Tip - Making Vinaigrettes

THE ALCHEMY OF VINEGAR AND OIL
Whipping up a great vinaigrette is as simple as following your taste buds

By CINDY HOEDEL - The Kansas City Star
Date: 05/30/00 22:15

Some people can whip up a tasty vinaigrette anytime, anywhere, sans
recipe -- showoffs! Others can't get a packet of Good Seasons to turn
out right unless they use the specially marked cruet.

I have a knack for making vinaigrette. I didn't always believe in a
knack, though. I thought vinaigrette klutzes simply lacked interest.
I figured out the truth while vacationing with my extended family two
years ago: None of them, working with ordinary staples, could mix up
a remotely palatable salad dressing.

The good news is, you don't need a knack. You don't need a recipe.
All you need is the secret. The secret to good vinaigrette: Taste and
adjust! When you use a recipe, you still have to taste and adjust so
you're almost better off without one.

The ratio

Making vinaigrette is easier than it seems. Some chefs, like the late
French masters Escoffier and Montagne, with their references to
parts, ratios and acid substitutes, can make it sound like some sort
of mysterious alchemy.

Don't be intimidated by the scientific terms. Interesting things
happen when you combine oil and vinegar, but it's not like chemistry
lab. You don't have to worry about causing an explosion if you make a
mistake.

It's all about oil and vinegar. Everything else is optional. You may
have heard you should use three parts oil to one part vinegar.
Sometimes that ratio works, but it's not a hard and fast rule.

In fact, following a recipe for vinaigrette can put you at a
disadvantage by giving you a false sense of confidence that the ratio
will be right when you are done.

The correct ratio is the one that tastes best to you. It will vary
every time, depending on the relative acidity and assertiveness of
the ingredients you choose. The oil-to-vinegar ratio may be as high
as 4:1, or as low as 1:1. The important thing to remember is that the
ratio doesn't determine the amounts; the amounts that taste good to
you determine the ratio.

Picking flavors that match

The next step is choosing oils and vinegars and other ingredients
that taste good together. It is easier to visualize groups of
complementary ingredients than to memorize dozens of possible
pairings.

Three basic flavor groups:

Light and fresh: Light-colored vinegars and lemon juice go well with
light-colored olive or vegetable oils and fresh, green herbs.

Fruits and nuts: Fruit vinegars taste great with nut oils, toasted
nuts and nutty-flavored cheeses.

Red and robust: Red wine or sherry vinegars combine well with green,
fruity olive oil and woody or dried herbs, including garlic.

Remember, shallots and Dijon mustard go with everything. They are the
two seasonings most commonly used in classic French vinaigrette.

Infusing vinegars

Store-bought infused vinegars are expensive and not always fresh.
It's easy to infuse the vinegar yourself each time you make
vinaigrette. Just add any seasonings you plan to use, such as garlic,
shallots or fresh tarragon, to the vinegar and let the mixture stand
10 to 30 minutes before you add the oil. This allows the flavors to
mingle.

The standing process also allows all ingredients to be brought back
up to room temperature if they have been chilled. (Leftover
vinaigrette should always be stored in the refrigerator. Bring it
back up to room temperature and whisk before serving.)

Adding emulsifiers

Vinegar and oil mixtures, stirred gently, will remain liquid. The
French term vinaigrette simple often refers to a liquid
oil-and-vinegar dressing. Certain ingredients whisked into the
vinegar will cause the dressing to thicken.

Emulsifiers:

Mustard: Dijon is the classic, but don't stop there -- experiment
with sweet and peppery mustards if you like a bit of a bite. Many
vinaigrette recipes call for mustard, but if you don't care for it,
leave it out.

Cream: A teaspoonful of cream, yogurt or buttermilk helps round
flavors as well as bind.

Pureed fruit: Pureed raspberries or blueberries are tasty emulsifiers
for spring salads; in fall and winter, try applesauce, passion fruit
puree or cactus fruit puree.

Putting it all together

Since salt doesn't dissolve in oil, it makes sense to start with the vinegar.

The basic technique: Whisk any seasonings and/or emulsifiers together
with the vinegar. Add the oil in a slow, steady stream. Taste and
adjust. Continue adding oil until the vinaigrette has just the right
amount of tang. Serve immediately.

