Aquafaba blue cheese or ranch dressing

Whether traditional or made from tofu like these “wings” from Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s cookbook, Fake Meat: Real Food for Vegan Appetites, no Buffalo wing is complete without a creamy, cooling condiment like ranch or blue cheese dressing. Both of these dips go hard on the dairy, but we’ve got a plant-based version that also happens to be a slam dunk in the sustainability department.

This dressing gets all its creaminess from a secret ingredient that’s hiding in your pantry inside a can of chickpeas. 

Aquafaba, which literally translates to bean water, is the viscous liquid you see when you crack open a can of garbanzos. It contains a plant-based chemical called saponin that gives it the ability to whip up and create stable foams for meringues, marshmallows, and even whiskey sours. It also makes the silkiest mayo, an ingredient blue cheese and ranch have in common. We blitzed up the magic bean liquid in a blender to make the creamy base for a dreamy dairy-free dressing.

Aquafaba Blue Cheese or Ranch Dressing

Yield: About ¾ cup 

Ingredients:

• Dressing base
  • ¼ cup aquafaba
  • ⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 garlic clove, grated
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ cup canola oil
• Ranch mix-ins
  • ½ teaspoon mustard powder
  • 2 tablespoons chives, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon dried dill (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
• Blue cheese mix-in
  • 2 ounces firm tofu, crumbled

Procedure:

1. Add the aquafaba and cream of tartar to a blender and blend on low speed for 30 seconds. Gradually increase the speed to medium and blend for 2 minutes more until doubled in volume. 
2. Add the garlic, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and blend to combine. If you’re making ranch, also add the mustard powder, dill, and chives. 
3. Slowly stream in the canola oil on low speed until thick and creamy, about 30 seconds. 
4. Transfer to a small bowl. If you’re making blue cheese, now’s the time to stir in the crumbled tofu.
5. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Notes and Substitutions:

• To account for differences in salt content among different brands of canned chickpeas, this recipe starts with a modest amount of salt. Taste and add more at the end if necessary. 
• If you can find dairy-free blue cheese crumbles, you can (and absolutely should!) swap them for tofu here. This one from Follow Your Heart offers a nice tang.