Caesar salad is all about the that tangy, sharp dressing that makes an ordinary bowl of greens taste decadent and expensive. This ingenious vegan caesar recipe uses a super simple, tofu-based dressing that boasts tons of flavor without a single animal product. Pour it over massaged kale, then garnish with crispy roasted lentils for plenty of crunch, texture, and B vitamins to keep you going! Serve it on its own as an easy entree or offer it as a side with any meal. The non-vegans will never even know!
This post was sponsored by Life Extension and contains affiliate links. All of the opinions are my own and I only recommend brands I genuinely support.
Why you’ll love this Vegan Caesar Power Bowl
- Great way to enjoy a creamy vegan dressing without tree nuts (great for people with allergies)
- The dressing requires almost no prep - just blend and serve!
- Kale is sturdy enough to withstand sitting in the dressing for a few days, making it ideal for meal prep
- Umami-rich, delightfully savory flavor without the anchovies, Worcestershire sauce, eggs, or dairy (it's quite the feat, but surprisingly simple)
- Perfect base for all your favorite salad toppings
- Uses super simple ingredients already in your fridge
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Vegan Caesar Power Bowl Ingredients
The majority of the ingredients in this dish go to the dressing, but once you have that made, the rest is a cinch. Just prep the kale, roast the lentils, serve and go! Simple.
For the vegan caesar salad dressing:
- Silken tofu - This gives the dressing a smooth, creamy texture without any cashews, sunflower seeds, or dairy.
- Extra virgin olive oil - For extra creaminess.
- Lemon - Fresh lemon juice has the brightest flavor.
- Seasonings - Season with salt, black pepper, and a little nutritional yeast for that creamy, Parmesan-style flavor.
- Fresh garlic cloves
- Capers - For a briny, salty flavor.
- Dijon mustard - This will help emulsify the dressing and give it a little extra funkiness.
- Hemp hearts - To amp up the creaminess without adding any mayo and for a nice boost of healthy fats.
For the crispy lentils:
- Cooked lentils - Lentils are a great source of several types of B vitamins, including folate. It's easiest to use canned lentils so save some time. You can definitely cook them from dry if you prefer.
- Olive oil
- Spices - Keep it super simple with salt, garlic powder, and smoked paprika.
For the salad:
- Dino & purple kale - I like to use a mix of both dino (lacinato) and purple kale for two different colors and textures. You can certainly substitute other greens like fresh crisp romaine, peppery arugula, or bitter radicchio and endive, but I love a kale caesar salad!
Sara's Tip: Save this vegan tofu caesar dressing recipe! It's delicious drizzled over salads, yet, but it's also great on pasta salad, sandwiches, as a dipping sauce and so much more.
How to Make Vegan Caesar with Lentils
Caesar salads are such a classic and really, it's all about that creamy, mouth-puckering dressing and the crispy crunch of the lettuce. This kale is tender, yet still toothsome, even after soaking up the sauce, and that tofu-based dressing is a game-changer. This recipe makes eating vegan EASY, and we can all use that!
- Preheat the oven to 400. On a sheet pan add lentils, olive oil, salt, smoked paprika and cajun spice. Mix well and bake for 20 minutes, turning once halfway. Let cool.
- Make dressing by putting tofu, olive oil, salt, lemon juice, dijon mustard, garlic, salt, black pepper , nutritional yeast and capers in a high-speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
- In a large bowl, add the kale and a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt, then massage with your hands to soften the leaves. Add the crispy lentils and the dressing and toss well.
- Enjoy within 2-3 days for best quality or dress to order and enjoy for 4 days.
Tips for Making the Best Vegan Caesar Power Bowl
- Play with the toppings. Think of this recipe as the base. The salad is delicious exactly like this, but it's also a stepping stone to enjoy more nuts, seeds, fruits, and veggies. Feel free to use crispy chickpeas instead of lentils, grate a bunch of vegan parmesan cheese, add avocado slices, sunflower seeds or pine nuts, shaved brussels sprouts, homemade sourdough croutons, extra veggies, and anything else that strikes your fancy.
- Season thoroughly. The dressing really needs a lot of flavor to give you that mouth-puckering caesar experience. This requires sufficient acid, savory elements, and salt. Taste, season, let it rest, then taste and season again, if needed.
- Add extra protein. The dressing and lentils both offer quite a bit of protein, but you can certainly add more. Try grilled plant-based chicken, crispy tofu, raw sunflower seeds or almonds, edamame, etc.
FAQs
Classic caesar salad is neither vegetarian nor vegan as the dressing is traditionally made with anchovies, worcestershire sauce, lots of parmesan cheese, and egg yolks. This vegan version gives you a very similar flavor using caper brine, nutritional yeast, Dijon mustard, lemon juice and silken tofu, making it totally appropriate for anyone trying to avoid tree nuts, dairy, or animal products.
Nope! If you want to dress the salad ahead of time, yes, you'll want a green like kale that can withstand sitting in dressing for a bit. If you're making the salads to order, you can slice your lettuce fresh, garnish, and serve. Feel free to use crisp romaine lettuce, arugula, salad greens, or any type of lettuce you prefer. Microgreens are a great add-in, too!
Once dressed, the salad will stay fresh in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. If you store the ingredients separately, they'll last for four days and you can assemble right before serving. Easy!
Other Delicious Vegan Salad Recipes
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Vegan Caesar Power Bowl with Lentils
Equipment
- sheet pan
- blender
- large bowl
Ingredients
For the Vegan Caesar Dressing
- 1 package silken tofu 10-14 oz pack will work fine
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 large lemon squeezed
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tsp capers
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 tbsp hemp seeds
- black pepper to taste
For the Crispy Lentils
- 15 oz can lentils drained
- 3 sprays olive oil
- 1 pinch salt
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
For the Salad
- 1 bunch dino kale chopped small
- ½ bunch purple kale stemmed and chopped in bite sized pieces
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400. On a sheet pan add lentils, olive oil, salt, smoked paprika and garlic powder. Mix well and bake for 20 minutes, turning once halfway. Let cool.
- Make dressing by putting tofu, olive oil, salt, lemon juice, dijon mustard, garlic, salt, black pepper , nutritional yeast and capers in a high-speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
- In a large bowl, add the kale and a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt, then massage with your hands to soften the leaves. Add the crispy lentils and the dressing and toss well.
- Enjoy within 2-3 days for best quality or dress to order and enjoy for 4 days.
Jen
ABSOLUTELY SLAPS!..
This was easy to whip up and being plant based I basically had all the ingredients already on hand.. My only changes were adding a bit more capers to the dressing and I added some beyondmeat crispy popcorn chicken slices - This dish is everything.. Thank you Sara!! 🫶🏻
Sara Tercero
Thanks Jen. I bet the beyond chicken was amazing in here. I appreciate the feedback.
Mindy Richmond
Making this salad now. Couple of questions….you list Cajun spices in the directions but not on the ingredients list. What exactly are Cajun spices? Tofu comes so many ways. Some silken is in the shelf stable box (10oz) and Trader Joe’s is 16oz for silken tofu. How much did you use for the dressing?
Thanks.
Sara Tercero
I have edited the post to cut out the cajun spice. That was a typo and should have said garlic powder. A 10-16 oz block will work just fine, this is not baking so no need for precise measurements, if you are using the biggest size, you may need to taste and add a bit more salt.