Now you know the secret. So the next time you're at an impromptu
patio party or late-night supper and the host calls out, "Who wants
to make the salad dressing?" remind yourself that you can do this.
Then wow 'em by whipping up a luscious vinaigrette without a recipe.

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Still nervous about winging it?

Here are a few vinaigrette recipes incorporating basic techniques to
help get you started. For instance, the Lemon Shallot Vinaigrette
recipe illustrates a useful technique: letting the seasonings infuse
in the vinegar for up to half an hour before serving time, and
whisking in the oil at the last minute.


Lemon shallot vinaigrette
Makes 3/4 cup

2 small shallots
2 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Peel and dice the shallots very fine. Put them in a small bowl with
the vinegar, lemon juice and salt. Stir and let the mixture sit 10 to
30 minutes. Whisk in the olive oil.

-- Chez Panisse Vegetables (HarperCollins, 1996) by Alice Waters


This is a recipe for making vinaigrette in the blender, which saves
time and eliminates the need for finely mincing the shallot. By
adding the shallot at the end, you still get a tiny crunch in the
vinaigrette. It also points out that refrigerated dressings should
always be brought up to room temperature before they are served, to
allow the flavors to fully unfold.


Basic vinaigrette
Makes 3/4 cup

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons or more good wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 large shallot, peeled and cut into chunks

Combine all the ingredients except the shallot in a blender and turn
the machine on; a creamy emulsion will form within 30 seconds. Taste
and add more vinegar, a teaspoon or two at a time, until the balance
tastes right to you.

Add the shallot and turn the machine on and off a few times until the
shallot is minced within the dressing. Taste and adjust seasonings
and serve. (This is best made fresh but will keep, refrigerated, for
a few days; bring back to room temperature and whisk briefly before
using.)

-- The Minimalist Cooks at Home (Broadway Books, 1999) by Mark Bittman


This recipe from a gourmet seed catalog is extremely versatile. It is
excellent on a salad of raw spinach or cooked chard or sauteed pea
greens. Notice how mild oils are used with fruit juices so as not to
overpower their delicate flavor.


Honey citrus vinaigrette

2 lemons, juiced
2 limes, juiced
4 oranges, juiced
3 tablespoons ginger, peeled and grated
2 tablespoons honey
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/3 cup sesame oil
2 cups canola oil
1 bunch chives, chopped fine

Place citrus juices in stainless steel bowl. Add ginger, honey, salt
and pepper. Slowly whisk in sesame oil and canola oil until
emulsified. Add chives and adjust seasoning.

-- From Cook's Garden Seeds catalog (Spring/Summer 2000)

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If a bottle of oil or vinegar smells funny, or is simply unappealing,
discard it. Vinegar that has become cloudy but still smells good can
be strained through a coffee filter.

When choosing olive oil, go with what you like. Expensive olive oils
tend to be greener in color and have a fruitier, greener flavor. If
you prefer a milder taste, there is no reason to buy a premium brand.
If you think your olive oil tastes too strong, blend it with
mellow-tasting canola oil. Remember, the correct ratio is the one
that tastes best to you.

On the side

Many ingredients work just as well if you put them in the salad
instead of in the vinaigrette. You can fill a large bottle with a
basic vinaigrette made of only high-quality olive oil and good wine
vinegar in the ratio that tastes best to you, then vary its basic
flavor by adding freshly ground sea salt, peppercorns or dried herbs
directly to dressed salads.

Fresh herbs also can go into the salad bowl instead of the cruet.
Borrow a trick from Caesar (salad) and rub a cut garlic clove on the
inside of the serving bowl for a mellower flavor than minced garlic.

When it has to be store-bought

The primary benefit of homemade dressing is taste, not economy. If
you use good ingredients, yours may not be cheaper than a
store-bought version, but it will be fresher and the ingredients will
likely be of higher quality.

When you purchase ready-made vinaigrette, read the label. Try to
select one that lists high-quality ingredients like extra-virgin
olive oil and wine or balsamic vinegars. Avoid less-flavorful oils
like cottonseed oil and thickening agents such as xanthan gum. --
Cindy Hoedel/The Star

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