Annie’s tahini goddess dressing, a copycat recipe

December 17, 2008 at 5:20 am (A (4 stars, love, favorite), Alma's faves, Derek's faves, Monthly menu plan: dinner, My brain, Quick weeknight recipe, Sauce/dressing) (toddler-approved)

Both Derek and I love Annie’s goddess dressing.  It’s a tahini-based dressing that’s savory and rich, and very satisfying.  Annie’s is not sold in Germany, so I’ve decided to try to figure out how to make something similar myself.   I searched around on the web for a while, and came across this taste test from the San Francisco Chronicle that shows that Annie’s Goddess dressing is indeed better than knockoffs by other companies.  The result of the taste test didn’t surprise me, but it did worry me a bit—if big food companies can’t replicate Annie’s dressing, why do I think I have a shot?

I looked around some more on the web, trying to find a copycat recipe.  Although I found tons of posts where people were asking for the recipe, I could find only one post on recipezaar where someone actually attempted to replicate the original. Although the recipe is rated well, it doesn’t seem to follow the constraints given by the Annie’s ingredient list; I decided not to follow this recipe, but rather to try to figure it out on my own.  I looked at the order of ingredients in the ingredient list (ordered by weight) and the nutritional information to try to figure out how much of each ingredient to use.  My first few tries were pretty awful, but after ten attempts, I think I finally nailed it!  Now we can have Annie’s goddess dressing in Saarbruecken whenever we like.  Or maybe I should call it Fannie’s (Fake-Annie’s).

The bottle lists twelve ingredients: Canola Oil, Water, Tahini, Apple Cider Vinegar, Soy Sauce (water, soybeans, sea salt wheat), Lemon Juice, Sea Salt, Garlic, Sesame Seeds, Parsley, Chives, Xanthan Gum.

Here’s my current working recipe. (It’s the same as number 10 below, but doubled so that it makes 4 cups of dressing, so that I have lots extra to freeze in 1/2 cup jars). Below the recipe you’ll find the full history of my experiments.

Ingredients for a VERY LARGE batch of Annie’s:

• 1 1/3 cup (292g) expeller-pressed canola oil [personally I use  extra-virgin olive oil]
• 2/3 cup (160g) tahini, as thick as possible
• 1/2 cup (120g) apple cider vinegar  [may need another 1 to 2 tsp. for a total of 125 to 130 grams]
• 3 Tbs. (48g) soy sauce [depends on your soy sauce—you may want to START WITH JUST 8 tsp., about 42 grams]
• 3 Tbs. (46g) lemon juice
• 1 Tbs. (18 – 19g) table salt
• 4 medium cloves garlic [between 12g  and 19g]
• 2 Tbs. white sesame seeds, lightly toasted til light golden brown (16-18 grams after toasting)
• 4 Tbs. minced parsley (16 grams) [or 4-8 tsp. dried parsley??]
• 4 Tbs. minced chives (12 grams) [or 4-8 tsp. dried chives??]
• 3/8 tsp. xanthan gum (~2 grams) [not sure of the ideal amount, prob. between 1/4 and 1/2 tsp.]
• 0 to 3/4 cup (178g) water [possibly only 2/3 cup, and none if you omit the xanthan gum]

Instructions:

1. Get out the container you’re going to make the dressing in. It should fit 4 cups with enough room to blend without spilling over the edges. I use an 8-quart glass measuring cup.
2. Measure out your oil into the container you’re going to blend the dressing in.  Tip: If you don’t have an accurate scale then use a 1/3 cup measuring cup to measure the oil, then reuse the cup for the tahini.  You’ll have one less cup to clean and the tahini will come out more easily.
3. Add the tahini.  Note:  If your tahini is not already made from toasted sesame seeds, then you may want to toast it yourself in a small skillet or pan over low heat until lightly fragrant.  You’ll probably need to toast a little extra to end up with the 160g needed.  (Some is always lost to the pan.)  If you use raw tahini, the dressing will still be good, but perhaps not quite as authentic tasting.
4. Combine all the remaining ingredients except for water and herbs, and use a stick blender to blend it.  You can also mix the dressing by hand, but then you’ll need to finely mince or crush the garlic, and the sesame seeds won’t get fully integrated.
5. Finally, stir or whisk in the herbs and water.  You add the herbs after blending because you want flecks of green, not a uniform green/brown color.  It’s best to hold off on adding the water until the end because the amount depends on how thick your tahini was.  You’ll want to add just enough water to reach the desired consistency.  If you’re not using xantham gum you probably won’t need any water at all.  
6. Makes a little over 4 cups, which is about 32 two-tablespoon (~30g) servings.  I usually leave out one cup and freeze the other 3 cups in six small glass jars (in approximately 1/2 cup portions).

