Store bought salad dressings tend to contain ample preservatives and thus many of them taste the same – despite having different ingredients. Making salad dressing at home is so easy if you have a few simple ingredients in the house. Now buying all of these ingredients at once would add significantly to your grocery bill, so instead choose one of the dressings and start with purchasing thse ingredients – now you have those. Next time move on to one of the other dressings. Slowly you will prepare your pantry for making any salad dressing you desire!

Savoury Ingredients

  •  Sea salt or Herbamare or Maison Orphee (fine sea salt infused with herbs and vegetables). Available in the organic section at Zehrs or in healthfood stores, Costco even carries Herbamare
  •  Tamari, Bragg’s or soy sauce
  •  Cold-pressed olive oil, toasted sesame oil
  •  Tahini – sesame seed paste – available at the BulkBarn, in the organic section of Zehrs and in “international” food section in most grocery stores

Tangy Ingredients

  •  Lemons
  •  grainy preservative-free mustard, dijon mustard
  •  Vinegars – red wine, white wine, balsamic, apple cider vinegar (should look cloudy like apple cider)
  •  Garlic

Natural Sweeteners

  •  Real maple syrup, honey or agave syrup
  •  all of these contain contains vitamins and minerals so they don’t produce the dramatic blood sugar spike that cane sugar does. Available at Farmer’s markets, in organic section at Zehrs or healthfood stores

Creamy Dill DressingCreamy_dill

¼ cup + 1 Tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups chopped firm silken tofu
1 Tbsp dried dillweed
¼ tsp sea salt
1 tsp Dijon mustard
¼ cup rice vinegar or filtered water

Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in skillet, sauté garlic 5 minutes until softened. Set aside and let cool. Blend all ingredients together with immersion blender until smooth. Store in glass jar in fridge for up to 3 days.

Asian Dressing

2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup tamari, Braggs or soy sauce
1-2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 Tbsp lime juice
¾ cup olive oil
2 Tbsp sesame seeds

Blend all ingredients (except sesame seeds) together with immersion blender. Stir in sesame seeds. Store in glass jar in fridge.

Tahini SauceTahini_sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup chopped parsley
½ tsp sea salt
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2/3 cup filtered water
½ cup tahini (sesame paste)

Blend all ingredients together with immersion blender until smooth. Store in a glass jar in fridge for up to 4 days.

Sweet and Mustardy

¼ cup lemon juice
1 tsp Herbamare
1 Tbsp agave nectar
1 Tbsp grainy mustard
½ cup olive oil

Combine ingredients in glass jar. Screw on lid and shake well.

Sweet and Tangy

2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp maple syrup
2 Tbsp red wine or balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
Sea salt and pepper

Combine ingredients in glass jar. Screw on lid and shake well.

Flaxseed oil Dressing

½ cup flaxseed oil (hemp seed oil works too, and you could always use olive oil)
¼ cup apple cider vinegar (the real stuff from an apple orchard or Bragg’s brand)
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1 clove garlic, minced
sea salt, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a screw top jar and shake well. Store in fridge for up to 1 week.

Greek Salad DressingGreek_salad_dressing

3 Tbsp lemon juice, fresh squeezed
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano or 2 tsp fresh minced oregano
2 large cloves garlic, minced
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a screw top jar. Shake well. Store in fridge, but use within 1 week.

Category: Recipes