Homemade Salad Dressing - French Vinaigrette

Throw away those store-bought bottles. TasteHaus’s Natalie Sommer gives us a quick and easy homemade salad dressing that stores well and tastes great.

If you have ever read the back of store bought salad dressing brands, you’ve probably noticed that big companies fill them with unhealthy fats, sugar and preservatives. As a result, homemade salad dressing is not only healthier and less expensive, but also simple and delicious. This classic french vinaigrette recipe from Chatelaine is great because of its versatility.

We like to use this olive oil salad dressing as a marinade for meats and dishes as well as a salad dressing. The ingredients are simple and you can find them in most pantries. Also, the dressing lasts up to a week in the fridge. If you want to substitute the sugar for a natural sweetener, honey or maple syrup are good choices. You can also use white vinegar instead of white wine vinegar.

If you are using it for Greek salad, you can add oregano instead of thyme or tarragon. Though, as a side note, all herbs are equally delicious in this recipe, so don’t discriminate! This homemade salad dressing works best with chicken souvlaki and Greek salad because the dressing can simultaneously serve as a marinade for chicken and dressing for the salad.

We think this is the best salad dressing recipe ever, and we’re sure you will, too.

The Blendtec Classic 575 Blender: for homemade salad dressing, smoothies, shakes, soups and more.

For this healthy salad dressing recipe (and all other types of salad dressing), we use the Blendtec Classic 575 Blender—a near flawless combination of design and function

Blendtec designs their products for ease of use—to make the whole process as flawless as possible. Whatever you want to make – soups, smoothies or anything you need to puree – this blender will make it a breeze.

It will help you save time and energy. Not only is this going to boost kitchen efficiency, from blending to quick and easy cleanup, it will also boost your effectiveness with the smoothness of the finished product.

You won’t have to worry about its durability. We’ve been using the blendtec for 6 years and it is still as powerful as it was the day we bought it. We own the large blender and also purchased the small blender attachment for smaller volumes.

Ingredients

1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp dried tarragon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp granulated sugar
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Method

To make this salad dressing, you’ll need to whisk all the ingredients except olive oil in a bowl, or blend in a food processor or blender. Once blended, slowly whisk or blend olive oil until well blended. Taste and add more salt or sweetener if needed. Store in a sealed glass jar in the fridge for up to one week. Shake before using.

Tips, Tricks and Fun Facts:

Q: What is the French dressing standard?

A: Well, real French dressing is a vinaigrette, meaning the ingredients are used in a ratio of three parts oil to one part vinegar. The vinegar used can be red or white wine vinegar while the oil is always olive oil. Some add ons are throwing in some dijon mustard, salt, minced shallots, and a bit of garlic to give it a bit of a twist.

Q: What’s the difference between French dressing and Catalina?

A: Well to be honest, French dressing is more associated with a dressing using an oil-and-vinegar base with a touch of mustard and other seasonings. Comparatively, Catalina dressing is usually thinner with a bright red colour.

Q: Is French dressing really French?

A:Funny enough French dressing is more American than French. A good deal of homemade salad dressing recipes requires ketchup, oil, vinegar and some paprika.