Fun Fearless Foodie

I’m not sure who decided it or when it happened, but it seems that everywhere I turn these days signs of fall are popping up in food culture. First it was the Pumpkin Spice Latte showing up on the Starbucks menu board, then it was Sam Adam’s Octoberfest on tap at a local bar, and most recently I spotted a Pumpkin Spice candle in the window of a candle shop on the Upper East Side.  I’m not sure where you live, but here in NYC it’s still 93 degrees outside and hotter than a geyser in Yellowstone National Park, why are we even talking fall?!  Perhaps everyone is just trying to pretend its breezy, cool, and cozy as a way to cope with the scorching temps, but to me it’s still very much summer.  And I wasn’t ready to give up Sam Adam’s Summer Ale by the way…

When it comes to matters of the kitchen I am still channeling flavors of the summer and trying to prepare light and bright dishes that use up the best of what’s around.  I was making up a fresh salad for lunch last week using the fresh produce I had stored in my fridge and concocted a tasty mix of baby spinach greens, Sun Gold tomatoes, orange peppers, chopped cilantro, and toasted almonds.  In all honesty this salad was delicious on it’s own before the thought of dressing even came into play. The crunch from the peppers and the burst of flavor from the little Sun Gold’s was enough to satisfy me, but being a sucker for a good vinaigrette, I scoured the pantry to see what I could come up with to enhance an already flavorful salad.

The answer turned out to be a Ponzu-Lime Vinaigrette, a tart blend of lime juice, Ponzu sauce, grated ginger, chopped garlic, and extra virgin olive oil.  The acidic flavors of the lime and Ponzu (a citrus soy sauce found in the Asian section of your grocer) hit all the right notes and added a great spice and tingle to the back of my throat as it mixed with the sweetness of the peppers and tomatoes in my salad.  As I whisked the vinaigrette together I started to think about how easy it was to make it and how many people forgo the simple process for a bottle of some over-processed, unnatural stuff from the grocery store. So naturally this led me to come up with a list of reasons why you should make your own vinaigrette and a helpful how-to that even the non-cook can conquer.

Why you should make your own vinaigrette:

1. Customization.  You get to decide what goes into your dressing, and what doesn’t for that matter.  Want to base your salad around grapefruit? No problem, now you can make a grapefruit vinaigrette which would be hard to find at the store, and likely get you more than you need.
2. Cost savings. Take a minute to count how many bottles of dressing are in your fridge right now.  If you’re like most, it’s three or four, you probably only use one, and two of them have expired. Good dressings can get expensive, making your own will allow you to make as much as you need, and is a great way to use up leftover condiments and produce lying around in your kitchen.
3. Health benefits.  A lot of bottled dressings on the market, especially the big-brand inexpensive ones, use a lot of artificial sweeteners and flavorings in the dressings to keep costs down and increase shelf-life. Even if you are not crazy into the all-natural, organic lifestyle, the fat and calorie count alone should be enough to make you want to make your own.  You get to decide how much or how little fat, sugar, and salt get added to your dressing which can make the whole purpose of eating a salad in the first place make more sense.
4. It’ easy! Really, I promise, read below to find out how easy…

In order to believe my ranting on how easy it is to make your own vinaigrette, you must first understand what makes a vinaigrette, well, a vinaigrette.  There are three basic elements that in any combination can make you a tasty dressing: acid, fat, and an emulsifier (which is optional).  Acid is the critical factor that gives a vinaigrette its tang and can be anything from vinegar, citrus juice, or even soy sauce.  You need acid in order to balance out the heaviness of the fat in the vinaigrette.  Fat is important because it gives the vinaigrette a smooth mouth-feel and helps to coat whatever it is that you are dressing. Your choices for fats can be oil, bacon fat, or even butter.  Now most of us know that when you mix oil and vinegar in a bowl the two don’t really see eye to eye at first, but with a proper whisk or a good shake, they will get together for a brief fling.  In order to get these two serious about each other you need to introduce an emulsifier.  An emulsifier is essentially a thickening agent that helps bind a fat and an acid together.  Examples of emulsifiers are things like mustard, egg yolks, and honey.  Mix all three of these factors together and you have what us food people and scientists call an emulsion.

