Basic Vinaigrette with 5 Yummy Variations

We’ve been having a lot of simple meals around here lately. There’s just something nice about enjoying just the flavor of say a pan fried potato or a perfect cheese omelet. To round out our simple potatoes and egg dinner, I got ready to fix a green salad. Our usual ranch dressing just didn’t seem to fit. Instead, I remembered a very basic oil and vinegar dressing a friend of mine used to make each time they had salad. Nothing more than light olive oil, wine vinegar and a little salt and fresh ground pepper. I shook it all up in a small jar and poured it over our lettuce. It was delicious and perfect with the cheese omelets.

We’ve been using this basic dressing for the past few weeks. Depending on what’s for dinner, I spice things up with a few extra ingredients. You’ll find those variations below.

Basic Vinaigrette
Ingredients
  • 1/2 c white wine vinegar
  • 1 1/2 c light olive oil
  • salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Combine the vinegar, salt and pepper in a small mason jar.
  2. Using a fork, slowly whisk in the oil.
  3. Use at room temperature, store in the fridge.

Recipe Variations:

One of the beauties of this recipe is that you can easily tweak and change with just a couple of ingredients and get a completely different dressing. Here are a few favorites.

Italian Vinaigrette: Add 1 tbsp minced garlic and 1 tbsp italian seasoning.

Mustard Vinaigrette: Add 2 tbsp Dijon Mustard, 2 tbsp minced shallots and 1/4 c minced parsley.

Orange Dressing : Add 1/4 c light corn syrup (or simple syrup), 2 tbsp minced parsley, 2 tbsp minced mint and the sections of 4 oranges.

Curry Dressing : Add 1/4 tsp sugar, 2 tbsp minced shallots and 2 tsp curry powder.

Tarragon Dressing: Add 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 c parmesan cheese and 2 tsp crushed dried tarragon.

A Basic Recipe for an oil based vinaigrette and 5 yummy variations.

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