Here’s the nutrition info for the real thing vs. the recipe above.  As you can see, they’re very similar.

Annie’s Goddess Dressing Serving Size: 2 Tbs. Amount Per Serving Calories 120 Total Fat 12g Saturated Fat 1g Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 0mg Sodium 330mg Carbohydrate 2g Dietary Fiber 0g Sugars 0g Protein 1g Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 4% Calcium    0% Iron 2%

Annie’s copycat Goddess Dressing Serving Size: 2 Tbs. (30g) Amount Per Serving Calories 121.5 Total Fat 12.6g Saturated Fat 1.1g Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 0mg Sodium 322mg Carbohydrate 1.7g Dietary Fiber 0.6g Sugars 0.1g Protein 1.2g Vitamin A 1% Vitamin C 3% Calcium    3% Iron 4%

 

The full exegesis (experiments and results), starting with attempt #1:

NUMBER 1

Here’s what I tried in my first attempt:

• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 4 Tbs. water
• 3.67 Tbs. tahini
• 1.5 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 1 tsp. lemon juice [+1 Tbs. to fix it]
• 1 tsp. fine salt
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1/2 Tbs. sesame seeds
• 1 Tbs. parsley [+ more to fix it]
• 1 Tbs. chives

We tasted it before adding the parsley, chives, or garlic, and it tasted overwhelmingly of tahini, and was very salty.  After I added the parsley it definitely tasted more like Annie’s, although the tahini taste was still way to strong.  We added another tablespoon of lemon juice, and more parsley, which helped cut the tahini and salt a bit. Although the dressing was tasty on our salad, it still wasn’t right.

NUMBER 2

On my second try:

• 6.5 Tablespoons canola oil
• 4 Tbs. water
• 2 Tbs. tahini
• 2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar [+ more to fix it]
• 1 Tbs. soy sauce
• 1 Tbs. lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp. fine salt
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tsp. sesame seeds
• 2 Tbs. parsley
• 1 Tbs. chives

After tasting it my first thought was “too much soy sauce”!  It wasn’t too salty, just too briny and fermented.  I tried adding more parsley and vinegar to cover up the soy sauce taste, but then it just tasted even more fermented, as well as too acidic.  The tahini flavor wasn’t very strong at all.  This batch was worse than the last one.  I had to cut it with half vinegar to reduce the intensity enough that I wanted to eat it.

NUMBER 3

My friend Katrina came to visit this week, and we (plus Derek) took a weekend trip to Geneva to visit my friend Kathy. I suggested we try to make this dressing, figuring that four minds (and tongues) would be better than one. We started out with this recipe:

• 55 grams canola oil (about 4 Tablespoons) [+ 1 more Tbs. to fix]
• 4 Tablespoons water [+ 2 more Tbs. to thin]
• 60 grams Cortas Tahini (about 3.75 Tablespoons)
• 1 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp. tamari
• 1 Tbs. lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• no sesame seeds
• 1.33 Tbs. parsley [+ 1 Tbs. to fix]
• no chives

At this point it tasted a lot like Annie’s, according to Derek.  The texture seemed a bit thick, and it was missing the chive/onion taste, and the parsley flavor was too mild.  So we added another 1 Tbs. canola oil, a pinch of minced red onions, 2 Tbs. of water, and another Tablespoon of chopped parsley.  When I tasted it I thought it tasted pretty good, but that the tahini flavor was actually too weak, and still there wasn’t quite enough parsley flavor.  When we ate it on the salad, I thought it was good, and definitely closer to Annie’s. However, it tasted slightly watered down, and not as salty as the real thing.  Surprisingly, I couldn’t taste much tahini flavor either.  I think the final 2 Tbs. of water was too much.

