Our Best Dipping Sauces for Dunking Everything from Vegetables to Slices of Bread

Whether you're putting together a plate of chicken wings, a basket of freshly-baked pita bread, or a platter of fruits and vegetables, adding a good quality dipping sauce will transform any finger food in your repertoire. Often made with minimal ingredients, dipping sauces are typically the easiest and most delicious part of a dish, and that's certainly true of the ones in this collection. Here, we feature a wide-ranging selection of recipes that come together quickly, leaving you time to work on the other elements of your meal, whether that's slicing vegetables for crudités or making appetizers for dunking.

Dipping sauces are typically thinner in consistency than dips and can be made by whisking a few ingredients together in a bowl or quickly puréeing them in a blender. You won't need to turn on your oven to melt layers of cheese or brown ground beef on the stovetop for the recipes featured here. Many of them achieve their depth of flavor with a handful of ingredients—often vegetables and a few fresh herbs—that are chopped and blended into a thin, spreadable sauce. Our Green Goddess Dressing, pictured here, is the perfect example. The creamy concoction is made by puréeing sour cream, mayonnaise, anchovies, parsley, basil, and scallions in a food processor until smooth. It's best served with a selection of seasonal vegetables for dipping.

Of course, any dipping sauce needs a base that makes it possible to blend vegetables and herbs into a smooth mixture. While most of the offerings here use either Greek yogurt, sour cream, mayonnaise, or a mixture of all three, there are also dairy-free options. Ingredients like avocado, tahini, and miso will give your dip robust flavor while also providing enough liquid to make sure the other ingredients are blendable.

Get your choice of crackers, chips, or fresh crostini ready, and make sure you chop up an assortment of fruits and vegetables to complement our incredible dipping sauces.