender, food processor, or blender.
Step 2: Pour the olive oil into a cup or blender in a slow, steady stream while blending the ingredients.
Then, add water, a little at a time, until you get a pourable consistency.
Step 3: OPTIONAL
Pour the dressing through a fine mesh strainer into an airtight container for storage.
Expert Tips
- Depending on what you use to combine the ingredients for the dressing, you may end up with small chunks of sun-dried tomatoes. That sounds delicious to me, but you can finely chop the sun-dried tomatoes before using them or strain the dressing through a fine mesh strainer for a smooth finish.
- Add water until the dressing has a pourable consistency.
- I recommend blending the ingredients, tasting, and adjusting the salt and pepper until you find the perfect flavor.
Tips for Emulsification
What is Emulsification?
Emulsification is a fancy cooking term that describes combining ingredients that do not naturally mix, such as oil and vinegar, and making them stay together using an emulsifier.
What is an Emulsifier?
An emulsifier acts like a bridge between two opposing ingredients, holding them together in a smooth, stable mixture. The best emulsifiers contain water and oil-friendly properties to help the ingredients combine. The most common emulsifiers include egg yolks, mustard, mayonnaise, soybeans, honey, and xanthan gum.
How to Create a Stable Emulsification
If you want to learn how to make homemade vinaigrette, dressing, hollandaise sauce, aioli, or mayonnaise, then learning how to create a stable emulsification is key. Plus, it’s easier than you think!
- Choose an Emulsifier: Select an emulsifying ingredient based on what you are making.
- Combine the Ingredients: Mix the water-based ingredients, such as vinegar or lemon juice with an emulsifier.
- Slowly Add Oil: Add a few drops, then pour the oil gradually in a slow, steady stream while whisking or blending the ingredients. The gradual addition helps to achieve a stable emulsion (so the two liquids combine instead of separate).
- Adjust the Consistency: If the mixture gets too thick, add more water-based liquid to thin it out while continuing to mix.
If you enjoy the dressing, pair it with one of these salad recipes!
Serving Suggestions
Toss your favorite salads like arugula spinach salad and arugula quinoa salad with the zesty sun dried tomato dressing. Drizzle it over al dente pasta, feta cheese, or your favorite pasta salads. The delicious dressing is also an easy way to flavor to grain bowls, or you can serve it as a dipping sauce with savory quinoa balls, meatballs, roasted vegetables, or vegetable crudite.
What to do with the Leftovers
- Refrigerate: Store the leftover sauce in an airtight container. Sun dried tomato dressing will keep for one week.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some ideas for how to use sun-dried tomato dressing?
The flavor of sun-dried tomatoes in the dressing tastes delicious with pasta salad, roasted vegetables, frittatas, and meat dishes like stuffed peppers, baked chicken, and fish.
Spread the creamy dressing over bread, wraps, pizza, and appetizers like bruschetta.
Use the dressing as a marinade before cooking chicken or seafood on the grill, and replace traditional pasta sauce for noodles or lasagna with the dressing.
Spoon the sun dried tomato dressing over hummus, butter boards, or serve it in a decorative bowl on a charcuterie board with pita chips.
How to use dry sun dried tomatoes?
Jarred sun-dried tomatoes are ready to eat right away. However, if using the dried, sun-dried tomatoes in a bag, soak them in water for at least 30 minutes before blending with the other ingredients. I also recommend including 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil for a smoother consistency.
Can I make my own sun dried tomatoes?
1. Wash a handful of fresh tomatoes thoroughly. Cut them in half lengthwise and quarter larger tomatoes. You can remove the seeds to speed up the drying process.
2. Sprinkle the tomatoes generously with your favorite salt.
3. Arrange the tomatoes, cut-side-up, on a baking sheet or towel with space between the tomatoes.
4. Move them to a sunny spot with good airflow and cover them with a breathable towel or cheesecloth. Leave the tomatoes for 5-10 days until the tomatoes are leathery and no longer juicy.
5. Store the sundried tomatoes in an airtight container or jar. To increase the shelf life, pack the dry tomatoes in a jar with olive oil and aromatics like garlic and herbs for extra flavor.
More Homemade Sauces:
Sun Dried Tomato Dressing
- Airtight Container
- ⅓ cup sun-dried tomatoes
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (if using dried sun-dried tomatoes)
- ½ cup water
- Combine the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, mayonnaise, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, and spices with an immersion blender, food processor, or blender.
- Pour the olive oil into a cup or blender in a slow, steady stream while blending the ingredients. Then, add water, a little at a time, until you get a pourable consistency.
- OPTIONAL: Pour the dressing through a fine mesh strainer into an airtight container for storage.
- Depending on what you use to combine the ingredients for the dressing, you may end up with small chunks of sun-dried tomatoes. That sounds delicious to me, but you can finely chop the sun-dried tomatoes before using them or strain the dressing through a fine mesh strainer for a smooth finish.
- Add water until the dressing has a pourable consistency.
- I recommend blending the ingredients, tasting, and adjusting the salt and pepper until you find the perfect flavor.
- The nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for professional advice.