Simple Sophistication: The Vinaigrette

At first glance, the vinaigrette seems to be nothing more than just a mixture of oil, vinegar, herbs, and spices. It is a sauce so simple that it hardly seems like it can deliver anything at all. But vinaigrette is more than that; this amazing dressing can transform your salads and other meals into something more.

What’s the fascination with this simple addition to a meal? Its refreshing and clean flavors make it one of the most scrumptious things one can enjoy in their life. Vinaigrette can do wonders for any dish. It can transform a simple bowl of greens in to a heartwarming salad, or uplift a plate of chicken or steak with just a little drizzle. It is sometimes just the thing we are looking for when we want to turn our simple dining fare into extraordinary plates. A fresh salad dressed in the perfect vinaigrette can be the answer to our prayers when we just want something refreshing, or something that tastes like it came straight from the market.

Making your own vinaigrette is easy and the secret to making your own great tasting classic is the three to one ratio. Follow this proportion and your vinaigrettes are sure to taste superb.

Creating the vinaigrette is easy as the ingredients needed are few, although quality is an important consideration, and the process is simple and uncomplicated. Usually, a recipe would call for oil, vinegar, salt, and fresh black pepper. The only equipment would be a bowl and a small whisk. It helps to dissolve the salt in the vinegar first, as it won’t dissolve in oil alone. Once this is done, the oil is slowly drizzled into the vinegar to emulsify it. You may choose to add other ingredients to add flavor and texture and flavor to the mix, such as shallots, mustard, and other herbs and spices.

There are different kinds of vinaigrettes and each kind goes better with a certain food or dish. A soft and gentle tasting extra virgin olive oil would compliment a green salad exquisitely, especially if it is matched with fresh herbs. Vinaigrettes with sharper, more pronounced flavors go well with food that carry strong flavors as well, such as steaks or wilted bitter greens. Fish or steaks of light meat go well with vinaigrette that carries a
more mustardy flavor. Certain dressings are paired up with certain dishes to create a medley of wonderful flavors.

Sometimes, it isn’t necessary to follow the 3:1 ratio. You can veer away from this proportion depending on the type of vinegar you used. High acid vinegar calls for a little more oil, while the milder ones may stick to the usual proportion. Chopped basil, diced shallots, or mashed garlic are great additions for flavor and add texture to your mixture as well. Grated ginger and wild honeys are also some ingredients you can try. Of course, if you are truly after the simple beauty of the recipe, keep it simple. Vinaigrette remains as superb even when left in its minimalist glory.

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A vinaigrette dressing for fresh salads is just one of the many ways that olive oil and balsamic vinegar can be used and enjoyed. For example, to enhance pasta combine olive oil with some garlic and finish with some grated parmesan cheese for perfect results. A put anesca can be made by mixing olive oil with olives, tomatoes (fresh and sundried) and anchovies. For a quick and delicious evening meal sauté chicken with garlic and olive oil and finish by combining with pasta. Such a simple concept that results in a light and pleasurable meal. Olive oil is also ideal for creating marinades for meat and poultry. A delightful dish of lemon chicken can be created by baking the poultry with lemon after it has been previously marinated in olive oil.

By combining extra virgin olive oil with herbs and spices of your choice a flavored oil worthy of gourmet status can be achieved. The advantages are that you can adjust the flavours added to the oil to suit your personal taste. Gourmet olive oil recipes can make a huge difference to the overall flavour of the dish you are preparing and meat, poultry or fish will take on some of the subtle, complementary and interesting flavours of the herbs and spices that you have used. Creating a recipe for your own gourmet oil is a satisfying and personal endeavour and you may find that though many good restaurants create their own flavoured oils, and delicious as they may be, they will not be exactly the same as the ones that you have prepared yourself which will be entirely unique and suit your personal taste perfectly.

There is a certain spiritual significance attached to the act of giving olive oil as a gift or to welcome someone to a new home. It has been said that olive oil is a gift that inspires the gods to bestow blessing of wealth and wellbeing to a home. It also brings with it connotations of summer days and a happy atmosphere. So, by offering gifts of olive oil to friends and acquaintances, especially as a housewarming gift you are offering them your good wishes for a life filled with happiness in their new home.

For a perfect, gourmet housewarming gift it is worth considering presenting a picnic hamper or basket filled with an array of delicious Mediterranean food items including extra virgin olive oil, aged balsamic vinegar, fresh rustic bread, some fresh salad vegetables, pasta, parmesan cheese, maybe some fresh baguette sandwiches and an olive oil decanter., you may even like to include your own special vinaigrette dressing recipe! You now have all the ingredients for a wonderful Mediterranean lunch or dinner that can be enjoyed without too much preparation, and is for a family moving into a new home nothing could be more welcome.

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Salad dressing taste sometimes receives the least of any attention paid to a meal. You may have had the misfortune to have tasted green salads that were doused in burning dressings that were mostly vinegar; tasteless blends of olive oil and little else; or worse yet, store-bought dressings loaded with sugar and cloying to the palate.

