Sauces & Drinks · American

Italian Dressing

Name: Italian Dressing
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 3 tbsp red wine vinegar; 6 tbsp olive oil (extra-virgin); 1 tsp mustard (Dijon); 1 clove garlic (grated to a paste); 1 tsp oregano (dried); ¾ tsp basil (dried); 1 tbsp parsley (finely chopped); ½ tsp sugar; ½ tsp salt; ¼ tsp black pepper (coarse ground); 1 tsp lemon (juice)

11 ingredients · 15 minutes · 2 servings

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373kcal0.3g protein40.6g fat2.6g carbs~$0.71/ serving*

VegetarianVegan · without onePescatarianNo porkNo alcohol

Ingredients

Servings:

3 tbsp	red wine vinegar
6 tbsp	olive oil (extra-virgin)
1 tsp	mustard (Dijon)
1 clove	garlic (grated to a paste)
1 tsp	oregano (dried)
¾ tsp	basil (dried)
1 tbsp	parsley (finely chopped)
½ tsp	sugar
½ tsp	salt
¼ tsp	black pepper (coarse ground)
1 tsp	lemon (juice)
1 tbsp	onion (grated, with juice)optional
1 tbsp	cheese (Parmesan, finely grated)optional
¼ tsp	red pepper flakesoptional
½ tsp	honey (in place of the sugar)optional

Method

rest10 min
room temperature
red wine vinegar + lemon juice + salt + sugar + garlic paste + dried oregano + dried basil + black pepper. Dried herbs are dehydrated leaf: they need water to give up their oils, and there is no water in oil. Ten minutes in the acid rehydrates them and dissolves the salt and sugar — salt added after the oil stays gritty because it cannot dissolve in fat
whisk1 min
vigorous
+ mustard, until the vinegar mixture turns opaque and slightly thick. The mustard's mucilage and lecithin are the only thing standing between you and a jar that splits in twenty minutes; whisking it into the acid first, before any oil, is what puts it in position to coat the droplets
emulsify2 min
thin stream, constant whisking
+ olive oil, added drop by drop for the first tablespoon and then in a thin thread. Pour it in all at once and there is more oil than the mustard can wrap, so the droplets merge and the dressing breaks on the spot = a glossy, pourable emulsion
mix1 min
off the whisk
+ chopped parsley + any optionals. Fresh parsley goes in last — it bruises and dulls if it rides through the whisking, and grated Parmesan whisked in early drags the emulsion grainy
store1 min
sealed jar, refrigerated up to 1 week
Chilled olive oil clouds and thickens into a paste; let the jar stand 15 minutes at room temperature and shake before use. Expect slight separation after a few days — that is the emulsion aging, not spoiling, and a hard shake rebuilds it