Simple Vinaigrette Recipe - Kristine's Kitchen (2024)

FAQs

What is a basic vinaigrette a simple mixture of? ›

Vinaigrette (/ˌvɪnɪˈɡrɛt/ VIN-ih-GRET, French: [vinɛɡʁɛt]) is made by mixing an oil with a mild acid such as vinegar or lemon juice (citric acid). The mixture can be enhanced with salt, herbs and/or spices. It is used most commonly as a salad dressing, but can also be used as a marinade.

As a matter of fact, I frequently just drizzle a little olive oil on my salad, followed by some vinegar and salt, and then toss the greens. It's delicious. The French have decided that the perfect ratio for a vinaigrette is 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar.

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.

Put the mustard, vinegar and olive oil in a jar and season. Shake vigorously to mix. Store in a cool place (not the fridge) until ready to use. Use for all your salads or try one of our recipes, right.

The Oils. 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.

Here is a perfect example of a culinary ratio, one that's fairly standard: The 3-to-1 vinaigrette, or 3 parts oil, 1 part vinegar.

Balsamic vinegar: Makes a bold, slightly sweet dressing that is wonderful on green salads with fruit, such as apples, strawberries or peaches. Red wine vinegar: Packs a punch and works well with other bold flavors and bright veggies, like tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumber, cabbage and more (think Greek salads).

Quick Guide: Homemade Balsamic Vinegar

Crush Lambrusco or Trebbiano grapes to extract their juice (the “must”). Strain the must and simmer it for 2–3 days until it halves and thickens. Store it in a wooden barrel for a minimum of 12 years, transferring to a smaller barrel each year.

This is equally true for even something as simple as a salad dressing, which a vinaigrette is as simple as it gets. Vinaigrettes are an emulsion of 3 parts vegetable oil (usually olive oil) and 1 part acid (usually vinegar or acidic fruit juice), seasoning, and sometimes other flavourings.

Why does homemade vinaigrette go bad? ›

How Long Does Homemade Vinaigrette Last? 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.

Emulsifiers mix easily with both oil and water and act as the glue that keeps your vinaigrette from separating. Common ingredients used as emulsifiers in vinaigrettes include Dijon mustard, honey, egg yolks, tomato paste or even roasted garlic (some are better emulsifiers than others).

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.

Oil and vinegar are immiscible in each other, so their composition will not be uniform throughout the mixture. Since heterogeneous mixtures are those mixtures that are not uniform throughout the mixture, so oil and vinegar salad dressing will be a heterogeneous mixture.

In Western culture, there are two basic types of salad dressing: Vinaigrettes based on a mixture (emulsion) of olive or salad oil and vinegar and variously flavored with herbs, spices, salt, pepper, sugar, and other ingredients such as poppy seeds or ground Parmesan cheese.

Vinaigrette is an oil-based salad dressing or marinade. When a restaurant server asks what kind of dressing you'd like on your salad, vinaigrette is usually one of the options. A basic vinaigrette is made from some kind of oil (often olive oil) whisked with an acidic ingredient, usually vinegar.