Many people eventually acquire a taste for these less-than-satisfactory dressings and never discover the truly wonderful dressings that they are missing out on. It is a simple task, however, to prepare great tasting salad dressings in the comfort of your own kitchen.

The best place to start is with the font of all salad dressings – the classic French vinaigrette. The challenge in making this dressing is being able to balance the various tastes – vinegar or lemon juice for the sour acid taste, olive oil and other ingredients for sweetness, and black or hot peppers or mustard for heat. As most experienced cooks will understand, the higher the quality of your ingredients, the better the flavour of your final product.

The dressing for a basic green salad to serve four should consist of approximately 1 ½ teaspoons of mustard, a tablespoon of vinegar, 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil, and salt and pepper. Place all the ingredients except the oil in a bowl and whisk them together until you obtain a smooth texture. Then, while continuing to whisk the mixture, drizzle in the olive oil. You should also remember that salad dressings almost never come out the same way twice, and you should taste your dressing frequently as you make it so you can perform the necessary adjustments.

Mastering the art of making vinaigrette opens a whole world of possibilities to you, especially when fresh herbs become available in the summer. You should not be afraid to experiment with different ingredients, and any mistakes that you make can be remedied through the addition of more vinegar and olive oil. When fresh herbs are not available, you may find yourself using dried herbs, which is perfectly acceptable. You should remember, however, that the taste in dried herbs is twice that of fresh herbs, because the water within them has evaporated, concentrating the taste. A mixture of dried herbs known as Herbes de Provence is widely available in gourmet stores and tastes excellent.

There are many herbs that you could use to flavour your dressing with such as tarragon, rosemary, thyme, mint, cilantro, chervil, parsley, and dill. You can use any combination of herbs too. France, Italy, and California also produce some excellent herbed olive oils, but these tend to be rather expensive.

If you prefer a milder, less-acidic vinaigrette, consider using rice vinegar or cider vinegar. If you have a fondness for sweet dressings, then the balsamic vinegars found in supermarkets, while not truly authentic, help you create a pleasantly sweet dressing. Authentic balsamic vinegars from Modena, Italy, cost $160 or more for a bottle of only 3.5 oz.

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Pesto Vinaigrette
(5 minutes preparation time, no need to cook).Ingredients:
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 ½ tbsp Walnuts or pine nuts
1 cup fresh basil leaves, packed
6 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 tbsp white-wine vinegar

Procedure:
1. Drop the garlic and nuts into a food processor. Process it until finely chopped.
2. While the food processor is running, add basil leaves until these are finely chopped.
3. Add olive oil by slowly pouring it through the processor’s feed tube. Then, add vinegar. Turn the processor off and stir the mixture and scrape the sides of the processor. You may now use the dressing. This is perfect for a tomato or green salad or fish or chicken that is sautéed, broiled or grilled.

The recipe is good for 6 to 8 servings as a dressing and 4 to 6 servings when used as a sauce. Yield is about three-fourths cup.

Raspberry Vinaigrette
(5 minutes preparation time, no need to cook)

Ingredients:
2 tbsp raspberries, fresh
¼ cup raspberry vinegar
¼ cup olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Procedure:
1. Mash the raspberries and mix with the vinegar. Add the oil, and continue beating until the oil is blended.
2. Add pepper and salt according to taste. You may serve this over sautéed chicken breasts, some salad greens or grilled quail.

The recipe is good for 2 to 4 servings as a sauce and 4 servings as a salad dressing. Yield is about ½ cup.Lemon-Olive Vinaigrette
(10 minutes preparation time, no need to cook)Ingredients:
Juice from 2 lemons
1 tbsp black olive paste (also called olivada and can be bought in deli shops)
5 tbsp extra virgin oil
Black pepper, freshly grounded
1 tbsp Italian parsley leaves, minced finely

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To make good vinaigrette, you have to be mindful of the proper blend. It should neither be too oily or too acidic. The sharp taste of the vinegar should be a counterpoint to the oil.

The suggested mixture would be one part acid to every three parts of oil. However, if you are using balsamic vinegar, orange juice, or an acid component that is sweet, you can have a good mixture at one part acid to every two parts of oil.

But that’s not all, the versatile vinaigrette can also be used to marinate meat, poultry or fish. In this case, you should decrease the amount of oil, so that you have two parts acid to one part oil, or even, one part acid to one part oil. Remember, you should not recycle the vinaigrette used for marinating and use it as a sauce for cooked food. Always make a fresh batch or bring the used marinade to a boil, at the very least. This is to avoid contamination from bacteria found in raw food.

What’s good about a vinaigrette is that preparation is very flexible. You can tweak the taste by adding a little more vinegar or oil as you go along. Vinaigrette also keeps well. If you end up making more than what you can actually eat, all you need to do is store it in a tightly closed container and put it in the refrigerator, where it can last for weeks or even months.

One thing you have to also make sure is that the vinegar and oil are properly blended together. Sometimes you need to put the mixture in a jar and shake it or beat the mixture vigorously. A small amount of prepared mustard beaten into the vinegar before the oil is added can help in the emulsification.