The tahini you choose will affect this recipe significantly.  In this attempt we used Cortas tahini from Geneve.  It is smooth and not too bitter, and not very roasted tasting.  In 32 grams / 2 Tbs. it contained 240 calories, 19 grams of fat, 5 mg of salt, 6 grams of protein, and 4% each of iron and calcium.

NUMBER 4

On my next attempt (Spring 2009) I made the following:

• 5 Tbs. canola oil
• 4 Tbs. water
• 3 Tbs. tahini (add more if needed, depending on brand)
• 1.5 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp. tamari
• 1 Tbs. lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. fine salt
• 1/2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1.5 tsp. sesame seeds
• 2 Tbs. minced parsley
• 1 Tbs. chives

I tasted this and it tasted good, but when tasted right after Annie’s it didn’t taste quite as good.  I couldn’t put my finger on what the difference was.  Annie’s tasted slightly oilier maybe, and less acidic.  Derek thought Annie’s tasted saltier and more lemony.  I double checked the nutritional stats compared to Annie’s and it’s pretty similar except that mine has about half the salt.  When we put the dressing on the salad, it didn’t taste like Annie’s at all.  It was really watered down tasting.  Next time I want to use less water, more salt or soy sauce, and double check that the amounts are actually in descending order by weight, according to the Annie’s ingredient list.

NUMBER 5

The next try (12/26/2009):

• 1/3 cup canola oil (80 grams)
• 3 Tbs. water (43 grams)
• 3.5 Tbs. tahini (56 grams)
• 2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar (29 grams)
• 1 1/4 tsp. soy sauce (5 grams)
• 4 tsp. lemon juice (19 grams)
• 1/2 tsp. + 1/6 tsp. sea salt, coarse (~ 9? grams)
• 1 medium clove garlic, crushed (~6 grams I think)
• 1.5 tsp. hulled, toasted sesame seeds (5 grams)
• ~ 2 Tbs. parsley, about 7? grams
• chives (didn’t have any)

total dressing made: 229 grams, 8.1 ounces (after many, many tiny tastes)

So on this try I started out with the previous recipe but used only 2 Tbs. water and doubled the soy sauce.  It was definitely better, but the consistency was still way too thin.  It didn’t help that my tahini was very thin and runny.  I added another Tbs. of tahini (from the bottom, where it was thicker and stiffer), which definitely helped the consistency, although it was still way thinner than real Annie’s.  I think unless I get some xantham gum I should use less water than implied by the ingredient list.  Next time I’ll start with only 1 Tbs. water and add more only if needed to thicken it.  Also, next time I’m going to try to get all thick tahini, none of the runny stuff, and use slightly less, maybe 2.5 – 3 Tbs.  Derek thought it tasted a little more tahini-y than Annie’s.  Also, I toasted my sesame seeds quite well and the final dressing tasted a little too much like toasted sesame.  Next time I will toast them very lightly, if at all.

We did some side-by-side taste tests and clearly the consistency is really different, and the chives are missing, but also the Annie’s just tastes much more intense.   It tastes kind of briny. We decided to add a little more lemon juice and apple cider vinegar (reflected in the totals above), and that seemed to help.  Then I added just a touch more soy sauce (also shown above), which also seemed to help.  I think next time I’d try even more soy sauce and perhaps less salt to compensate.

I compared the stats of this recipe to Annie’s and this recipe looks pretty similar but the salt is still significantly less.  Also, based on the weights and the ingredient list order, I’m still using way too little soy sauce.  I might try upping the soy sauce to 2 tsp.  Also, the other main problem is that there’s too much lemon juice.  Maybe I should decrease the lemon juice a little and add more apple cider vinegar.

