Small-batch vinaigrette: mix, taste and adjust
A small batch, clear measurements and a method for adjusting the flavour on your salad. Whisk or shake, and understand why the dressing separates.
A small dressing for this meal
Start with 30 ml oil, 10 ml vinegar and half a teaspoon of mustard. Mix, taste on a salad leaf, then make small adjustments. This gives roughly 40–45 ml of dressing before adjustments: a small batch to make for the meal.
Three parts oil to one part vinegar is a starting point. Your vinegar, mustard and taste affect the result. The dressing does not need to become as thick as mayonnaise.
Ingredients and equipment
A measuring teaspoon here holds 5 ml. Use measuring spoons or a graduated measure; table cutlery does not have a consistent capacity.
- 30 ml mild olive oil or rapeseed/canola oil: 6 measuring teaspoons.
- 10 ml cider or wine vinegar: 2 measuring teaspoons. Use ordinary culinary vinegar, not a concentrate.
- ½ measuring teaspoon Dijon mustard: 2.5 ml.
- A small pinch of fine salt; a little black pepper if you like.
- A small bowl and whisk, or a clean jar of about 150 ml with a tight-fitting lid. Keep a leaf of the salad you will dress for tasting.
1. Mix the vinegar, mustard and salt
Put the vinegar in the bowl or jar. Add the mustard and a small pinch of salt. Stir to distribute the mustard and dissolve the salt. Mustard already contributes seasoning, so start with little salt.
2. Mix in the oil
With a whisk: steady the bowl on a folded tea towel. Whisk the vinegar mixture as you add the oil gradually, first in small drops, then in a thin stream. If a pool of oil remains visible, stop pouring and keep whisking before adding more.
With a jar: add the oil, close the lid firmly and shake vigorously until the dressing looks uniform. Leave enough empty space for the liquid to move. Open and check it; shake again if two layers are still visible.
3. Taste on the food you will eat
Put a little dressing on a clean, well-drained salad leaf and taste the whole bite. Judge the dressed salad, rather than the dressing alone.
Change one thing at a time. After every addition, mix again and taste on another leaf.
- Too sharp: add 1 teaspoon oil (5 ml), mix and taste. Stop when you like the balance.
- Too oily, with too little acidity: add ¼ teaspoon vinegar (1.25 ml), then mix and taste.
- The balance is pleasant but the flavour is faint: try a very small pinch of salt or a little pepper, then taste.
- Too salty or too strong on the leaf: first use less dressing on the next bite. If you have already dressed the salad, add plain leaves rather than making repeated corrections in the jar.
4. Dress gradually
Wash and dry the leaves well. Just before eating, add a little vinaigrette, toss to distribute it and taste. Add more only if needed. You do not have to use the whole jar: aim for lightly coated leaves without a puddle at the bottom of the bowl.
Why does the dressing separate?
Oil does not dissolve in the watery part of vinegar. Whisking or shaking breaks the oil into small droplets: this is an emulsion. Mustard helps keep those droplets dispersed, but vinaigrette can still separate.
If two layers reappear while you prepare the meal, whisk or shake again just before pouring. You want an even mixture when you dress the salad; you do not need to keep adding mustard in pursuit of a permanently stable sauce.
Find your preferred mixture again
Write down the vinegar you used and your final amounts of oil and vinegar. For example, if you added one teaspoon of oil to the base, your new starting point is 35 ml oil to 10 ml vinegar. That small note lets you begin with your preference next time, then taste again with that day’s salad.