Dressings & Sauces

Apple Cider Vinaigrette

Cider vinegar is softer and fruitier than wine vinegar, which makes it the right acid for salads with apple, squash, nuts or blue cheese — anything where a harsher vinegar would fight the ingredients rather than lift them. Use the cloudy unfiltered kind if you can find it; the clear filtered version tastes thinner. Fresh thyme and a soaked shallot round it out, and a spoonful of honey takes the edge off without making it sweet. It comes together in one jar in five minutes and improves after a day in the fridge.

Apple Cider Vinaigrette
5 minPrep time
5 minTotal time
8Servings
100Kcal / serving

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp unfiltered apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
  • 1 small shallot, finely minced
  • 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
  • 150ml extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp fine salt
  • Black pepper

Instructions

  1. Soften the shallot

    Put the minced shallot in a jar with the cider vinegar and salt. Leave 10 minutes — the acid takes the raw harshness out and the shallot flavours the vinegar.

  2. Add the flavourings

    Add the honey, wholegrain mustard, thyme and a good grind of black pepper. Shake to dissolve.

  3. Emulsify

    Pour in the olive oil, seal tightly, and shake hard for 30 seconds until thickened and cloudy.

  4. Rest and store

    Best after an hour, and better the next day. Keeps 2 weeks refrigerated — bring to room temperature and shake before each use.

Pour it over Apple Walnut Salad, Wild Rice & Cranberry Salad or Roasted Butternut Squash Salad. Compare ratios in Homemade Dressing Ratios.

The EasySaladBowl secretSoaking the shallot in vinegar first is a ten-minute step that changes the whole dressing. Raw minced shallot stays sharp and metallic; soaked, it turns sweet and mellow.

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