I don’t really get the whole ‘eat to live vs. live to eat’ debate. Why not pursue both? In fact, I think for most of us, they go hand in hand. Sure, plants are delicious all on their own—sometimes you just want to gnaw on a raw carrot. But the food-lover in us craves more complex flavors, too. And that’s where recipes like this 'No Honey' Dijon Mustard Sauce with Herbs come in.
Why I Love this 'No Honey' Dijon Mustard Sauce with Herbs
I love this Dijon mustard sauce because the key ingredients—mustard, maple syrup and fresh herbs—play so incredibly well together. This is basically a fancy honey-mustard dressing without the honey.
Like my vegan ranch dressing, it's fresh and herby, a little sweet and tangy.
It works perfectly as a dressing for salads or bowls. And it’s awesome as a sauce for cooked foods too, either before they go into the oven or after. This Dijon mustard sauce is one of those easy, go-to recipes you can count on to make just about any basic dish better.
I especially appreciate the fact that this tasty, tangy, oil-free and refined-sugar-free Dijon mustard sauce makes it even easier to eat more of the nutritious veggies, grains and legumes that my body needs.
The healthiest way of eating—aside from simply sticking to an oil free WFPB diet—is to eat whatever reasonably healthy ingredient is going to help you consume the most nutritious foods possible.
Simply putting something healthy on your plate won’t benefit you or your family if you don’t eat enough of it. And we do have to consume a pretty hefty volume of food on a low fat, plant-based diet!
How to Make 'No Honey' Dijon Mustard Sauce with Herbs
This Dijon mustard sauce with herbs is packed with flavor. From the horseradish bite and intense pungency of the Dijon, to the sweetness of the maple syrup (or unrefined sweetener of your choice), this sauce excites the palate.
Of course if Dijon mustard brings a bit too much of a nose-hair-singeing wallop for your household, you can always substitute a mellower brown mustard.
You can use any number of different fresh herbs here, such as chervil, parsley, fennel, dill or tarragon. While anise flavored herbs are a delicious choice for this sauce, tarragon is suspected of containing some cancer promoting components, so it should be consumed with caution.
Like most of my recipes, this one’s pretty simple, with just five ingredients and a bowl. (The miso is optional, but I do recommend it if you have it on hand as it marries the flavors together nicely.) The next time you’re craving a bit more flavor from your plate of steamed veggies or that healthy salad, take a few minutes and whip up this Dijon mustard sauce.
If you like this whole food plant-based recipe, you might also like:
- Vegan Oil Free Mayonnaise
- Simple Chickpea Salad with Lemon Aquafaba Dressing
- Vegan Barbecue Sauce - Easy & Homemade
- 'Eat Your Greens' Pasta Salad
- Vegan Farro Salad with Roasted Vegetables
📖 Recipe
Dijon Mustard Sauce with Herbs
Ingredients
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon maple syrup (or unrefined sweetener of your choice)
- ½ cup Dijon mustard or sub brown mustard - see notes
- 2 tablespoons fresh herb leaves finely minced (like tarragon, chervil, fennel, dill, parsley, etc.)
- ¼ cup lemon juice about 1 large lemon
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- Optional: 1 teaspoon mellow white miso see notes
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients EXCEPT the fresh herbs in a small bowl, and whisk well to combine.
- Add the herbs and toss to blend. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Notes
- Dijon mustard is famous for its horseradish kick. If you'd like to tone this dressing down, you can substitute brown mustard.
- Miso is optional here, but it does help marry the flavors together.
- You can substitute dry herbs, but I'd recommend letting this sit in the fridge for at least 3o minutes to release the flavor of the herbs.
Amanda
Hi! How long will this last in the fridge? Excited to try it!
Elizabeth Shah
Hi Amanda! This will last 3-4 days in the fridge. Enjoy!
Mary Abramczyk
So delicious - I used it as salad dressing.
Elizabeth Shah
Thanks Mary, love getting your feedback!
Angela
Looking forward to trying this. Question: in the picture of your bowl with the quinoa and what I suspect are pistachios...what is the green? It looks like broccoli, sort of! I’m so curious.
elizabeth
Hi Angela, Yes, it's quinoa and black lentils, plus apricot, pistachios and romanesco. Here's the recipe! https://healthymidwesterngirl.com/romanesco-recipe-black-lentils-bowl/
Kristen
Delicious! I made this and enjoyed it over a random Buddha bowl of leftovers with a base of potatoes. I love mustard and this was a great complement to the vegetables. I’ll be making it again for sure. Thanks!
Elizabeth Shah
Hey Kristen, thanks for your review. So happy to know this sauce is doing it for you 🙂
monika
so why not just call it dijon maple sauce...?
elizabeth
Interesting question! Because people who follow a WFPB diet can be quite particular about which sweeteners they prefer, and the type of sweetener doesn't matter so much in the flavor here. Maple syrup is a simple option, but one could also use date syrup, for example. It has more nutrition, but it's also more expensive and harder to find. So I left the choice of sweetener up to the reader--and out of the name. Thanks for asking!