NUMBER 6

The plan for next time, start with the lesser amounts and add up to the greater amounts:

• 1/3 cup canola oil (~80 grams)
• 1/2 – 1 Tbs. water (~7-14 grams) [I used 1/2 Tbs.]
• 2.5-3 Tbs. tahini, as thick as possible (~40-47 grams) [I used 3 Tbs. thick tahini]
• 2 Tbs.  – 2 2/3 Tbs.. apple cider vinegar (~28 – 38 grams) [I used 2 2/3 Tbs.]
• 1.5 – 2 tsp. soy sauce (~7-9 grams) [used around 2 tsp., don’t use more!]
• 2 tsp –  1 Tbs. lemon juice (~9-14 grams) [I used 1 Tbs.]
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt (~8 grams) [I used 4 grams, a little over 1/2 tsp. kosher salt]
• 1 medium-large clove garlic, crushed (mine was 6 grams)
• 1.67 – 2 tsp. hulled sesame seeds, very lightly toasted (~7 grams) [I used 2 tsp., 7 g]
• 2 Tbs. parsley, chopped coarsely (~7 grams) [I used 1.5 Tbs, 7 grams]
• 1 Tbs. chopped chives [I used 1 Tbs., 3 grams]

I think it was just a tad too much soy sauce.  Maybe I put in a little over 2 tsp. though.  I unfortunately didn’t measure as carefully as I should have.  I think the amount of apple cider vinegar was good, but there was maybe a tad too much lemon juice.  Also, I think the tahini flavor was too strong, although I may have put in more than I thought.  Also, it was a little too green tasting.  I’d decrease the parsley and chop the greens by hand, and add them after blending.  Derek said it was my best version yet–getting closer!  The plan for next time:

NUMBER 7

• 1/3 cup canola oil (I used a tad more, about 80 grams)
• 1 Tbs. water (15 grams) [I ended up adding quite a bit more to compensate for the xanthan]
• 2.5 Tbs. tahini, as thick as possible (~40 grams)
• 2 2/3 Tbs.. apple cider vinegar [I used a bit more, ~41 grams]
• 2 – 2 1/4 tsp. soy sauce (I used around 12 grams)
• 2.5 tsp  lemon juice (I used around 13 grams)
• 3/4 tsp. sea salt (4.5 grams)
• 1 medium-large clove garlic, crushed (I used 3 grams)
• 1 tsp. hulled sesame seeds, very lightly toasted (I used 3 grams)
• 1 1/3 Tbs. minced parsley (I used ~5 grams)
• 1 Tbs. minced chives (I used ~2 grams)
• 1/2 tsp. xanthan gum

Dec 28, 2010:  It turns out 1/3 cup of canola oil is more like 73g, but I put in 80g.  I toasted my tahini this time, as suggested in the comments.  The tahini didn’t get much thicker, but it did change flavor a bit.  I mixed up this version (before adding the xanthan gum and water), then went to compare it.  I opened a brand new bottle of Annie’s dressing that I just bought in the States.  I started by tasting the Annie’s right out of the bottle, but it didn’t taste at all as I remembered.  Did they change their recipe?  The ingredient list is the same.  Then I saw that there was a watery liquid (vinegar?) at the bottom of the bottle, and so I put the lid back on and shook the dressing well.  It tasted better after that, but still not quite as I remember it.  Derek also immediately said it tasted different.  Strange.  My version tasted quite close, although did seem to be a tad more acidic than Annie’s.  Next time I’ll cut back on the vinegar or lemon juice slightly.

I then added 1/2 tsp. xanthan gum, which turned out to be way too much.  The consistency seemed okay at first but after several hours in the fridge it had thickened considerably.  I had to add tons of water and still it was horribly goopy and gummy textured.  It was so goopy and watered down tasting that I had to throw it away.  Sad.  Next time I’d try just 1/8 tsp. xanthan and 3 Tbs. water.  Before I put in any xanthan gum and any water it was a bit thin, but an okay consistency.  So if you don’t have xanthan gum I’d say omit the water, or just add a very little bit.

