Name: Homemade Vegan Burger Sauce
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 5 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1/4 cup / 36 g raw cashew nuts; 1 tbsp / 15 ml / 15 g tomato paste; 1 tbsp / 15 ml / 15 g tahini; 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard; 1/2 clove garlic, minced; 1/2 tsp onion powder; 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar; 1/4 tsp fine salt; 2 tbsp / 30 ml / 30 g water

This healthy Homemade Vegan Burger Sauce without mayonnaise is a dairy free alternative to the regular version. It is easy to make with basic pantry ingredients. Perfect if you want to know exactly what goes into your sauce.

The recipe starts with some soaked cashew nuts, which you only have to soak for 10 minutes in boiling water. This softens them up so that they blend smoothly with the other ingredients. Plus, tahini replaces the need for mayo to give a creamy texture.

How to blend homemade vegan burger sauce

After soaking the cashew nuts, you can blend this homemade vegan burger sauce with a hand blender or using a food processor:

Using a hand blender: A hand blender, also known as a stick mixer or immersion blender, is ideal for this small batch recipe. They are perfect for blending small quantities of ingredients because they give you the flexibility to move the blade around to make sure everything is well blended. Instead of using the plastic cup attachment to hold the ingredients, I use a wide mouth glass jar that fits the hand blender. That way, after the sauce is blended, I screw on the jar lid and store it straight in the fridge.
Blending with a food processor: If using a food processor to make the vegan burger sauce, it’s best to use the smallest processor bowl since the recipe makes a relatively small quantity. Using a larger bowl will make it harder for the blades of the food processor to reach and mix the ingredients. However, if you are doubling or tripling the recipe to make a larger batch, a larger processor bowl should be ok.

Ingredients for homemade vegan burger sauce set out on a wooden board — Cashew nuts, tomato paste, tahini, Dijon mustard, garlic, apple cider vinegar, onion powder, salt and water

What to eat with burger sauce?

You can eat burger sauce with almost any savory dish. This homemade vegan burger sauce can be enjoyed a number of ways:

Spread it on a sandwich: Spread the sauce over a burger bun or on sandwiches and wraps instead of butter or mayonnaise.
Enjoy it as a dip: Decant the burger sauce into a bowl and serve it as a dip. It pairs perfectly with baked potato chips or crackers. For a super healthy option, enjoy it with sliced raw vegetables like baby carrots, celery or cucumber slices.
Serve it as a condiment: You can also dollop the burger sauce over salads and roasted vegetables. Or serve it alongside roast chicken or beef. The recipe gives quite a thick sauce, but you can easily make it thinner for dolloping. Just add a little extra water when blending the ingredients until you reach your desired consistency.

Homemade vegan burger sauce served as a dip with oven baked potato chips — Quick soaked cashew nuts and tahini keep this homemade burger sauce dairy free and vegan

Ingredients for vegan burger sauce without mayonnaise

Cashew nuts: Raw cashew nuts work best as we want them to soften in the boiling water to blend smoothly into the sauce. I also recommend using unsalted nuts so you can control the amount of salt added to the sauce.
Tomato paste: This adds a subtle sweetness to the sauce. It also gives the sauce its color.
Tahini: The tahini adds earthiness and extra creaminess to the sauce. Hulled tahini is my preference as it’s less bitter than un-hulled tahini. But either would work.
Dijon mustard: This gives the sauce a bit of a kick. You could substitute another mild mustard, or hot mustard, if you prefer.
Garlic: I’ve made the sauce with a half clove of fresh garlic and also with a quarter teaspoon of garlic powder when I didn’t have any fresh garlic. Both ways work well. Fresh garlic adds more heat.
Onion powder: This adds depth to the sauce and works well with the garlic.
Apple cider vinegar: The sharpness of apple cider vinegar lifts the sauce. You could use white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar as a substitute.
Salt: Always needed to season a sauce. You can adjust the amount of salt used to suit your taste.
Water: A little water helps the sauce to blend smooth. If you want a thinner sauce, you can add extra water a teaspoon at a time until you reach your desired consistency.

Easy homemade vegan burger sauce in a bowl on a plate with potato chips — This easy vegan burger sauce is made without mayonnaise

Gluten-free homemade vegan burger sauce in a bowl with with oven-baked French fries — This vegan burger sauce is delicious served with oven-baked French fries

More healthy sauce recipes

You can find more healthy sauce ideas on the Sauce Recipes page.