The reason I say this is optional is because a vinaigrette can be something just as simple as oil and vinegar mixed together, and if you’re using good quality products, can be absolutely delicious.  The reason you would want to emulsify a vinaigrette would be to give it more body so it coats your salad better and holds up to heavier ingredients.  Emulsifiers can also add more flavor and richness to your vinaigrette.  Again, all of this is about preference and what you are looking for in a vinaigrette, which goes back to number one on my list above…

So now that the science lesson is over, let’s get to the good stuff, how you make a vinaigrette.

If you consult recipe books and even the curriculum at FCI, you will find that the suggested ratio for fat to acid in a vinaigrette is 3 to 1.  In my own personal opinion, this is way too much fat.  I like a more acidic vinaigrette and tend to go with a 2 to 1 or even 1 to 1 ratio based on the ingredients I’m using.  This is where you will need to let your taste buds do the driving when it comes to making your vinaigrette.  Consider this when reading recipes and/or making up your own concoction, and taste as you go!

We talked about the simple oil and vinegar vinaigrette that you can make my simply putting the two in a bowl and whisking, but the whole reason for making your own vinaigrette is to customize the flavors, and to do that you need to add seasoning and aromatics to give it real flavor.  Keeping this in mind, here are the 4 simple steps to making a vinaigrette:

1. Select your acid and add to a mixing bowl (plastic Tupperware containers also work great as you can put the lid on and shake away).  You can use more than one acid, like the combination of balsamic vinegar and lemon juice for example.
2. If using an emulsifier add it to the acid.  Whisk (or shake) together until it is fully incorporated and a homogeneous mixture.
3. Add in your aromatics and seasonings. Aromatics can be things like garlic, ginger, herbs, peppers, etc. Seasonings can be as simple as salt an pepper, or red pepper flakes, dried herbs, curry powder, etc. As soon as you add in your aromatics let the mixture sit and hang out for at least ten minutes if you have the time.  For whatever scientific reason, letting the aromatics soak in with the acid before you add the fat enhances the flavor and produces a better tasting vinaigrette.
4. Whisk in the fat.  Remember what I said about ratios?  Don’t go to the trouble of measuring out your fat in a measuring cup unless you really know exactly how much you’ll need.  If you are using oil the best thing to do is stream it in a little at a time directly from the bottle so you don’t have to go to the trouble of pouring the extra back in later.  With a whisk in one hand and the fat in another, continue whisking the mixture as you add in the fat slowly, stopping to taste frequently so you know how much more to add.  Once you have the right balance of acid and fat, continue whisking until it’s fully incorporated and looks homogeneous. Taste one last time for seasoning and adjust as needed.

Using the steps listed above, here are the ingredients to make the Ponzu Lime Vinaigrette I used in my summer salad:

Ponzu-Lime Vinaigrette

Makes about  1/3 cup.  Enough to dress 4 appetizer size salads, or 2 entree salads.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons Ponzu sauce
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 teaspoon grated garlic
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (about)

That’s it!  You just made yourself a homemade vinaigrette.  Wasn’t that easy?  To show you how many different combinations there are to make a vinaigrette, check out the list below and scan your pantry to see if you can whisk something together without making a run to the store.  Keep in mind that you can use more than one of each category as long as the flavors work well together.  Vinaigrette’s also work well as marinades for meat and poultry, so if you make more dressing than you need think about using up the rest to add flavor to the rest of your meals.  Leftover dressing can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Acid

• Balsamic vinegar
• Red wine vinegar
• Rice wine vinegar
• White wine vinegar
• Apple cider vinegar
• Lemon juice
• Lime juice
• Orange juice
• Grapefruit juice
• Ponzu sauce
• Soy sauce

Fat

• Extra virgin olive oil
• Canola oil
• Walnut oil
• Hazelnut oil
• Peanut oil
• Grapeseed oil
• Pumpkin seed oil
• Truffle oil
• Bacon fat
• Brown butter

Aromatics

• Garlic
• Ginger
• Shallots
• Jalapeno peppers
• Habanero peppers
• Thyme
• Rosemary
• Oregano
• Sage
• Dill
• Basil

Emulsifiers

• Whole grain mustard
• Dijon mustard
• Honey mustard
• Honey
• Agave nectar
• Peanut butter
• Egg yolks
• Sour cream
• Mayonnaise