Eating Well: Salad Dressing

The local chemical factory is a pretty big employer around here, relatively speaking, so it was pretty big news when they got a new contract that would allow them to hire ten more workers.

“What do they make?” I asked my girlfriends.  A couple of them have husbands who work there.

“Well,” said one, “they’re actually going to be making an ingredient for salad dressing soon.”

Chemically manufactured salad dressing.  And great quantities of soybean oil and high fructose corn syrup to boot.  Tragically, we think we’re doing such a good thing, eating all that salad, but we top it liberally with something that falls firmly into the category of  NOT FOOD.  Not good!

Happily, salad dressing is easy to make at home in endless variety.  Many, like Ginger Honey dressing, are as easy as pouring the ingredients into a jar, shaking it up, and setting it on the table.  Others, like French, require the use of  a simple hand mixer.  A few, like Ranch or Italian, need a little time to mellow and blend before you use them.   No matter which kind you prefer, though, the homemade version is better tasting and better for you.

A few tips:

Homemade salad dressing separates very quickly.  You can buy xanthan gum, an emulsifier, at the bakery of your local grocery if you like.  I borrowed a bit from a friend and it works great, but we don’t mind shaking our dressing, so we skip it. If you prefer it, 1/4 teaspoon is all you need.

Experiment with different vinegars.  Plain white vinegar can be kind of  harsh on the palate.  Try apple cider vinegar, or balsamic, or – my favorite – rice vinegar.  Rice vinegar is very smooth and excellent in stir fries, too.

Salad oil – I use olive – solidifies in the cool temperatures of the refrigerator.  If you store it in the fridge, make sure you remember to take it out a half hour before your meal so it has time to thaw.  There’s usually no reason to refrigerate dressing, though.  If none of the ingredients were kept in there individually, there’s no reason to refrigerate them in combination.

Would you like a couple of recipes to get you started?  We tried this first one last night and it was very good.  It was even better with the bread sticks we had than with the salad, so consider it as a sandwich topping, too.

Ginger Honey Dressing

1/4 cup mild flavored olive oil
1/4 cup lemon or lime juice
1/4 cup honey
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger

Combine all ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake until well combined.

Oriental Ginger Dressing

1/3 cup mild flavored olive oil
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp ground ginger

Combine all ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake until well combined. This one benefits from making ahead. Let it set for two hours for the flavors to mingle. For a complete meal, serve it on a salad of greens, cooked chicken, shredded carrot, sliced green onion and a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds, along with some fresh bread.

French Dressing

3 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (optional)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dry mustard
Dash cayenne pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 cup salad oil

Put all ingredients EXCEPT oil into a small mixing bowl. With your electric mixer running, slowly, over the course of about two minutes, pour the oil in a thin steady stream into the bowl. Continue mixing until the dressing is the desired consistency.

I’ve found this one benefits the most from xanthan gum if you have it, but for all I know, that’s what they’re making at the chemical factory. Like I said, we don’t use it. My pickiest store-bought-to-homemade eater doesn’t seem to mind and French is his favorite dressing. Of course, it’s entirely possible that he’s just given up protesting the dinner-time shinanegans of his oddball wife.