I need a healthier salad dressing, both store-bought and homemade

Cafe Society
1

Looking forward to summer I hope to eat salads most days, as I did last summer with fresh greens from the farmer’s market. :slight_smile:

but the dressing I’ve been using, Wishbone 1000 Island, which I find VERY tasty, is not the healthiest option.

I know, I should make my own and I will try but I also want an option from the store which* doesn’t taste like vinegar.* I have had a vinegrette I liked, but **mostly they taste too much like vinegar to me. **

what are your suggestions? I really need a healthier oil as well as, obviously, much less sugar.

:slight_smile:

2

Try something like straight pomegranate (or other flavored) balsamic vinegar.

3

French Dressing

1 cup sugar
2/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup light olive oil
1/2 cup white vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon dried mustard
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika

That’s the base. Personally, I use half the sugar, use apple cider instead of white for the vinegar, dump the chili powder and sub chili sauce for the ketchup.

Honey-Mustard Dressing

1/4 cup each Dijon mustard, vinegar, honey, light oil
salt to taste, about a teaspoon

You can play with any of the ingredients to adjust the taste to suit.

4

Rice vinegar is much less vinegar-y than white vinegar, if you want to try it.

5

White vinegar should be reserved for pickling and cleaning. Otherwise explore the vinegar shelves at your local megamart.

6

Yes, this is true. I love the ginger-forward Japanese steak house dressings like this one:

Double the ginger and probably the garlic, too.

7

thank you for the recipe, Silenus, I used to have apple cider vinegar but haven’t for awhile, so I’m wondering how this changes the taste. I know it’s supposed to be very healthy (why I bought it years ago) but also expensive.

interesting, I have never heard of it.

mostly what I used vinegar for is cleaning!

I don’t think I’ve tried buying a flavored vinegar.
so, it sounds like the answer is to buy a different vinegar. I will be going to Fred Meyer soon and see what they have.

thank you, every one.

8

A simple combo that is very tasty is balsamic vinegar and toasted walnut oil. That’s it. Experiment to get your preferred proportions.

I’m curious as to what you mean by “healthy.”

9

sadly, I am allergic to walnuts so I need a different oil.

Thelma Lou, I think oils are very different: everything from very bad to you, to actually healthy (in moderation, obviously) and less sugar (and NO corn sryup or artifical sweetners).

that’s my take.

10

My favorite homemade dressing is white basalmic vinegar, olive oil, and Dijon mustard. About equal parts, adjust proportions to taste.

11

Yep. That’s the base for about a jillion dressings. Great on its own. Add Italian seasonings (parmesan, basil, Greek oregano, a little red pepper flake). Add Chinese mustard, ginger, scallions and such and you have a nice Asian dressing. It’s a blank canvas.

12

And if you don’t want a mustardy taste just little bit of mayo works well as an emulsifier

13

A little each of really good olive oil and really good balsamic vinegar is hard to beat, sprinkle of salt and black pepper and you’re good to go.
One other addtion worth trying is pumpkin oil. the good german stuff is a vivid green and wonderfully nutty. A little goes a long way.

14

pumpkin oil! first I’ve heard of that one.

bet there are lots of different oils and vinegars I’d like but they are so expensive to buy before I’m sure. what I need is samples to taste!

I like a bit of mustard, what I don’t like the taste of is VINEGAR! :stuck_out_tongue:

15

Did anyone mention using avocado oil in salad dressing? It has the added advantage of also being great for cooking with as it has a very high smoke point. Note: I haven’t tried it yet because I have a Costco-sized jug of olive to get through first.

16

Mrs. L loves this stuff on salads.

50 Cal for 2 Tb is pretty good.

17

Interesting…

18

I also have a bottle of EVOO to finish and then I’ll consider what oil to buy. avacado sounds like a good option.

today I bought some ingredients to play with including a new vinegar.

it’s almost June when the Farmer’s Market starts!

19

I’m sure it’s tasty but don’t care about calories, looking for something without sugar.

20

Along the lines of silenus’ suggestion of a basic recipe, here’s a chart with a basic recipe with a lot of variations for each category with the proportions.

It’s basically

Oil 1 TBSP (EVOO, hazelnut, avocado, etc)
Vinegar 1 tsp (balsamic, sherry, rice wine, red wine, etc.)
Sweetness 1/2 tsp (honey, maple syrup, brown sugar, jam, etc.)
Mustard 1/2 tsp (dijon, honey mustard, grainy, spicy, etc.)
Herbs 2 pinches (rosemary, basil, thyme, dill, etc.)
Seasoning 1 pinch (salt, pepper, garlic, smoked paprika, pepper flakes, etc.)

It’s a small enough portion that you can try it once and toss it if you don’t like it. It’s also vegan.

You can decrease the sugar, leave it out or use a fruit juice concentrate.

I haven’t tried it yet, but it looks good to me.