Bok Choy caesar salad with healthy tahini dressing

Looking for a whole new spin on Caesar salad? This Bok Choy Caesar salad recipe is it! Bok Choy Caesar salad is LOADED with flavor and nutrients and is so incredibly easy to make!

Bok Choy Caesar salad consists of baby bok choy, a healthy tahini caesar dressing, sunflower seeds, vegan parmesan, and fried onion crisps. The baby bok choy is air fried for a little extra flavor, but that is optional.

This Bok Choy Caesar salad is the perfect meal or side dish for any night of the week! With its protein loaded tahini caesar dressing, this is a plate full of flavor and nutrients that will load you up without weighing you down.

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WHAT YOU WILL LOVE ABOUT THIS BOK CHOY CAESAR SALAD

• EASY TO MAKE – This recipe is so simple to make! You can have the whole salad prepped and ready to eat in about 10 minutes!
• UNIQUE FLAVOR – We all love a good Caesar salad, but it’s nice to bring some new elements to an old classic. In this Caesar salad…we of course substituted bok choy for the romaine. We also added some sunflower seeds and fried onion crisps instead of croutons, which add a nice salty crunch in a whole new way!
• LOADED WITH NUTRIENTS – This bok choy Caesar salad is a salad you can truly feel good about! Between the bok choy, sunflower seeds, and healthy tahini caesar dressing…your body will be thanking you for this one!

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE BOK CHOY CAESAR SALAD

• BABY BOK CHOY – Can substitute any bok choy of choice
• SUNFLOWER SEEDS
• PARMESAN CHEESE – If you want this recipe to completely plant-based, go with a vegan parmesan cheese. The brand follow your heart is what I used and it’s delicious
• FRIED ONIONS – I went with the bagged fried onions to make life easy…and delicious
• OLIVE OIL – Can substitute avocado oil
• SEA SALT
• BLACK PEPPER – Fresh crushed black pepper is best

INGREDIENTS FOR TAHINI CAESAR DRESSING

• TAHINI – Tahini is pureed toasted sesame seeds. It is thick in consistency, similar to a nut butter, making this a perfect ingredient to create a super creamy, vegan, caesar dressing. You can find Tahini in the nut butter section or the International section of the grocery store.
• WHITE BEANS – Use cooked white beans for this recipe. I personally used canned cannellini beans. Can substitute canned chickpeas
• WATER
• LEMON JUICE
• LEMON ZEST – Lemon zest is the grated skin of a lemon. If you don’t have a grater, just slice of a super thin piece of the skin of the lemon. 
• NORI FLAKES – Nori flakes are seaweed flakes. They help develop a nice, fishy flavor that replaces the sardines that are traditionally found in Caesar dressing. You can usually find them in the International section of the grocery store and always online.
• NUTRITIONAL YEAST – Nutritional yeast, also known as nooch, is basically nature’s vegan cheese powder! Nutritional yeast is yeast made from living saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast, which is the same yeast used to make bread. Nutritional yeast is a powdery, with large flakes and has a mustard-like color. Nutritional yeast has a unique, cheese-like flavor that can be described as savory and slightly nutty. This delicious, flavor boosting ingredient is very popular in vegan and dairy free cheese recipes and is often the key ingredient to create a dairy free, cheese-like flavor. You can find nutritional yeast in the seasoning or vegan section of most grocery stores. It’s always at Whole Foods and online as well.
• CAPERS – Capers help develop the fishy, salty flavor that is traditionally found in Caesar salad
• DIJON MUSTARD – can substitute any mustard
• BLACK PEPPER – Fresh ground black pepper is the best option because it has more flavor.
• BLACK SALT – Black salt is also known as Kala Namak. It is a volcanic rock salt produced in the Himalayan region. Black salt is an amazing addition to your spice cabinet. With its pungent, egg-like flavor it is a significant player in making this vegan tahini Caesar dressing taste more like egg that is traditionally found in Caesar dressing. If needed, you can just substitute regular salt, but it won’t help develop that eggy flavor.
• GARLIC – Fresh garlic is best! But you can substitute garlic powder if needed.

HOW TO MAKE BOK CHOY CAESAR SALAD

PREPARE YOUR BOK CHOY

For this Bok Choy Caesar salad, I went with an air fried bok choy. Air frying your bok choy gives it a more complex flavor and a softer texture. However, if you don’t want to take the extra step, just leave your bok choy raw…it will still be an absolutely delicious salad!

To prepare your bok choy, begin by cutting off the ends and thoroughly washing the leaves. Discard the ends.

Dry the bok choy. I personally use a salad spinner AND pat the leaves dry with a towel to make sure my bok choy is dry.

