Clean Eating Vinaigrette Recipe
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This clean eating vinaigrette is fast, easy, and super cheap to make. It’s delicious too!
I hate buying vinaigrette at the store for two reasons:
- It’s so much cheaper and very easy to make at home.
- Manufacturers add so much “yuck” to the bottle instead of leaving it fresh and natural the way it should be. (Shelf life is a bad thing!)
I recently purchased the fabulous book Cooking
by James Peterson. In it, he discusses how to make a quick and perfect vinaigrette.
Now, I’m all for adding healthy oils to your salad via a wonderful vinaigrette, but his recipe was a 3:1 ratio. In other words, 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar.
While I love this book and will use it a lot in the coming years, that ratio was a bit high for my clean eating tastes. So I experimented. Here are some tips I learned about making a really tasty vinaigrette.
- If you can’t afford the expensive balsamic vinegar, buy the cheap stuff and boil it down by half. (soft boil) So for this recipe, I started with 1 cup of balsamic vinegar and boiled it down to the ½ cup called for in the recipe.
- Don’t use olive oil. It doesn’t taste very good with the mustard. I used safflower oil, but you can also use grape seed oil.
- You don’t have to use copious amounts of oil to get the needed effect in your salad. A little oil goes a long way. I used ¼ cup for this recipe, but my guess is you could get away with using ⅛ cup and still get the same effect with half the fat. Experiment and see what tastes good to you. Just shake your dressing well before applying.
I have a nice big batch of this in my fridge. It’s so tasty! And the best part is, I get it all to myself because my Honey hates vinegar!
More Healthy Salad Dressing Recipes
Clean Eating Vinaigrette Recipe Card
Clean Eating Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar (see notes above)
- ¼ cup oil (any light flavored oil will work)
- 2 tsp. prepared Dijon mustard (no sugar added)
- 2 tsp. Italian Herb (find it in the spice aisle or make it at the link above)
- salt and pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- While your vinegar is boiling, place all other ingredients into a bowl that has a lid. Whisk and let stand.
- When the vinegar is finished, add to the container, place lid on container and make well to mix.
- You can also let the vinegar cool a bit and then blend everything in a blender if you prefer. It provides a creamier texture.
Notes
Nutrition
I wish I had this salad for lunch!
Ya, it’s pretty tasty! You could always make it for dinner!
I agree about preservatives and shelf-life, but how long will this keep in the reefer?
I wouldn’t keep it longer than a week or two. Usually, you can smell it if it starts to change. But the vinegar should do a pretty good job of preserving it. I have had it as long as a month in the fridge, but I definitely threw it out at that point. So hopefully that gives you some idea.
Thanks for stopping by!
Sounds good, i will have to try this. I usually just use of tbsp of OO with 1 tbsp of balsamic, pepper to taste, 1 tsp of dried italian seasoning, 1 cloved of crushed garlic, mix and pour over salad! it is easy and yummy. Of course i make a huge batch though and bring it to work along with my huge batch of salad (enough for lunch for 4 days lol) that way i have no excuse to not be able to eat a salad :D)
Amy – Great way to hold yourself accountable!
Sounds great but is mustard really a clean ingredient? I looked at the ingredient of Dijon mustard where I live and it have sugar. Is that ok?
Jessica – No, it’s getting tougher and tougher to find mustard without sugar. But there are still a few out there. Keep looking!
Alyce – That’s wonderful!!! I’m so excited you like it!
Ok….you have TOTALLY made my day! My daughter likes Ranch, and I like Vinaigrette. I’m making the “clean” Bisquick today. Thank you! Blessings on you for doing the research for us♥
Strauch – Thank you so much! I’m happy you’re finding my recipes so useful!
You can try regular mustard. I’m sure it would be just as good. I wouldn’t leave it out completely though.
What about a substitute for the 3 oils you listed? I’d love to make this but have none of the above listed.
Nichole – You can use almost any oil. Just be careful with the flavors. Not every single will go well with this, but most will.
We found a nice thick balsamic from Urban Olive Oils & Balsamics. No need to reduce this one down and it is delicious. We usually do the balsamic and a flavored olive oil, but I like the idea of mustard and dried herb seasoning. Thanks for the recipe.
Jay – My pleasure! Enjoy! 🙂
Hi, I was wondering if you could help duplicate the salata fresh herb vinaigrette, I mean the clean ear version.
Thanks
Yinka
Yinka – I’m not sure what you mean. But if you want to contact me with a recipe, I’d be happy to take a look. See my contact information for email info.
This sounds delicious, but I did not see any notes regarding the vinegar….boil it??
Thanks in advance!
Jineen – I’m not sure I understand the question. You mean in reference to boiling it down by half? The instructions are in the post. But maybe I’m not understanding what you’re asking. Can you clarify? Thanks!
Do you have to boil the vinegar if yours tastes ok? Or does that thicken it.
Lori – You don’t have to boil it at all. But yes, boiling it will thicken is slightly.