This Vinaigrette recipe is quick and easy to make using pantry staple ingredients. Make a batch today and drizzle it over salads all week long!
Homemade salad dressing is so simple to make, and this simple vinaigrette recipe is my favorite. It’s made with just four ingredients, plus salt and pepper. Once you master this basic recipe, you can customize it to make it your own. I’ve included some variation suggestions below.
This vinaigrette is tangy and perfect for drizzling over your favorite green salad. You can store it in your refrigerator for up to two weeks, so you can always have homemade vinaigrette dressing ready to enjoy.
I prefer homemade dressing over store bought because it tastes fresher and you can choose what to put in your salad dressing. Without any preservatives or other questionable ingredients, this vinaigrette dressing is perfect for serving with your healthy salads. You might also enjoy my balsamic vinaigrette, Italian dressing, honey mustard dressing, greek salad dressing and homemade ranch dressing recipes.
How to make Vinaigrette
Ingredients
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: I prefer to use extra virgin olive oil in a vinaigrette because the olive oil is a key ingredient in your dressing. The flavor of the olive oil plays a big role in the flavor of the dressing.
Apple Cider Vinegar: The best vinaigrette is the perfect balance of an acidic ingredient (in this case vinegar) and a sweetener. Apple cider vinegar is my favorite vinegar for salad dressings because of the flavor. You can substitute another vinegar if you prefer.
Honey: The honey balances out the tartness of the vinegar. You can add more or less, to taste.
Dijon Mustard: Dijon mustard helps to emulsify the vinaigrette. It also adds flavor. If you don’t care for mustard, you can leave it out.
Salt and Pepper: Always season your salad dressings to taste with salt and pepper.
Recipe Steps
To make this vinaigrette dressing, all you need to do is combine the ingredients and mix them together well. You can mix everything together in a bowl, with a whisk. Or, you can combine the ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake to mix. I usually make homemade salad dressing in a mason jar because then I can store the dressing right in the jar in my refrigerator.
Once everything is mixed together, taste the dressing and adjust the ingredients as necessary. The ratio of ingredients listed in the recipe below can be adjusted to your tastes. If your dressing tastes too sweet, you can add a little more vinegar or olive oil. If it is too acidic, add a little more honey or olive oil. You can also add more salt and pepper, to taste.
Vinaigrette Variations
You can change the flavor of this recipe by using a different type of vinegar. Try red wine vinegar, white wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar or champagne vinegar.
You can use maple syrup instead of honey.
Like this Lemon Vinaigrette recipe, instead of vinegar, you can use lemon juice as your acidic ingredient.
Try this Salad Dressing with these Salads:
Avocado Kale Salad
Massaged Kale Salad
Spinach Salad with Bacon
Green Salad Recipe
5 from 6 ratings
Simple Vinaigrette Recipe
Servings: 4servings
Prep Time: 5 minutesmins
Total Time: 5 minutesmins
This Vinaigrette recipe is quick and easy to make using pantry staple ingredients. Tastes so much better than store bought! Make a batch today and drizzle it over salads all week long.
Combine all ingredients in a jar with a tight-fitting lid or in a small bowl. Seal the jar with the lid and shake until well combined, or whisk until well combined.
Taste and adjust the ingredients as necessary. If the dressing is too sweet, add a little more vinegar or olive oil. If it is too acidic, add a little more honey or olive oil.
Dressing can be used immediately or stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
The dressing will separate as it sits and the oil may solidify in the refrigerator. Let the dressing sit at room temperature until the oil melts and then shake or stir vigorously to recombine the ingredients.
Apple cider vinegar may be substituted with white wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar.
This site contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, I may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting Kristine's Kitchen!
In general, vinaigrette consists of 3 parts of oil to 1 part of vinegar whisked into an emulsion. Salt and pepper are often added. Herbs and shallots, too, are often added, especially when it is used for cooked vegetables or grains. Sometimes mustard is used as an emulsifier and to add flavour.
In general, vinaigrette consists of 3 parts of oil to 1 part of vinegar whisked into an emulsion. Salt and pepper are often added. Herbs and shallots, too, are often added, especially when it is used for cooked vegetables or grains. Sometimes mustard is used as an emulsifier and to add flavour.
The standard ratio for making vinaigrette is three parts oil to one part vinegar, but because the vinegars I use are mild and extra virgin olive oil is quite assertive, I usually wind up at about two parts oil to one part vinegar, or even a little stronger.
In addition to white wine vinegar, red wine, sherry, balsamic and cider vinegars can all be used in the same quantities as above. It's really down to personal taste and it's great to have a selection of vinegars in your cupboard to give variety to even the simplest salads.
Generally speaking, any oils labeled "vegetable oil" or "salad oil" are fine for making a basic vinaigrette. You could also use any light, neutral-flavored oil like safflower, canola, or soybean oil. One of the most common variations is to substitute olive oil for salad oil.
The most common emulsifiers in your kitchen are likely egg yolks, mayonnaise, prepared mustard (preferably Dijon), honey, and tomato paste (though I'm not a fan of raw tomato paste, the flavor works quite well in a vinaigrette). For a more neutral flavor, use mayonnaise.
The traditional French vinaigrette formula calls for 1 tablespoon vinegar for every 3 tablespoons olive oil. Modern vinaigrettes often call for a bit more vinegar than that, but it's always up to you.
This is a standard vinaigrette recipe, so we use the traditional oil to vinegar ratio: three parts oil to one part vinegar/acid, but this ratio can vary depending on your choice of vinegar/acid and personal taste. The less acidic the vinegar/acid, the less oil you need.
Traditional vinaigrettes, like the balsamic version listed below, will last longer—sometimes up to a few weeks. However, anything with fresh garlic should be consumed within a few days, as the combination of garlic and oil can form harmful bacteria over time.
Sweetness balances out acidity, spice, and bitterness. A salad composed of bitter greens may benefit from a sweeter dressing. But sweetness can come from sources other than one-note white sugar; consider honey, pureed dates, maple syrup, jam, or molasses as sweeteners that also add flavor and mouth-feel.
The first one is salad dressing with oil and vinegar, it is an example of a heterogeneous mixture because we can easily see small particles in the salad dressing.
For a vinaigrette use a basic ratio of 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar by volume. Remember that this is a general ratio, which can be adjusted based on the type of oil and vinegar you use. The ratio works in combination with white or red wine vinegar and canola oil.
as we see that Salad dressing is made up of constituents which are present in more than one phase like lemon juice in liquid phase and vegetables in solid. Therefore, salad dressing is an example of heterogeneous mixture.
Vinaigrette dressing with herbs is a mixture because it contains multiple substances (like oil and vinegar) that are not chemically combined with each other. Additionally, the herbs within the dressing further increase the variety of substances within the mixture.
Introduction: My name is Errol Quitzon, I am a fair, cute, fancy, clean, attractive, sparkling, kind person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
