Here’s my master salad dressing that I use as a base for every salad! You just need 1 tbsp vinegar, 3 tbsp oil and 1/2 tsp mustard. Finish with salt and pepper, or choose from any number of flavourings – garlic, fresh or dried herbs, pinch of spice, touch of honey.
USE FOR big leafy salads, chopped salads, to add flavour to beans and lentils, and infuse boiled, steamed and roasted vegetables with flavour – they suck up the dressing when hot!
Salad Dressing
This is my recipe for a basic salad dressing that I use virtually everyday – either as it is, or as a base to add other flavourings as listed in the recipe.
1 tablespoon vinegar + 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil + 1/2 tsp Dijon Mustard + 1/2 each salt and pepper
This will dress any salad for 4 people.
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Vinegar – my favourite is apple cider vinegar (also labelled just cider vinegar) and lemon juice. They are both less sharp than plain white vinegar, but more tangy than white wine vinegar – perfect balance. BUT you can make this with any vinegar at all.
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Extra virgin olive oil – the better the oil, the better the flavour of the dressing. If you make this with a flavourless oil (like peanut, vegetable, canola) then just add one of the Flavourings listed – garlic is my go to!
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Dijon Mustard – this is optional but I pretty much always add a touch because it thickens the dressing a bit more which makes it coat the lettuce better.
TWEAK THE TANG
Use the recipe below as your master, then just tweak as follows to your taste – remember, different vinegars have different levels of sharpness:
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too tangy – add more oil or a touch of sugar or honey;
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not tangy enough – add more vinegar
SALAD DRESSING is for more than just leafy salads!
Use this dressing for any salad – leafy greens, garden salads, chopped salads. It makes enough to serve 4.
It’s also terrific used to make otherwise bland steamed or boiled vegetables tastier. Toss while hot and they will suck up the flavour! Same goes for roasted vegetables.
Enjoy! – Nagi x
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Salad Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp any vinegar or lemon juice (my favourite is cider vinegar) (Note 1)
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil or other neutral oil
- 1/2 tsp Dijon Mustard (or other non spicy smooth mustard)
- 1/2 tsp EACH salt and pepper
Optional Flavourings - choose:
- 1/2 - 1 small garlic clove* , pressed through crusher or smashed (Note 2)
- 1 tsp lemon zest*
- 1/4 tsp sugar (Note 3)
- 1 tsp honey (Note 3)
- Finely chopped fresh herbs
- 1/2 tsp dried herbs*
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Place Dressing ingredients and Optional Flavourings in a jar and shake well until mustard dissolves.
- Makes enough for a big leafy salad for 4 people (4 big handfuls of lettuce), or garden salad.
- Storage: Excluding garlic and fresh herbs, Dressing will keep for weeks in the fridge - just give it a good shake before using. Big batch - click servings and slide.
- Use to dress any fresh salad (make sure leaves are dry otherwise it won't stick) or steamed, boiled or roasted vegetables (douse while hot so it absorbs!). Drizzle and toss well just before serving.
Recipe Notes:
- Apple cider vinegar (my most used)
- White wine vinegar (2nd most used, use a touch more as it's milder)
- Balsamic
- Red wine vinegar, sherry vinegar, champagne vinegar
- Plain white vinegar (most sharp, so you may need touch more oil)
- Rice wine vinegar
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
He eyes off the salad like it’s a big juicy steak, then REJECTS it!! 🙄
I add the lemon, oil, mustard, salt and pepper and shake. I make a big bottle to last the week. I add fresh garlic and sumac on the salad before dressing. 10/10
Imagine having spent my whole life buying bottled salads when I could’ve made my own. Weird, huh? But true. Now I’m enjoying experimenting. So many possibilities.
I’ve preordered your new cookbook. I’m no spring chicken so I like print where I can jot notes about the many blunders and adventures in my culinary attempts. Who knew someday I’d be “talking” to a multicultural Aussie-based chef from my little corner of the world. Thanks Nagi. It’s always fun!
