salad in a dress

Most salad dressings are, essentially, acid and oil. I’m only saying ‘most’ to guard myself from the inevitable “don’t you mean vinaigrettes”-s and “my favorite dressing is mayonnaise”-s. Anyway since there are many of both acids and oils, endless arrays of combinations can be made to spice up any old leaf into something unique - without the nasty preservatives and unnecessaries store-bought varieties contain. Consider the following list:

Acids                                         Oils

Lemon juice                              olive oil

Apple vinegar                            grape seed oil

Red wine vinegar                       flax oil

Balsamic vinegar                        sesame oil

Rice vinegar                              chili oil

Grapefruit juice                         avocado oil

This is by no means exhaustive since there are an amazing amount of oils, vinegars, and other acids (think citrus fruit) available these days. Just mix and match - even doing it at random is bound to give you something more interesting than a bottle would. It’s like those old toys where you could rotate the alligator head onto the dog body.

give him the alligator head!

For the ratio, I seem to recall reading a Jamie Oliver book that mentioned 3 to 1 oil to acid, but basically you just want more oil than acid. There’s 2 ways to mix these guys together, since the oil will separate if you just pour them together.

Method 1 – broken vinaigrette style

Pour your acid first into a jar (one that has a lid), then pour in your oil. If you use a clear jar it’s easy to measure the ratio. All you have to do then is shake it like a paint can (or a James Bond-style cocktail?) until it comes together. Use it immediately after shaking and you’re solid.  Wait and it’ll separate again.

Method 2 – emulsified stylin’

Again pour in your acid first. This time, slowly, as slowly as you can, pour a constant thin stream of oil in with one hand while whisking with the other hand. This might take a bit of practice but the result is beautiful – emulsification means the dressing becomes one inseparable liquid. Good cheat is to do this in a blender, then it’s hands-free.

The last thing here, of course, is seasoning. You’ll want some salt: I really recommend sea salt or mineral salt – not baking salt – something tasty. For fancy flavors feel free to chop up herbs (anything – basil, dill, cilantro, fennel, even dried stuff will work), finely mince up vegetables (onions, shallots, bell peppers), or get creative (chervil + sherry wine vinegar + strawberry jam = kitchen magic).

After this, you won’t need to eat the same salad twice. Get creative!