16 Low Calorie Salad Dressings (Less than 100 kcal each!)
- Updated on Nov 11, 2022
A good low calorie salad dressing is a great thing to have in your repertoire. It’s pretty hard to find a healthy salad dressing in the store.
Did you know that a lot of them contain high fat, salt and sugar? So why not try a healthy homemade dressing instead!
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What’s wrong with store-bought dressings? They’re generally just not healthy! As I mentioned, bottled salad dressings have a lot of added sugar, salt, and preservatives.
Salad dressings are never filling, they are just there to add flavor. But when they are full of calorie dense, unhealthy things like salt, unhealthy fats and sugar, you will end up consuming a lot of calories, with little benefit.
Why not switch that bottle of dressing out for one of these healthy homemade salad dressings under 100 kcal? That way, you can focus on stacking your salad with healthy, filling ingredients.
This is especially pertinent if you are trying to lose weight. When working with a weight loss meal plan, you want all your calories to count because you will be limiting them to an extent. So make those calories count, and don’t waste them on salty dressings!
There are also a lot of “zero calories” low-fat dressings on the market. I would also be wary of those and stick to making your own dressing! There are often a lot of preservatives, artificial flavors, unproven sugar-replacements and other odd chemicals used to achieve unrealistically low calories or very few grams of fat.
Stick with homemade low calorie dressings!
Homemade dressings have none of those unhealthy preservatives, instead they have an all natural ingredient list.
They may have slightly more calories or grams fat than the mass produced ‘diet’ dressings, but it’s not necessary (or possible) to have no calories/fat. You actually need a certain amount of fat to be healthy!
I just stick to choosing recipes that have balanced amounts of everything and not too much of anything!
In fact, I also have plenty of hearty salad recipes you could try! Most of these come with a dressing recipe, but I encourage you to experiment with different dressing/salad combos. Why not try our refreshing nectarine salad? Or our classic chickpea spinach salad?
Let’s check out these low calorie salad dressings!
Are you ready to see what delicious salad dressings I have in store for you today?
1. Passion Fruit Vinaigrette
Protein: n/a
Calories: 87 kcal
Ready in: 5 minutes
Recipe by: BeyondMereSustenance
Bonus: sweet, tropical
This sweet-tart Passion Fruit Vinaigrette (aka Maracuya Vinaigrette) will brighten up the simplest of salads! A generous serving size is only 89 kcal.
2. Santa Fe Ranch Dressing
Protein: 3g
Calories: 18 kcal
Ready in: 5 minutes
Recipe by: TheNessyKitchen
Bonus: creamy, flavorful
Zesty taco meets ranch flavours in this light Greek yogurt-based dressing with an incredible creamy texture! Use it as a dip, salad dressing and more. Store in an airtight container and use it again and again.
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3. Peruvian Salad Dressing
Protein: n/a
Calories: 95 kcal
Ready in: 10 minutes
Recipe by: BeyondMereSustenance
Bonus: fruity, summery
A homemade salad dressing recipe that features fresh strawberries, ají amarillo, and fresh mint… a perfect complement to your garden fresh salads! White wine vinegar adds the perfect tang.
4. Oil Free Salad Dressing
Protein: 1g
Calories: 22 kcal
Ready in: 10 minutes
Recipe by: WatchLearnEat
Bonus: oil-free, tangy and sweet
This flavorful lemon herb oil-free salad dressing is perfectly tangy with a hint of sweetness. It’s the perfect complement for your favorite greens or mixed into a pasta salad. Possibly the healthiest salad dressing I’ve found!
5. Tahini Salad Dressing
Protein: 2g
Calories: 88 kcal
Ready in: 5 minutes
Recipe by: MyQuietKitchen
Bonus: nutty, creamy
Tahini dressing is our all-time favorite dressing option for drizzling on everything from salads to bowls to tacos! It’s healthy, easy, and the naturally nutty flavor of sesame tahini creates a wonderful base for other flavors and additions.
6. Pomegranate & Orange Vinaigrette
Protein: n/a
Calories: 92 kcal
Ready in: 5 minutes
Recipe by: BeyondMereSustenance
Bonus: fruity, unique
A simple vinaigrette with fresh blood orange juice and pomegranate molasses that’s perfect on your fresh salads! A delicious dressing you won’t be able to get enough of.
7. Oil Free Salad Dressing
Protein: 1g
Calories: 18 kcal
Ready in: 10 minutes
Recipe by: MyQuietKitchen
Bonus: oil-free, simple
This Italian oil-free salad dressing has the perfect balance of acid, salt, and herbs to add zip to your salads and so much more. You’ll love the classic, zesty Italian flavor… and without oil! The best way to dress your salad!
8. ‘Honey’ Mustard Dressing
Protein: 1g
Calories: 65 kcal
Ready in: 5 minutes
Recipe by: WatchLearnEat
Bonus: vegan, versatile
When you see how easy this 5-minute, 4-ingredient vegan honey mustard is to make, you’ll never buy dressing from the grocery store again. An easy way to up your dressing game!
9. Honey Lemon Vinaigrette
Protein: 1g
Calories: 51 kcal
Ready in: 2 minutes
Recipe by: AlwaysUseButter
Bonus: sweet, citrussy
This Honey Lemon Vinaigrette is super easy to make in just a few minutes. It’s a sweet, salty & acidic salad dressing that’s perfect for summer salads. So flavorful, it will make even the simplest green salad taste luxurious! Made with healthy olive oil, meaning the only fats are unsaturated fats – the healthy kind!