NUMBER 8

• 1/3 cup canola oil (73 grams)
• 2 2/3 Tbs. water (40 grams)
• 2 2/3 Tbs. tahini, as thick as possible, toasted (40 grams)
• 2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar (30 grams)
• 2 2/3 tsp. soy sauce (14.24 grams)
• 2 2/3 tsp.  lemon juice (13.35 grams)
• 3/4 tsp. sea salt (4.5 grams)
• 1 medium-large clove garlic, finely minced or crushed (4 grams)
• 1 1/2 tsp. hulled sesame seeds, very lightly toasted (4 grams)
• 1 Tbs. minced parsley (3.75 grams)
• 1 Tbs. minced chives (3 grams)
• 1/16 tsp. xanthan gum (.325g)

Combine all ingredients except for water, and whisk to combine.  Don’t use a blender. It’s probably best to hold off on adding the water until the end.  You’ll want to add enough at the end only to reach the desired consistency.  If you’re not using xantham gum you might not need any at all.  The two things I’m still not positive about are the apple cider to lemon ratio, and the soy sauce to salt ratio.

I made this immediately after my last fiasco and it tasted way too much of soy sauce, but otherwise it tasted pretty close.  The acid balance was good and so was the consistency.  It was not quite sesame-y enough, but I think that’s just because the soy sauce was masking the sesame flavors.  So next time I’ll start with only 2 tsp. soy sauce and then taste and add another 1/4 tsp. if necessary (up to 12g).  If it’s soy saucy enough but not salty enough I may add another 1/16 tsp. salt.  If it’s still not sesame enough tasting I will increase the tahini and water each to a full 3 Tbs.

NUMBER 9

• 1/3 cup canola oil (73 grams)
• 2 2/3 Tbs. water (40 grams) [possibly less, probably none if you’re not using xanthan gum]
• 2 2/3 Tbs. tahini, as thick as possible, lightly toasted (40 grams)
• 2 Tbs. + 1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar (32.5 grams)
• 2 1/4 tsp. soy sauce (12 grams) [START WITH JUST 2 tsp. (10.7g)]
• 2 1/4 tsp. lemon juice (11.25 grams)
• 3/4 tsp. sea salt (4.5 grams) [MAY NEED ANOTHER 1/16 tsp., up to 4.87 grams]
• 1 large clove garlic, finely minced or crushed (4.75 grams)
• 1 1/2 tsp. hulled sesame seeds, lightly toasted (4.69 grams)
• 1 Tbs. minced parsley (3.75 grams)
• 1 Tbs. minced chives (3 grams)
• 1/16 tsp. xanthan gum (.325g) [maybe a tad more?]

Combine all ingredients except for water, and whisk or blend to combine.  If you use a blender or stick blender, then wait to add the herbs until after blending.  You want flecks of herbs, not pureed uniform greenness.  It’s probably best to hold off on adding the water until the end.  You’ll want to add enough at the end only to reach the desired consistency.  If you’re not using xantham gum you won’t need any water at all.   Makes about 1 cup, or 8 servings.

I tried this recipe (#9) on Aug 29, 2012.  Two tsp. of soy sauce weighed 15g not 10.7g, so either I measured wrong or some soy sauces weigh more than others.  I’m glad I didn’t use 2 1/4 tsp!  I wonder if the weight has anything to do with how strong they are?  My 2.25 tsp. lemon juice also weighed a bit more than indicated (around 13-14g I think).  My garlic clove weighed 6g, but the final sauce didn’t taste any more garlicky than normal.  I guess a few extra grams of garlic doesn’t make much of a difference.  I used only 3/4 tsp. salt.  I toasted my sesame paste this time, and used dried parsley (1 tsp.) and only 2 Tbs. of water.  The consistency was good.  Perhaps next time I’ll add a tiny bit more xanthan gum and the full amount of water.  The flavor was pretty darn close I think.  It tasted just a tad too lemony and soy saucy, probably because I put a bit too much in.  Also, Derek said the sauce tasted more roasted than Annie’s.  He said it tasted better than Annie’s, but if you want more of a copy cat then roast the tahini less.  In any case, he loved the dressing.  I can’t decide if I like the dried parsley or fresh parsley more.  I think maybe the dried parsley is more authentic tasting, but I’d have to do a side-by-side comparison to be sure.

I wonder how long this dressing lasts in the fridge?  Anyone know?  If it lasts a long time then maybe next time I’ll make double the recipe, so that it fills one of my big Annie’s jars.  Here’s the doubled recipe:

NUMBER 10 (similar to #9, but twice as big)

This is very similar to #9, but uses slightly more xanthan gum and water, and the recipe is doubled.  I also rounded the amounts a bit to make it easier to measure.

