Vinaigrette is a delicious salad dressing that’s easy to make at home! Making salad dressing is not difficult, and is nice to have your own homemade recipes. Here are a few of our favorite recipes for making vinaigrette.

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Have you joined the eat salad all the time train hoping to be healthier? Good for you. But salad can get boring. And sometimes, those store-bought dressings are not healthy at all. 

Often the bottled store-bought dressings are packed with fat and sugar turning your healthy salad into a pretend Big Mac. 

That doesn’t mean you should give up your salad. You just need a new option for dressings. Try making yourself a homemade vinaigrette to dress your salad. 

Vinaigrettes are light and offer a plethora of options for creating a variety with your salad dressing. 

Read on to learn how to make your own perfect vinaigrette for salads. 

Start With the Basics

All vinaigrettes start with a basic formula to create the dressing. 

It is typically one part olive oil to three parts vinegar. To this equation, you add salt and pepper to taste. 

For salads that have firmer and tangier leaves like kale, you probably want the vinaigrette to be more on the vinegar side. If you are dressing meat or potatoes, you might prefer a vinaigrette heavier on oil. 

Many vinaigrettes include dijon mustard as part of the original formula too. You can add this to taste, based on your preferences. 

That’s the beauty of vinaigrettes, your ability to personalize them for your own preferences. 

Try a New Flavor Profile

One way to change up your vinaigrette recipe is to use different kinds of vinegar. A different vinegar can change the taste profile of your vinaigrette. Try:

  • Balsamic vinegar that has a strong sweet flavor. This works well with salads with fruit. 
  • Red wine vinegar has a punchy more acidic flavor. It works well with the Mediterranean flavors and on tomatoes and cucumbers. 
  • Champagne vinegar has a lighter slightly sweet vinegar flavor if you prefer less tang in your dressing. 

You could also try sherry, white wine or apple cider vinegar. Playing with your ingredients helps to create dressings with many flavor profiles. 

Low Carb Option

If you have jumped on the low-carb bandwagon, there is also a vinaigrette option for you. Create a low carb vinaigrette using organic extra virgin olive oil and organic apple cider vinegar. 

Depending on your salad ingredients, you can personalize this low carb option too. Try adding a few smashed strawberries and basil to your vinaigrette.

You could also try a small amount of sugar-free grainy mustard and dill to your formula.

Herb It Up

Another way to personalize and change up a vinaigrette recipe is to play with adding a variety of herbs and spices to the basic recipe. These can be either fresh herbs or dried herbs. 

Some fresh herbs to try include:

  • Dill
  • Basil
  • Parsley
  • Cilantro
  • Mint
  • Thyme

You might also try digging in your dried spices and using premixed spice options like Herbes de Provence or Italian seasoning mix. 

Some experts suggest mixing the herbs and spices with the vinegar first, then adding the oil. If the herbs first get covered in oil, they may not mix well into the vinaigrette. 

Salads and More Made Better With a Vinaigrette

There are countless ways to personalize your vinaigrette. You could also add cheeses like gorgonzola or parmesan to the mix. 

When creating your perfect vinaigrette be sure to use a jar with a tight lid, blender or emulsion mixer. You want your dressing to really mix and emulsify for the best flavor.

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