Summer is almost here, and there’s nothing like a fresh salad to accompany your meal. Rather than dressing your salads with bought salad dressings, why not make your own? Vinaigrette (pronounced vin-eh-GRETTE) is dead simple to make and tastes a million times better than bottled French Dressings found on supermarket shelves. The basic formula is three parts oil to one part vinegar / citrus juice. Add to this any combination of herbs, spices, seasonings or flavours.
Experiment with different oils, vinegars and flavours. Here are some suggestions to get you started:
• Extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, crushed garlic, chopped basil
• Macadamia nut oil, lime juice, chopped chives, honey
• Avocado oil, orange juice, finely grated ginger
• Walnut oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard
• Grape seed oil, raspberry vinegar, poppy seeds, finely shallots
• Extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, thyme leaves
• Olive oil, white wine vinegar, wholegrain mustard, chopped parsley
Just place all the ingredients in a suitably sized screw-top jar and shake well. Always taste for seasoning and add salt (preferably sea salt) and pepper (preferably freshly ground) as required. The vinaigrette will keep in the fridge for up to one week. Bring to room temperature and shake well to combine just before serving.
When dressing the salad:
• Add just enough dressing to give the leaves a light coating
• Gently toss the salad, either with salad servers or your clean hands
• Dress the salad as soon as you intend to serve it, otherwise the leaves will wilt.
Enjoy!
Christmas Salad
(click on photo to view larger image)
