Orange Juice Salad Dressing (with Orange Salad)
This vibrant Orange Juice Salad Dressing bursts with sweet, tangy citrus flavor and is the star of a stunning orange salad featuring juicy Mandarin oranges, toasted almonds, chewy cranberries, crisp lettuce, red onion, and fennel. It’s the effortless, made-in-5 minutes, show-stopping side dish your Thanksgiving dinner deserves!
This orange juice salad dressing brings back memories of my mom freezing concentrated orange juice as a convenient way to make the base of this dressing while adding loads of sweet and tangy orange flavor. That and making Orange Julius drinks! It’s truly genius and a little recipe hack that I’ve gladly adopted – a perfect pairing for other green salads!
Make this vibrant salad dressing with orange juice ahead and store it in the fridge, ready to toss in a freshly assembled orange salad or drizzled over roasted veggies.
What is Orange Juice Salad Dressing?
This orange juice salad dressing is vibrant with sweet-tart flavor – perfect with the accompanying crisp orange salad as a perfect addition to your holiday table. It features a base of mixed lettuce with finely sliced red onion and fennel, tossed with delicious mix-ins like chewy dried cranberries, toasted slivered almonds, and topped with soft goat cheese and avocado. Our neighbors recently brought this salad to our dinner party and it was so good!
This beautiful and refreshing combination is designed to slot seamlessly into your Thanksgiving preparations, offering a bright contrast to richer dishes. Of course, you’ll never need an excuse to make this orange juice dressing for salad since the recipe calls for frozen concentrated orange juice and canned Mandarin oranges – available all year round, whenever the craving hits!
Ingredients needed to make orange juice salad dressing
For the Dressing
- Frozen orange juice concentrate: Provides intense, sweet citrus flavor. Don’t dilute the concentrate with water!
- Olive oil: Creates a rich, emulsified base and balances the acidity in the dressing. A neutral oil like avocado oil can also be used.
- Orange zest: Freshly grated orange zest brightens the dressing with intense citrus aroma. You could also use lemon zest.
- White wine vinegar: The white wine vinegar provides a sharp, clean acidity to brighten the dressing and won’t discolor this gorgeous dressing. Apple cider vinegar is another suitable option.
- Lemon juice: Provides a fresh, tangy acidity that complements the orange. Always use freshly squeezed lemon juice. Lime juice can be used in a pinch.
- Kosher salt: Enhances all the other flavors and balances the sweetness.
- Sugar: Rounds out the sharp acidity and complements the orange’s sweetness. You can reduce the sugar called for in this recipe, or use honey or maple syrup instead of refined sugar.
For the Orange Salad
- Mixed lettuce: Provides a fresh, crisp base for this fall-inspired salad. Spinach or butter leaf lettuce are excellent alternatives.
- Red onion: Adds a sharp, pungent crunch. Soak in cold water for 10 minutes to mellow the flavor if desired.
- Fennel bulb: Contributes a subtle licorice-like flavor and a wonderful crisp, crunchy texture.
- Canned Mandarin oranges: The canned Mandarin segments give this salad sweet, juicy bursts of citrus, but make sure to drain the canned liquid properly so that you don’t end up with a soggy salad. Fresh orange segments are a great fresh alternative.
- Dried cranberries: For that irresistible chewy texture and a sweet-tart flavor contrast. The color contrast also makes this salad pop with Thanksgiving vibes!
- Toasted slivered almonds: I love to buy my toasted slivered almonds from Trader Joes. They’ll add essential crunch and a nutty, toasty flavor. Toasted pecans or walnuts work well too.
- Optional salad toppings: While completely optional, I love to top this orange juice salad with creamy and tangy goat cheese. The rich, creamy texture and mild, buttery flavor of sliced avocado in this salad is also a favorite!
How do you make this orange juice salad dressing?
Make the salad dressing:
- Combine all ingredients for the orange salad dressing in a canning jar. Securely fasten the lid and shake vigorously until the mixture is fully emulsified and uniform. You can also whisk the ingredients together in a bowl until well-combined.
- Store the orange juice salad dressing in the fridge until ready to drizzle over your salad.
Assemble the orange salad & serve:
- Just before serving, assemble all the salad ingredients in a large bowl.
- Drizzle the desired amount of the chilled dressing over the salad (you’re likely to have extra).
- Gently toss to coat all the salad ingredients.
- Garnish your salad with fresh toppings, if you like, and serve immediately.