Nagi, this dressing has gotten my Hubs to finally enjoy salads; using AC vinegar + thyme + oregano is the winning combo for us. On a whim, though, I recently experimented and replaced the oil w/ greek yogurt — equally amazing! The creamy version is now my go-to for making coleslaw, too.
Hi Nagi, love your recipes. This one I haven’t tried yet. Hubby and I have tried various homemade ones before but we don’t like the amount of oil. Even adding other ingredients it still just tastes too oily to us. What is the minimal amount of oil and the maximum amount of the acid, etc
ingredients we could add. I hope to hear from you
Thanks for sharing these basic recipes! Sometimes that’s all you need. I’d be excited to see you add more salads to the website.
There are also lots of fun salads coming in the cookbook Agill! N x
Exciting! That’s awesome. Your hard work is going to pay off!
I’ll never buy bottled dressing ever again. I had a bit of cooked cabbage from a dish and this dressing made it into a perfect little side salad for me for lunch xoxo Thank you Nagi ❤️
Yum! Sounds perfect Joy! N x
Simple and perfect! Takes any salad to the next level. Greetings from Dominican Republic.
I have been making my own salad dressing for years, but this recipe is next level! Very adaptable to what ingredients I have at the time, the ratios are spot on and I will never look for another recipe. Salads are never boring or the same now 🙂
I LOVE hearing this Nicole – thanks so much!! N x
A quick question on salt… would it be table salt or sea salt?
Hi Laura, I use cooking salt in all my recipes, if using table salt you’ll need to scale it down and use less as the grains are finer. N x
Hi Nagi! What is “cooking salt”? Are you referring to Kosher salt?? Sea salt? I always assume that when a recipe says “salt” it means iodized table salt.
Just made the basic dressing this morning, have rocket + everything for juicy poached chicken to cook at work. Anticipating lunch already 😉
Enjoy Liz!! N x
Nagi, I’m not one for dressings because something would not be quite right. But you’re onto a winner here. The balance is just lovely and using acv made all the difference. Any dressing based on this is sure to pop your tastebuds. Your blog is the absolute best! Thanks for making the leap from corp finance to following your passion and sharing it with us. x
Amen
Obsessed with this concept! Now trying it with all the possible combinations. Did apple cider vinegar the first time, did red wine vinegar and dried oregano tonight. Such a simple ratio that can be tailored to whatever I’m having.
Am trying out this dressing pretty soon. I have the ACV on hand, just need to buy Mustard. Thanks Nagi !
Enjoy Georgina!! N x
I’ve made this recipe 3 times now. 1. Just the basic, great tasting. 2. Added garlic, even more better. 3. Added garlic and used red wine vinegar instead of the apple cider vinegar, a whole new level. Love it. Hubby loves it also. Amazing once again Nagi, thank you soo much for sharing all that you do.
These dressing recipes sound very good can’t hardly wait to try them out. Thanks alot
i made this dressing and Ho Boy don’t think I’ll ever buy it from supermarket again
thanks Nagi I’ve been looking for a recipe like this for months
I’ve made this dressing and since i don’t have honey at home, i’m using maple syrup Instead. Taste absolutely yummy 👍🏻 thanks Nagi
You’re totally converted Carole – and it’s so much more cost effective! N x
Hi there lovely,
Quick question, if I make a bulk batch and use dried garlic or onion and dried herbs will it keep in fridge for the 4 weeks?
I see in the bought salad dressings the use garlic and herbs…. So I’m wondering how?
Side point you don’t know how to make your own flavoured olive oils do you. I would like to make my own garlic oil. But I don’t think it’s a matter of just chucking garlic cloves in the oil? Seems like there may be a process?
Thanks Nagi, you are my number 1 recipe go to spot. And you never fail. And I love that it’s all in Aussie lingo.
I’ve made garlic oil before. Cooked oil with garlic in slow cooker. It seemed to work and tasted nice.