Homemade salad dressing is one of the simplest things you can make from scratch. Once you know the ratio, it is easy to whip up your own – like this honey dijon salad dressing!
Most style salad dressings are simply a ratio of 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar with a little salt and pepper added in. From there you can build and swap in other ingredients and flavors
I use this one on green salads, in pasta salad, on roasted potatoes, and even in tuna or salmon burgers or on top of baked fish. It adds an unexpected punch.
Any mild vinegar, even just plain white vinegar will work, but I like to use cider vinegar in this dressing. Mixed with a mild-flavored oil like grapeseed is perfect, but sunflower or plain vegetable oil also works well. I use olive oil in other dressings, but because it has a stronger flavor I find it overpowers and competes with the mustard in this dressing, so I don’t use it.
There are a couple of ways to combine these ingredients. If you are looking for some good arm exercises, add the oil and vinegar in a mason jar and then the Dijon mustard, honey, and some mustard seeds along with a little salt and pepper. Then seal it up tight and shake it until it is smooth and creamy. Or, put everything in a medium bowl and whisk it until it turns a nice mustardy yellow color and emulsifies, or place everything in a blender and blend for 15 – 20 seconds.
A couple of tricks to make a smooth dressing:
- Warm the honey in a warm water bath before putting it in the jar.
- Make sure the mustard is at room temperature.
- If you are using a mason jar, the jar should be slightly bigger than the amount of dressing. In other words, you should have some headspace for the dressing to move around as you shake it.
- You can also put everything in a blender or food processor and skip the shaking, but if you need an arm workout, shaking or whisking is the way to go!
Homemade salad dressing is really one of the easiest things you can make at home! Just a few simple ingredients from your pantry and you will have something delicious whipped up in no time!
Homemade Honey Dijon Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup grapeseed oil or other mild oil
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 3 Tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 2 tsp. mustard seeds
- 1/8 tsp. salt
- 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Wash your hands and get a clean 10 – 12 oz. mason jar with lid and screw cap.
- Place all ingredients in the mason jar and shake until the dressing is a light yellow color and all ingredients are thoroughly blended or emulsified. Alternately, place all ingredients in a bowl and whisk all ingredients (or use a blender or food processor) and blend for a 10 – 15 seconds and pour into a glass container with lid.
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