IF YOU ARE AIR FRYING YOU BOK CHOY

You are welcome to skip air frying the bok choy if desired and this will still be an excellent salad.

Preheat your air fryer to 375ºF. Place your bok choy in a bowl and add 1 tsp olive oil, 1/8 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper or to taste.

Mix until bok choy is evenly coated.

Spread bok choy out on an air fryer tray. It’s ok if it over laps, we are just slightly roasting it, so overlapping is fine.

Air fry the bok choy at 375ºF for 4 minutes. Mix at the 2 minute mark. You are welcome to extend the time if you want your bok choy more crisp, but I thought 4 minutes was perfect.

Remove from air fryer. Set aside.

MAKE THE TAHINI CAESAR DRESSING

This Tahini Caesar Dressing only takes 2 minutes to make!

Simply combine 1/4 cup of tahini, 1/2 cup cooked white beans, 1/4 cup water, 2 tbsp lemon juice, zest from half a lemon, 1 tsp nori flakes, 2 tsp capers, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 1/8 tsp black salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1 clove of fresh garlic, and 1 tbsp of Nutritional yeast in a blender. Mix on high for 30 seconds to one minute, or until the dressing is creamy and smooth. AND DONE!

PUT IT ALL TOGETHER

Place your air fryer (or raw) bok choy in a serving bowl or on a plate. Top with tahini dressing, 2 tbsp sunflower seeds, 2 tbsp shredded parmesan cheese, and 2 tbsp fried onions.

Serve and enjoy!

TIPS FOR MAKING BOK CHOY CAESAR SALAD

• THOROUGHLY WASH YOUR BOK CHOY – Thoroughly wash you Bok Choy. And I mean THOROUGHLY. Bok Choy often has a lot of dirt hiding in it. So I like to wash mine both, before and after I cut it in half.
• EVENLY COAT OIL – Make sure you evenly coat your bok choy with oil. If you miss spots, the uncoiled areas may become too dry
• PREHEAT YOUR AIR FRYER – Make sure you preheat your air fryer. This will ensure your bok choy cooks correctly. If your air fryer doesn’t have a preheat button, simply turn it on 5 minutes before using.
• DRY THE BOK CHOY – I like to put my bok choy through a salad spinner AND pat it dry with a towel. The dryer your bok choy is, the better it will air fry.
• WATCH YOUR COOKING TIME – Air fryer bok choy can go from perfectly cooked to burnt quickly. So make sure you are paying attention as it cooks and adjust time if needed.
• FLIP HALF WAY THROUGH COOKING – Flip your air fryer bok choy at the half way mark. This will ensure it cooks evenly.
• USE SOFT BEANS – You want to make sure your cooked white beans are super soft. I recommend using canned beans to make things simple. But if you use beans that you cooked from scratch, make sure they are soft so they blend into a smoother consistency. 
• TASTE TEST – Always taste test your dressings and adjust as needed. When you are using natural ingredients, like lemon juice and lemon zest, the flavor of each lemon will vary. So always taste test and add more of an ingredient if needed.

QUESTIONS ANSWERED

• CAN I MAKE AIR FRYER BOK CHOY IN ADVANCE – Air fryer bok choy is definitely best served and eaten right after you air fry it. But yes, you can prep it in advance if needed. Store it in the fridge in an air tight container for 2-3 days and reheat for a minute or 2 when ready to serve.
• DO I NEED TO USE OIL – I love skipping oil whenever possible to save on calories. But when it comes to air fryer bok choy I DO recommend using oil. It will become very dry if you don’t. If you absolutely don’t want to use oil, substitute a little maple syrup or other oil free sauce instead. This will help keep your air fryer bok choy moist while cooking.
• CAN I USE A DIFFERENT TYPE OF BOK CHOY – Of course! I personally used baby bok choy for this recipe, but feel free to use whatever variety of bok choy you prefer.

WHAT TO ADD TO BOK CHOY CAESAR SALAD

This Bok Choy Caesar salad is delicious as is and with its healthy tahini caesar dressing and sunflower seeds, you actually have a decent about of protein in it. But of course there is always room for more! Here’s a few ideas to add to this Bok Choy Caesar salad to bulk it up.

• VEGAN CHICKEN (OR REGULAR)
• CHICKPEAS
• LENTILS
• NUTS
• AIR FRYER TOFU
• HARD BOILED EGG OR BAKED VEGAN JUST EGG

MORE VERSIONS OF VEGAN CAESAR SALADS

• HEALTH FREAK KALE CAESAR SALAD (GLUTEN-FREE AND VEGAN)
• BRUSSELS SPROUT CAESAR PITA PIZZA (VEGAN NUT-FREE CAESAR)
• AIR FRYER VEGAN CHICKEN CAESAR SALAD WITH TAHINI DRESSING