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Green Goddess Dressing

A fresh mix of parsley, chives, tarragon, lemon, and garlic turns a creamy base into a versatile dressing with a texture you can choose.

Creamy pale green herb dressing with parsley, chive, and tarragon flecks in a ceramic bowl.

Green Goddess dressing depends on fresh herbs and a bright lemon-garlic base, with enough creaminess to carry their flavor. Chop the herbs by hand for a rustic texture or blend them smooth, then loosen the mixture only until it flows easily from a spoon.

Let the herbs lead

Parsley supplies a grassy base, chives add a gentle onion note, and tarragon brings a distinct anise-like lift. Lemon juice and zest keep those flavors clear, while garlic adds a savory edge that softens during the short rest.

Choose a chopped or smooth texture

A hand-chopped version leaves visible flecks of parsley, chives, and tarragon throughout the creamy base. Blending the parsley and tarragon with the lemon and aromatics makes a smoother dressing; stirring in the chives afterward preserves their small, fresh pieces.

Chopped green herbs, lemon, garlic, and creamy base are stirred together in a bowl. — Chopped herbs, lemon, garlic, and creamy base come together while the dressing texture is selected.

Keep the creamy base balanced

Mayonnaise gives the dressing a rich, steady body, while sour cream makes a tangier alternative. Use one base at a time, fold it through the herbs until evenly green, and add the chosen thinning liquid gradually so the dressing stays cohesive.

Rest, then serve

A brief covered rest gives the herbs time to perfume the creamy base and takes the raw edge off the garlic. Stir again before serving over salad greens or alongside raw or steamed vegetables, adding a splash of the selected liquid if the dressing has thickened.

A spoon shows the creamy dressing's slow ribbon and fine fresh herb flecks. — A spoon lifts creamy green dressing with fine flecks of parsley, chives, and tarragon.

Green Goddess Dressing

1.5 cups

35 minutes total

Ingredients

•
• 1/2 cup packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 2 tbsp fresh chives, finely sliced
• 1 tbsp fresh tarragon leaves, chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
• 1 anchovy fillet, finely mashed, optional
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
•

Method

Prepare the herbs and aromatics
Rinse and thoroughly dry the parsley, chives, and tarragon. Slice the chives, pick the tarragon leaves, finely grate the lemon zest and garlic, then juice the lemon and mash the optional anchovy fillet.
Look for: The herbs are dry so the dressing stays creamy, and the lemon juice is free of seeds.
Choose the herb texture
For a hand-chopped dressing, mince the parsley and tarragon very finely and keep the chives in thin slices. For a blender-smooth dressing, roughly chop the parsley and tarragon so they process evenly.
Look for: The hand-chopped herbs look fine enough to cling to a spoon, or the blender-bound leaves are in small pieces.
Build the green herb base
In a bowl, stir together the parsley, chives, tarragon, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, salt, and black pepper. For a smooth texture, pulse the parsley, tarragon, lemon juice, zest, garlic, salt, and pepper in a blender until finely flecked, then stir in the chives; mash in the optional anchovy with either method.
Look for: The chopped version is evenly green, or the blended base is finely flecked without looking watery.
Fold in the creamy base
Fold in 1 cup mayonnaise until the herbs are distributed throughout. For the sour-cream branch, use 1 cup sour cream in place of the mayonnaise and stir until the mixture is uniform; do not combine the two bases.
Look for: The base is evenly pale green with herbs suspended throughout and no streaks of unmixed cream.
Adjust the thickness
Stir in 1 tablespoon buttermilk to loosen the dressing, then add the remaining buttermilk a little at a time until it falls from a spoon in a slow ribbon. For the water branch, use cold water in the same gradual way instead of buttermilk; stop as soon as the dressing is pourable but still coats greens.
Look for: A spoonful flows slowly while a thin coating remains on the back of the spoon.
Rest the dressing
Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dressing for 20 minutes so the herbs perfume the creamy base and the garlic loses its raw edge.
Look for: The green aroma is rounded and fresh rather than sharply raw.
Stir and serve
Stir the dressing to recombine any settled herbs and check that it still moves in a slow ribbon; if it has thickened in the refrigerator, thin it with a small splash of the selected buttermilk or water. Spoon over salad greens or serve alongside raw or steamed vegetables.
Look for: The herbs are evenly suspended again and the dressing coats leaves without pooling heavily.