Serving
This orange juice salad with dressing is the perfect side dish for your Thanksgiving main meal, whether you choose to serve Orange Spiced Spatchcocked Turkey, this stunning Cranberry Pear Turkey Crescent Braid, Turkey Cranberry Hand Pies, or roasted chicken as your main meal protein.
This citrusy salad with sweet orange juice also pairs beautifully with a simple and comforting bowl of pumpkin soup, as a light and refreshing addition to Grilled Cheese Sliders and Sweet Potato Turkey Burgers, or alongside other side dishes like this Dairy Free Sweet Potato Casserole!
Drizzle any leftover orange juice salad dressing over roasted veggies, like these Roasted Carrots with Whipped Feta. Or on these salads: this Beet Appetizer, Mandarin Orange Salad, Spinach Quinoa Avocado Orange Salad, Orange Beet Fennel Salad, or Healthy Chicken, Orange and Kale Salad!
If you get a kick out of a recurring flavor-theme, why not end the meal off with Orange Creamsicle Freezer Dessert, Easy Orange Bundt Cake, or Puff Pastry Cardamon Orange Twists!
Sandy’s tips and substitutions:
- Storage: Store this orange juice salad dressing in a glass jar in the fridge for up to a week. I prefer to keep my homemade dressings in mason jars (especially since it’s so vibrant and pretty), but any sealable jar or airtight container will work. It’s normal for the oil to solidify in the fridge – just bring the chilled dressing to room temperature and give it a good shake or whisk before using again.
- Leftover salad: The crisp salad should not be stored for longer than 2 days as the crunchy salad ingredients will start to wilt and turn soggy. Add some shredded chicken or leftover holiday turkey to the salad or load it into fluffy rolls to stretch it out over another meal for the family.
- Salad add-ins: Salads can be so versatile, allowing you to mix and swap an array of delicious add-ins. Feel free to get creative and experiment with other varieties of nuts and seeds (like these candied maple walnuts, Cinnamon Orange Roasted Nuts, or toasted pumpkin seeds). Roasted squash, beets, or quinoa could also be added to this salad for a seasonal boost and extra bulk.
- Dressing: I love this easy orange juice dressing and how it instantly elevates a simple leafy salad. It enhances the sweetness of the canned Mandarin oranges while the citrus and vinegar cuts through the richness of any creamy topping you may add, such as goat cheese or avocado. For a more savory version, mix in ½ minced garlic clove into the salad dressing. For a spicy-sweet option, add a pinch of chili flakes to the dressing or a small amount of minced jalapeño to the assembled salad for a kick that contrasts with the sweet orange.
- Dairy-free: Omit any cheese topping from your assembled salad if you need this recipe to be vegan or dairy-free.
- Double the recipe: Make a double batch of this salad when serving a larger crowd – perfect if you plan to host over the holidays, like Thanksgiving!
- Uniform size matters: I like to make sure that the red onion and fennel are diced the same size so that the salad looks more appealing and to ensure every bite includes a perfect mix of flavors and textures.
More citrus orange recipes you may want to try:
- Coconut Mandarin Orange Quinoa Breakfast
- Orange Basil Tomato Soup
- Cranberry Pinwheels with Orange
- Baked Orange-Spiced Salmon Recipe
Get the Recipe:
Orange Juice Salad Dressing (with Orange Salad)
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 4-6 cups mixed lettuce, spinach or butter leaf lettuce is fabulous, too
- ¼ small red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 small fennel bulb, thinly sliced
- 2 11 oz cans Mandarin oranges, drained
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- ⅔ cup toasted slivered almonds, we buy at Trader Joe’s
- Optional salad toppings: Goat cheese and avocados
For the Dressing:
- ½ cup frozen orange juice concentrate, don’t add water
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 tsp orange zest, lemon works, too
- 2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 3 Tbsp sugar, or a little less – taste it
Instructions
Make the dressing:
- In a canning jar, add all of the orange salad dressing ingredients. Whisk together well, or place the lid on the jar and shake. Store in the fridge until ready to use.
Make the salad:
- In a large bowl, add all of the salad ingredients. When ready to serve, drizzle the dressing over the top (use as much as you’d like, you will have some left over); toss and serve!
Hello and welcome to my home and table!
I’m Sandy—lover of food, family, cooking, THE BIG BOARD, travel, and bringing people together. Through great recipes and connection around the table, we become better, stronger, and more courageous people. Feasting on Life is real, and every time we do it, we grow a little more. Read more...