10. Turmeric Dressing
Protein: 1g
Calories: 45 kcal
Ready in: 5 minutes
Recipe by: MyQuietKitchen
Bonus: fresh flavor, vibrant
This copycat version of Trader Joe’s Almond Butter-Turmeric dressing is made with ground turmeric, fresh lemon, ginger and garlic, and it tastes fantastic on pretty much everything!
11. Vegan Ranch Dip
Protein: 1g
Calories: 17 kcal
Ready in: 10 minutes + chilling time
Recipe by: WatchLearnEat
Bonus: oil-free, vegan
A creamy, tangy and flavorful Oil-Free Vegan Ranch Dip and Dressing made with silken tofu that’s lower in both calories and fat than the traditional! This can also be used as a dipping sauce.
12. Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette
Protein: n/a
Calories: 83 kcal
Ready in: 3 minutes
Recipe by: TwoHealthyKitchens
Bonus: simple, speedy
Just 5 common pantry staples and 3 minutes of effort = an amazing (and much healthier) balsamic vinaigrette recipe! People have been absolutely raving about this tangy dressing for years – it’s a must-try! A light vinaigrette you’ll adore.
13. Vegan Blue Cheese Dressing
Protein: 2g
Calories: 21 kcal
Ready in: 10 minutes
Recipe by: WatchLearnEat
Bonus: vegan, creamy, oil free
A creamy, chunky and tangy vegan blue cheese dressing and dip that’s also oil-free and nut-free with only 21 calories per serving! The perfect dressing for salads, wraps, bowls, veggies, fries, cauliflower “wings” and more!
14. Mango Salad Dressing
Protein: n/a
Calories: 42 kcal
Ready in: 5 minutes
Recipe by: DebraKlein
Bonus: tropical, refreshing
This Mango Salad Dressing is super tasty, incredibly refreshing and easy to make with just a handful of healthy ingredients. A great way to jazz up any salad.
15. Blueberry Vinaigrette
Protein: 1g
Calories: 78 kcal
Ready in: 5 minutes
Recipe by: FoodSharingVegan
Bonus: easy, antioxidant rich
This easy antioxidant-rich blueberry vinaigrette is fresh, sweet, tangy, and needs just 5 ingredients (plus salt and pepper) and 5 minutes to transform your salads from okay to YAY!
16. Avocado Dressing
Bonus: full of healthy fats, creamy
This one isn’t strictly under 100 kcal, but it is full of healthy fats and wholesome ingredients, so it’s still super healthy! Check it now:
Ingredients
For the dressing:
- 1 ripe avocado
- ½ lemon
- ½ orange
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp balsamic vinegar (or white vinegar)
- 2-3 tbsp water
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ shallot (or 1/2 shallot = 1 spring onion)
For the salad:
- 1 can black beans (15oz = 435g)
- 1 head romano salad
- 10 cherry tomatoes
- ½ red onion
For the nachos:
- 2 tortillas
- 1 pinch cayenne pepper (or ground red pepper)
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
For the dressing:
- Peel the ripe avocado, roughly chop the shallot and add them to a food processor.1 ripe avocado, ½ shallot
- Grate in some orange zest and lemon zest.½ orange, ½ lemon
- Add the lemon juice, the orange juice, the olive oil, vinegar and salt. Blend.3 tbsp olive oil, 2 tsp balsamic vinegar, ½ tsp salt
- Add a little water, a tbsp at a time, to get the desired consistency. Blend again if neccessary.2-3 tbsp water
- That’s it! Drizzle over salad as appropriate.
For the salad:
- Drain and rinse the beans.1 can black beans
- Give the lettuce a quick rinse and roughly chop it or rip it.1 head romano salad
- Dice the onion.½ red onion
- Assemble together, along with the tomatoes.10 cherry tomatoes
For the nachos (not generally gluten-free):
- Using scissors, layer the tortillas on top of each other and cut into triangles (halve, halve, and halve again).2 tortillas
- Sprinkle the salt and cayenne pepper over the tortillas.1 pinch cayenne pepper, 1 pinch salt
- Place on a tray and bake for 5 minutes in the oven. Ready!
NOTES
Nutrition
Low calorie salad dressings FAQs
Under 100 kcal. You wouldn’t want to use much more than that, as salad dressing is not going to fill you up. It really just adds flavor.
You don’t need to use salad dressing, but it does add flavour and moisture. If you want to avoid creamy dressings or high calorie dressings, try a squeeze of lemon juice, salt and a dash of vinegar.
If you are eating a salad with enough of its own moisture (ie a chickpea salad, or quinoa salad), you could apply dried spices directly to the salad without using fat – ie garlic powder and paprika.
Not usually, because many dressings contain quite a lot of calories with little nutritional value.
When trying to lose weight, it is best to make sure that all the calories you consume are filling you up and providing you with fuel, because you will have to maintain a calorie deficit.
Unhealthy salad dressings will not fill you up, but they will pile on extra calories. It is best to stick to low calorie salad dressings if you are trying to lose weight.
Low calorie salad dressings are the best thing to use on a diet. They will not add too many excess calories to your salad, allowing you to use your calories for other, more nutritious, things.
We hope you enjoyed trying these delicious low calorie salad dressings (why not also try out our favorite low calorie salads?)! Which ones did you enjoy most? Let us know in the comments.
Dave Bell
I’m not a foodie, although I do love eating. I believe food should serve us and our goals, not hinder. Taking control and responsibility for what I eat is important to me. Lots of veggie protein is my way forward.
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