An uncomplicated side salad with grilled little gem lettuce and a punchy vegan tahini ranch dressing. Don’t be fooled by its simplicity; the flavours will surprise you.
Use garlic presser or knife to crush garlic cloves.
In a small mixing bowl, add tahini and water.
Mix until you have a smooth consistency. If still too thick and gluggy, add a little more water.
Add olive oil, lemon juice, red onion, chives, dill, Dijon mustard and maple syrup. Mix until well combined.
Taste and then season with salt and pepper.
Salad
Cut little gem lettuce into halves or quarters lengthwise
Lightly brush cut side with extra virgin olive oil.
Grill for 2 mins on a griddle pan or until lightly charred but still holding shape.
Remove from the pan and place on a platter.
Assembly
On a serving platter, layer the grilled little gem lettuce.
Drizzle the tahini ranch dressing over the top.
Serve immediately.
Notes
Prepare tahini ranch dressing ahead of time and then grill little gem lettuce just before ready to eat.
For some variety, try other vegetables such as radicchio, endive, fennel or romaine lettuce. They also grill very well and perfect match with the tahini ranch dressing.
You can substitute tahini with buttermilk, sour cream or yoghurt if you don’t have tahini at hand. This will be more of a classic ranch dressing recipe and will no longer be vegan.
Replace ¼ red onion with one red shallot if you prefer not to cut a full-sized onion.