Recipe: Simple Salad Dressing
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One Recipe. Endless Variations.
We adore a good salad. There are so many fun ways to dress them up as a side dish or main meal. We have been making this dressing for so long, we have no idea where we first got the recipe. It most likely started with me walking around the kitchen with a mason jar in one hand, using the other hand to dig around for what ingredients were available in the moment.
When we put in our stock tank raised bed garden, salad greens were some of the very first crops we grew. The flavor of freshly harvested lettuces are unlike anything you can buy at the store. We wanted the rich flavors to shine through, so we whipped up a batch of this dressing with our first homestead salad harvest.
You don’t need to grow your own greens to enjoy this dressing. Homemade salad dressing is not only cost effective, but generally healthier too. You get to bypass those highly processed ingredients for simple things you probably already have around your kitchen
Tips for making this recipe
This simple salad dressing recipe is incredibly versatile. It’s tasty as written or can be used as a base for endless variations. Swap out the apple cider vinegar for lemon juice or red wine vinegar. Add fresh herbs for a seasonal flavor. Pump up the sweetener and mustard for a classic honey mustard flavor. Puree some berries for a surprising twist. Add a packet of ranch seasoning or similar spices and you get a totally different flavor.
If you are fairly new to cooking from scratch, or scared to deviate from a recipe, this simple salad dressing is a great place to start experimenting!
This recipe can be doubled or quadrupled. It lasts well in the fridge, but will need to be shaken before each use.
Simple Salad Dressing
Level: Easy | Prep: 5 minutes | Cook: 0 minutes | Yield: 2 servings
EQUIPMENT
Cutting board
Sharp kitchen knife
Measuring spoons
Jar
Non-metallic lid
INGREDIENTS
3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon dijion mustard
1 small garlic clove, diced (you can substitute1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder)
1/2 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt
1/4 freshly ground pepper
DIRECTIONS
Mince garlic
Combine all ingredients in a jar
Shake well
Taste and adjust to desired flavor
Store in fridge
Serving Suggestions
You can add or adjust ingredients in this recipe to make endless variations! Try swapping out the kinds of vinegar or use lemon juice instead. Increase the quantities of honey and mustard for a classic dressing. Add fresh or dried herbs for different flavors.
Notes
We prefer to make this recipe in a glass mason jar. However, do not use a metal lid! Within a few hours it will impart a metallic taste to your entire batch of dressing, making it taste terrible.
This will last in the fridge for a week or more. Shake well before each use.
Welcome to Wild Notes. In this series take a walk on the wild side with Kevin to see the natural world from the perspective of a seasoned naturalist. In this first article meet a pair of hunting American Kestrels.