Salad Dressings 6 that will change everything.

6 Salad Dressings that will change everything about the way you cook.

These are the 6 Salad Dressings that will change everything about the salads you make.

Oh OK it’s not all completely about the dressing but I can tell you it will make a hell of a difference. With these 6 salad dressings the world of salad is yours. Add crunchy seeds and nuts (my number one favourite trick), and use a huge variety of herbs and spices. Use cooked and raw ingredients together if you like, there are no rules. Eat salad warm or cold. I just love searing zucchini, cauliflower, onions, fennel or mushrooms on the BBQ . I add grains like Farro (spelt), brown rice and barley, beans and especially chickpeas along with herbs, rocket, watercress, cabbage, spinach or anything else. Chickpeas are my favourite. They are also very very good for your stomach enzymes.

So how about we get started on some dressings?

Can I be a bit bossy?. If you don’t like it then just skip this part.

1. The ingredients you use, will make or break the taste of your dressing. Most of us know that a good olive oil is worth it’s weight in gold. But did you ever think about the vinegar you use?. There is vinegar and then there is vinegar. Don’t just go into the supermarket and grab one from the shelf, go to a good store and choose a white wine vinegar or a sherry vinegar or a good balsamic. It will definitely cost you a bit more but you will NOT regret it. Keep it in the fridge because a good wine vinegar will oxidise just like wine. There are industrial vinegars just like there are other mass produced ingredients. Some companies take years to make a vinegar and others take days.
2. Get yourself a clean jar with a lid to make your dressing in. Shaking your ingredients together will emulsify them and help all the ingredients meld together seamlessly. You can also keep any leftover dressing in the jar and just get another one for any subsequent dressings you make
3. A dressing should not be so acidic it hurts your mouth, so make sure you balance the acid with oil, herbs, spices and sweetness. Again, a good vinegar will not produce a painful burn, it will impart some flavour. (OK enough already alright… part of my day job is tasting oils and vinegars so if you need to know ANYTHING just ask me)

Here’s the list of some of my favourite dressings at this moment. Get these recipes below : 1. Mustardy Balsamic 2. Satay, 3. Yuzu Sesame, 4. Hoisin, 5. Jalapeno, Coriander and Lime and 6. Creamy Lemon Tahini & Miso

Let’s get started: Click on the names to get the recipe

1. Mustardy Balsamic Dressing

This is a great everyday dressing that will never disappoint. Mustard isn’t necessarily hot but it is a great seasoning and helps the oil and vinegar to emulsify and become creamy. I have used a lovely sweet aged balsamic (6 year old) but if you don’t have one of those you will need to add a teaspoon of sugar or maple syrup or rice syrup (or however much you want) to cut some of the acidity. Just taste after you shake and add a bit of sweetness at a time.

Use this dressing for leafy salads, grilled warm salads, meats, bean salads in fact anything that needs dressing!

These recipes are in Australian Tablespoon sizes which are 20 ml.

1/4 of an Australian cup is equal to 3 tablespoons or 60 ml.

US Tablespoons are a smaller 15 ml. The 1/4 cup is approximately 1.99 fl oz or 59.14 ml.

Teaspoons are the same as ours.

2. Satay Dressing

This is a gem. It pretty much makes any salad at all feel like Gado Gado. I don’t think that’s bad …do you?

I like to use crunchy peanut butter because it adds a bit of texture, but if you want you can use a smooth peanut butter. Add chilli if you like too.

Use this dressing for Eggs, Mixed vegetables, roasted carrots, on Chicken and Fish or as a dipping sauce

3. Yuzu Sesame Dressing

You will become addicted to this one. It is sweet and sour and I can’t stop till the jar is all gone.

Use this dressing for a dip or with egg dishes, dumplings and all kinds of salads. It goes great with eggplant and with chicken.

 

4. Hoisin Dressing

This is a dressing, a dipping sauce and a sauce you can add to cooked foods. The Black vinegar gives it an unusual and very versatile flavour. You can use this on any kind of steamed greens (broccoli, snowpeas, bok choy) or roast sweet potato or pumpkin salad (add some chopped up water chestnuts for crunch). Julienne vegetables or finely sliced cabbage work beautifully with this dressing especially when wrapped in rice paper. I have used Hoisin dressing to go with the Tiny Pork Patties above but it will go well with duck and pancakes, dumplings and crushed peanuts. Oh yes very well with crushed peanuts.

 

5. Jalapeno Lime and Coriander Dressing

This is a lovely spicy dressing that will go with tacos of course but it will also go with leafy greens, chicken salads, potato, and everything else in between.

6. Creamy Tahini, Miso Lemon Dressing

What could be better than a creamy tahini dressing?. One with Miso of course. The Miso gives it the lovely savoury taste and it is gorgeous with brown rice, barley, farro or quinoa. It is perfect with greens, roasted vegetables and even beef or chicken. Chickpeas ( my favourites) are the best with this dressing.

I know I have given you 6 Salad Dressings that you will love………..

And now I’m going to include a bonus dressing. This is one I make a lot and I have made it just has to be included in this list. So that makes 7 dressings!. A gluten, dairy and egg free mayonnaise it’s a beauty that can be used for SO many things. Yep. Get the recipe here and check out the new video for it x