Oil and Vinegar Vinaigrette
Vinaigrette and the Salad Bar
Yearning for some vinaigrette? All you need is vinegar, olive oil, some salt and your trusty pepper grinder. This is the quick and easy list of ingredients to make vinaigrette, which is a sauce that does not look or feel like sauce but tastes oh, so great. “La sauce vinaigrette” as it is called in French has the magic to change a bowl of salad greens into a great-tasting treat.
Yes, you can pour vinaigrette over a pan-seared steak, some greens, roasted chicken or grilled fish. So you see, vinaigrettes are not just for salads but for other food as well.
Vinaigrette surely comes in handy, when you have a lot of visitors. You can use it as a sauce to transform simple fare, especially sea food fresh from the market.
When making vinaigrette, keep in mind that the best proportion is 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar. As simple as this is, the few ingredients must be of high quality in order for you to make great-tasting dressings or sauces. As much as possible, try to use the best ingredients you can find, which includes vinegar, oil, some salt and black pepper.
In a medium bowl and a whisk and combine salt and pepper into the vinegar. After this, add in the oil. Voila! You have your basic vinaigrette that you can use as a sauce. Remember, the order is important as salt does not dissolve in oil, only in vinegar.
Other variations include adding with olive oil and red wine vinegar. You can also include spices, herbs, mustard or some shallots. You can also change the oils. There is white wine vinegar, walnut or hazelnut oil, and balsamic vinegar.
To make sure that the oil is properly blended, slowly pour oil into the mixture while whisking continuously. A bit of Dijon mustard added to the vinegar before adding the olive oil will also help in emulsifying the mixture. (However, if you are using an excellent kind of olive oil, avoid the mustard, as this will mask the fine distinction offered by the oil).
oil and vinegar vinaigrette
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