You can also add spices, grated minced herbs, diced fruits, crumbled cheese and other ingredients to add more flavor to your basic vinaigrette recipe.

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Salad with Vinaigrette

More and more people nowadays are starting to prefer vinaigrette dressings on their salads. There has been a shift in tastes – from dressings that are sweet and thick several decades ago to the vinaigrette, which makes use of a mixture of oil and vinegar.

Now, vinaigrette dressings are not mainly for your salad. It can also be used as sauces for foods such as fish, meat and other main-course dishes. Even deserts are starting to make use of the vinaigrette dressing. Indeed, there are chefs that create their own mixture to pour over desert. For example sweetened vinaigrette with mint and raspberries is poured over a fruit salad.

When you say vinaigrette, the notion is that vinegar always comes into play as one of the ingredients. However, you can also use other ingredients that have a high acid component, such as citrus juice. The vinaigrette as a dressing or sauce may be prepared and kept warm or at room temperature.

Now, if you do decide to add vinegar, you have many options you can make use of to give your vinaigrette a unique taste. You can use a number of herb vinegars, shallot or garlic vinegar, balsamic vinegar, raspberry vinegar, sherry vinegar or honey vinegar. You can also use different oils. Usually, the oil used for vinaigrettes is extra-virgin olive oil. However, you may still opt to use herb oil, sesame oil, hazelnut oil, herb oil, red pepper oil, walnut oil, spice oil or ginger-flavored oil. It really is up to you.

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A salad dressing from a home made recipe is an art with no trans-fats. The health benefits of a fresh made salad dressing recipe, outweigh all of the convenience of the store-bought salad dressings.

It is also devoid of the dreaded detriment of hydrogenated oils and trans-fats that lurk within commercial processed salad dressings.

An oil and vinegar salad dressing recipe is a staple every kitchen should have. The classic vinaigrette salad dressing can be made from a basic recipe or from numerous delicious variations.

An oil and vinegar vinaigrette is a simple mixture of olive oil, vinegar and mustard. Dress a salad with small drizzle of vinaigrette salad dressing and adjust the amount to your personal preference and taste.

Basic home made vinaigrette salad dressing recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
1-1/2 Tablespoons raw blackberry honey
dash of sea salt and pinch of fresh ground pepper

Method:

Place all ingredients except olive oil in a medium mixing bowl, whisk until honey and sea salt have dissolved. Add extra virgin olive oil and whisk together until emulsified.
Drizzle over fresh spring greens. You can garnish with chopped walnuts and raisins.

Vinaigrette salad dressing recipe 101.

An oil and vinegar vinaigrette is a home made emulsion. (To make an emulsion, you would mix two liquids that ordinarily do not mix well, such as oil and water or oil and vinegar.) Vinaigrette mixtures of oil and vinegar will eventually separate, the oil going to the top, and the vinegar settling to the bottom.

A basic vinaigrette salad dressing recipe is very simple to make. It can be made in a blender or simply whisked together in a mixing bowl. After preparing a home made vinaigrette salad dressing, allow it to stand for several hours before using, the flavors of all ingredients will blend together for additional taste and body. You can keep a vinaigrette salad dressing several days in the fridge after making. When you are ready to use, don’t be perplexed by the vinaigrette mixture separating, simply shake or whisk together again before serving.

The classic ratio of a home made vinaigrette salad dressing recipe is one part vinegar to four parts oil. The proportions will vary by recipe and personal taste.

In some salad dressing recipes the vinegar may be substituted with a citrus juice-vinegar blend. Dijon mustard is commonly added with the vinegar. Dijon mustard added to any vinaigrette recipe will help stabilize the emulsion a little longer than if made without.

Select fresh or dried herbs to add to your vinaigrette recipe. Diced onions, minced shallots, and pressed or grated garlic and ginger are also welcome additions. Be sure to add the dried herbs and other ingredients to the vinegar along with sea salt and mix well before adding the olive oil. It is best to mix the fresh herbs just before mixing the emulsion.

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Balsamic vinaigrette recipe that is simple and easy to make with a mild flavor of honey.

Gourmet star thistle honey is one of the best mild flavored honeys available and will add a delicious flavor to your balsamic vinaigrette recipe. If you can not find star thistle honey, you can substitute with a very light colored honey such as fireweed honey or even clover. Remember, the lighter in color the honey, the milder the flavor.

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Red raspberry vinaigrette Red raspberry vinegar has a delicate flavor but it combines with nut oils very well. Chopped walnuts add to the texture of the vinaigrette but also brings a wonderful nutty flavor to the vinaigrette. A red raspberry vinaigrette is ideal for green garden salads, salads with white meat such as chopped chicken breast, and fruit salads. Walnut oil does not store well so make this vinaigrette in small quantities.

In a medium-size bowl combine the raspberry vinegar, minced shallot, sugar, and Italian parsley. Add walnuts if you are going to use them. Whisk in the walnut oil and the peanut oil until mixture is smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. If necessary add a pinch more of sugar. Makes about 1 cup.

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