Basic Vinaigrette

This basic vinaigrette recipe is all you need to make the best homemade salad dressings. With the minimum of four ingredients, you can mix and match different spices, vinegars, and flavorings to make all your favorite dressings.

The secret to a great salad is, of course, the sauce. Or the dressing as we say.

When you top fresh crunchy vegetables with a mediocre, bottled dressing, you take away from their tasty goodness. A delicious dressing, like my basic vinaigrette recipe, makes you want to keep eating!

And there’s nothing wrong with eating more salad, is there?

Why Make a Basic Vinaigrette Yourself

It’s easy! Salad dressing, particularly a basic vinaigrette, is super easy to make yourself. There’s a general basic formula that you need to know and then you can tweak and change ingredients to your heart’s content.

It’s quick. Mixing up a vinaigrette takes just a few minutes. I typically don’t measure. I just grab a small mason jar, pour in vinegar or citrus juice, add some herbs, spices, jam, garlic and/or mustard, shake well, add the oil, shake again. Voila!

It’s delicious. With this recipe, you can make an untold number of vinaigrette varieties. Experiment and find your favorites!

Ingredients

Here’s what you need to make this basic vinaigrette recipe:

You don’t need much to make a basic vinaigrette from scratch, just a few staples from the pantry and spice cupboard.

vinegar – Vinaigrette starts with a base of vinegar. You can use whatever vinegar you like, such as red wine, white wine, balsamic, rice vinegar, and apple cider vinegar. Taste the different ones. Some are naturally sweet, some are not. If you don’t have vinegar you can also use another acid like orange, lime, or lemon juice.

salt and pepper – At its very basic, vinaigrette is salt, pepper, vinegar, and oil. But you can dress it up however you like. Just be sure to add the salt and pepper to the vinegar first, before you add the oil, otherwise the salt won’t dissolve properly.

paprika – I love to add this spice made from ground dried peppers. It adds both color and flavor. You can buy sweet paprika or smoked; each will give a different flavor to your dressing.

herbs – You can add dried or fresh herbs to your salad dressing. It’s really up to you. If you use fresh, you’ll need three times what a recipe calls for in dried herbs. And be sure to chop it finely.

other optional mix-ins – Feel free to add a pinch or dollop of any of these mix-ins to your salad dressing: sugar, honey, maple syrup, jam, mustard, minced garlic, or BBQ sauce.

oil – Once you’ve got all the flavorings mixed well, whisk in the oil of your choice. I typically use olive oil or avocado oil.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Making your own homemade vinaigrette is super easy!

• In small jar or bowl, combine the vinegar, salt, pepper, paprika, and other mix-ins. Stir or shake well to combine.
• Add the olive oil. Whisk or shake to combine.
• Serve with salads or use as a marinade for meats or veggies.

Store in the fridge for up to 1 week.

Is it cheaper to make your own basic vinaigrette?

An 8-ounce bottle of good quality, bottled dressing typically costs $3 or more. The same amount of homemade breaks down so much more economically.

• olive or sunflower oil $0.80
• vinegar $0.25
• generous allowance for scant herbs, spices, condiments $0.25

Total for 8-ounces of homemade dressing = $1.30. This is so much less than

An added bonus is that you can control the ingredients in your dressing. Bottled dressing is most commonly doused with corn syrup. Corn syrup?!

Make your own and make it good!

More Great Dressings You Can Make at Home

This post was originally published on October 9, 2013. It has been updated for content and clarity.