• 2/3 cup expeller-pressed canola oil, other neutral oil, or even extra-virgin olive oil (146 grams)
• 1/3 cup tahini, as thick as possible (80 grams)
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar (60g) [may need another tsp. for a total of 65 grams]
• 1 1/2 Tbs. soy sauce (24 grams) [depends on your soy sauce—you may want to START WITH JUST 4 tsp., about 21 grams]
• 1 1/2 Tbs. lemon juice (23 grams)
• 1 1/2 tsp. fine sea salt (9 grams) [MAY NEED ANOTHER 1/8 tsp., up to 10 grams]
• 2 medium cloves garlic (~6 to 9 grams)
• 1 Tbs. white sesame seeds, lightly toasted til light golden brown (~9 grams after toasting)
• 2 Tbs. minced parsley (8 grams) [or 2-4 tsp. dried parsley??]
• 2 Tbs. minced chives (6 grams) [or 2-4 tsp. dried chives??]
• 3/16 tsp. xanthan gum (~1 gram)
• 6 Tbs. water (89 grams) [possibly only 1/4 or 1/3 cup, and none if you don’t add the xanthan gum]

Instructions:

1. Measure out your oil into the container you’re going to blend the dressing in.  (I use the tall, narrow, 1-quart container that came with my stick blender.)  Tip: use a 1/3 cup measuring cup to measure the oil, then reuse the cup for the tahini.  You’ll have one less cup to clean and the tahini will come out more easily.
2. Add the tahini.  Note:  If your tahini is not already made from toasted sesame seeds, then you may want to toast it yourself in a small skillet or pan over low heat until lightly fragrant.  You’ll probably need to toast a little extra to end up with the 80g needed.  (Some is always lost to the pan.)  If you use raw tahini, the dressing will still be good, but perhaps not quite as authentic tasting.
3. Combine all the remaining ingredients except for water and herbs, and use a stick blender to blend it.  You can also mix the dressing by hand, but then you’ll need to finely mince or crush the garlic, and the sesame seeds won’t get fully integrated.
4. Finally, stir or whisk in the herbs and water.  You add the herbs after blending because you want flecks of green, not a uniform green/brown color.  It’s best to hold off on adding the water until the end because the amount depends on how thick your tahini was.  You’ll want to add just enough water to reach the desired consistency.  If you’re not using xantham gum you probably won’t need any water at all.  
5. Makes about 2 cups, or 16 two-tablespoon (~30g) servings.  Fits perfectly into one of the larger Annie’s dressing bottles.  You’ll just need a funnel to fill it.  Or you can just leave it in the container you blended it in, or transfer it to a pint-size ball jar.

I need to double-check the weight measurements for the soy sauce, the lemon juice, the sesame seeds, and the herbs.

Update July 15, 2013:  I made recipe number 10 last night but with a few changes.  The only oil I had around was extra-virgin olive oil, so that’s what I used.  I was afraid it was going to change the flavor substantially, but actually it was quite subtle.  When I tasted the dressing by itself the olive oil was subtle but definitely detectable, but on the salad I didn’t really notice it.  And Derek didn’t notice it at all.  I was measuring everything in a bit of a rush so put in slightly too much oil (150g) and tahini (around 92g), and used 22g soy sauce.  I didn’t toast my tahini, and I actually don’t know if it was made from toasted sesame seeds or not.  It’s not too pale looking but it’s not particularly dark either.  I used fresh parsley but dried chives.  I blended the dressing after adding the herbs, but it didn’t seem to have a detrimental effect.

The final dressing had a good consistency from the xanthan gum, and a good flavor, but was pretty salty tasting.  I added a few more squeezes of lemon juice and another 2 tsp. dried chives, but it didn’t change much–still pretty salty tasting.  But on the salad (greens, beets, and fennel) the dressing tasted almost perfect.  Pretty darn close to the real thing. Derek said it was even better than the last batch I made (although that was quite a while ago so I’m not sure he really remembers).

Rating: A
Derek: A