How To Make A Simple Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
Most of them taste cloying and weird to me. But you know what, That’s okay. Because it’s super, duper easy to make my own homemade oil and vinegar dressing. And way less expensive. And I know exactly what goes into it! Vinaigrette, a dressing made with oil and vinegar, is my favorite - and arguably the easiest to whip together, too.
We’re talking 30 seconds or so. Less time than it takes to shop for a bottle of the stuff at the store! So as I was shaking together my umpteenth jar of vinaigrette, I thought, hey! I should write a new tutorial! And so here it is: How to make a simple vinaigrette salad dressing.
Once you know the formula for homemade vinaigrette, you’re set! You can go with extra virgin olive oil, which I use 95% of the time. Or choose a light, flavorless oil like grapeseed oil, canola oil, or vegetable oil. For some extra flavor, you can even swap in a touch of nut oil like walnut oil or hazelnut oil; or a bit of sesame oil adds a delicious Asian vibe.
Just use a light touch with the more strongly flavored oils. It goes without saying that higher quality oil is going to taste the best. But personally, as you can see by the photo, I’m not opposed to a little Costco generic brand love. Tastes pretty great to me! Ahhh, so many lovely varieties of vinegar. Most wine vinegars will yield a lighter vinaigrette. Rice vinegar is also a nice, light choice. Apple cider vinegar lends a nice little bite (I like using it in salads with apple).
Balsamic vinegar is a bolder choice, but lends a wonderful sweet/tart flavor to the mix. Sherry vinegar is also nice, but can be bold, so tread lightly. Lemon juice is often substituted for vinegar, but I prefer to supplement the vinegar with acidy citrus juices (orange and lime juices also fall into this category) rather than replace the vinegar entirely.
Generally I’ll swap out half the vinegar for citrus juice if I’m going that route. But it’s fun to do more, if you want! Dijon mustard adds flavor and acts as an emulsifier - it’s kind of vinaigrette’s best pal. More about emulsifying in a minute. Sugar or honey helps mellow the vinegar’s acidity, if necessary, plus, honey works as an emulsifier, too. Yes, oil and vinegar likes to stay separated. But for vinaigrette, we want it together - at least long enough to get it onto our salad.
One effective way of mixing it together (also known as “emulsifying”) is to use a blender. But I feel like that over-complicates the process and, let’s be honest, I don’t like the extra clean-up. And this is all about simple! Add all of the ingredients to a small bowl and briskly whisk until all of the ingredients come together.
You can also add all of the ingredients except the oil, then whisk while adding the oil in a stream, which can help with the emulsification. A tip Brandy shared has been a bit life-changing, too: just whisk the vinaigrette right in the salad bowl, add the greens, and toss.
It only works if you’ve got just the right quantity for your salad, but it’s still an incredibly convenient option when the stars align. This is my favorite method because it’s easier (read: lazier). Just add all of the ingredients to a mason jar, screw on the lid, shake for a few seconds, and: voila, vinaigrette! Bonus: you’ve now got a ready-made container for storing leftover dressing in the fridge for later on!
