Whenever it is my turn to make a salad to contribute to a pot luck dinner – people are always excited to taste my salad dressing because it is always home made. I rarely ever purchase salad dressing. People have asked repeatedly for the recipe. Once I was ‘apologizing’ to a couple that had come over for dinner – that I was just serving them a salad and a grilled protein… The husband said – yeah – that’s great we love eating healthy and besides, your salads are always accompanied by a fantastic homemade salad dressing…
The thing is – this “recipe” is so simple literally anyone could make it! I honestly don’t know why people buy salad dressings !
There is just one ‘Secret’ :
Ready? Here it is : Artisanal Vinegar. Yep – I pick up vinegars all over the country – whenever I see an olive oil shop – I go in and check out … their vinegars. I use far more specialty vinegar than I do specialty olive oils. Although, you know I do have a fair amount of specialty olive oils…ha.
So – I went into my magical pantry – from which I can create all sorts of amazing meals without even leaving the house… (for now obvious reasons) and you will find these vinegars. Yes, all of these are vinegars. You really need to zoom in and see the labels. The two in the front were most recently made into salad dressings… I bought those in Vermont last summer (2023) on our van trip. They made delicious salad dressings. The raspberry was white vinegar and the blackberry is dark vinegar. Pear infused…more raspberry white vinegar on the right… Fig balsamic, peach white balsamic. YUM. Plus the standards for all kinds of other dressings and touching up of pizzas and various recipes. You don’t have to be crazy like me…. 🤣 but I’d suggest a balsamic, a white, red and maybe apple cider as a good pantry base. Then one or two specialty / artisanal for extra yummy salad dressings.
Where to get these specialty vinegars ? Now that you’ve read this post – just keep your eyes open for specialty olive oil and vinegar stores. You will start to see them here and there. Pick up a small bottle and try it once. (Then you’ll be hooked.). Or you can zoom in and order from one of those noted above. They all (typically) ship.
What else do I need ?
Let’s start with GOOD Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I don’t want to get into a debate here. But there has been a lot of press on olive oils that aren’t really…olive oils. Try hard to get a good one.
We get ours sent direct from Tres Pontas. I’m not affiliated with them, but Dave found them for a coffee source and then we realized they did olive oil and we tried it. Then I served a super duper simple appetizer (which I HAVE to get posted) which is basically tomatoes, feta, olive oil and greek spices, served with homemade baguette. (When you are serving simple ingredients you need to have the highest quality possible. ) The taste testers that night – declared that the olive oil was superb. That was when we solidified our use of this Chilean olive oil.
OK – so then what ? GOOD dijon mustard. Your best bet is some mustard from France… to be specific. Ideally one of the oldest mustard houses… Edmond Fallot. A family business since 1840 from Beaune France – very near Dijon. You can get it in good grocery stores and on amazon… Or you can use whatever you have. Just don’t use that yellow stuff or anything that is overly yellow…
And? How about a clove of Garlic and some S&P. Maybe a small bit of shallot if you have some?
Whala.
That’s IT.
Oh – and one of my very most favorite kitchen tools. The immersion blender. If you don’t have an immersion blender then get out your blender, or your bullet, or your shake maker, or a tupperware container made for salad dressings, or a JAR. And shake shake shake.
Let’s talk about the Vegetables !
I like Romaine – almost always have romaine in my salads as a base. I like to add other greens if making a big salad to give some variety. You should use what you and your family like. I add whatever veg are in the drawer / on the counter and almost always that includes cucumber, peppers, and tomatoes. Go big if you like – add celery and carrots and radishes too ???
Anything else ?
You can add some tang with some feta cheese and/or some pomegranate seeds. You could add some dried fruit (apricots cut up) or maybe cranberries. Sometimes I’ll even add a fresh pear or apple to the salad – given different zing to it.
I also like to add some “fancy” nuts – roasted pecans or walnuts make for a nice additional crunch. (bake 350 for 5 minutes only). You can also buy some candied nuts to add in.
You can do what you like. If you make a salad like this – it shows you care – about their enjoyment of a nice veg and giving your people some good-for-them food.
Homemade Salad Dressing – Vinegar and Oil Based
Equipment
- Immersion Blender Or Alternative Container / Blender / Mixer / Jar
Ingredients
- ⅔ C Olive Oil Extra Virgin (EVOO)
- ⅓ C Vinegar GOOD SPECIALTY VINEGAR !!!
- ½ tsp Dijon Mustard
- 1-2 cloves Garlic
- ½ Shallot (Optional)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to your blender / jar of choice. If using a jar – mince the garlic first. If using a blender just toss in the garlic and shallot if using.
- Taste the dressing and see if it needs a tiny bit of mustard, or more salt and pepper or a splash more vinegar.
- Serve a healthy delicious salad to your friends and family.
