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Basic Vinaigrette Dressing

Posted by Robyn Lee, June 4, 2008 at 12:00 PM

The following recipe is from the June 4th edition of our weekly recipe newsletter. To receive this newsletter in your inbox, sign up here!

Summer is the season for garden-fresh salads topped with light, flavorful dressings. In The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper, Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift offer up a recipe for Basic Vinaigrette with a number of innovative variations, such as Summer Tomato and Creamy Sweet-Sour Dill.

Basic Vinaigrette Dressing

- makes 2 1/2 to 3 cups dressing -
Adapted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper by Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift.

Ingredients

3/4 cup good-tasting wine vinegar (or one-third balsamic and two-thirds wine or cider vinegar)
1 1/2 to 2 cups good-tasting extra-virgin olive oil
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon Asian fish sauce (nam pla or nuoc nam)
Coarse salt and fresh-ground black pepper

Procedure

Combine the vinegar, olive oil, and fish sauce in a glass jar. Shake to blend. Taste for vinegar/oil balance, and add salt and pepper to taste. Each vinegar and oil will be different, so trust your judgment in adding what is needed. Shake the dressing before using it.

Variations

Summer Tomato: In a food processor, combine 1/3 cup Basic Vinaigrette Dressing with 6 fresh basil leaves, 4 sprigs fresh coriander, the tip of a fresh jalapeño chile, 1/8 of a sweet onion, and 2 large, good-tasting tomatoes (cored but not peeled). Blend until the mixture is nearly smooth. Let the dressing stand for 20 minutes before using.

Creamy Sweet-Sour Dill Blend: in a food processor 1/2 cup Basic Vinaigrette Dressing, 1/4 cup heavy cream, 2 teaspoons chopped onion, 1/3 tightly-packed cup fresh dill leaves, 1 tablespoon dark, spicy mustard, and 1 to 2 teaspoons sugar. Taste the dressing to balance the sweet-tart flavor with more vinegar, mustard, or sugar.

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