The perfect lemon herb dressing to drizzle over salads, steamed vegetables, fish or chicken! This homemade salad dressing takes 5 minutes to make, using just 6 ingredients and has a delicate, bright flavor.
Homemade dressings are a simple way to improve your health. Most salad dressings from the grocery store are filled with artificial flavours, sugar and additives. Making your own salad dressing is quick, simple and a delicious addition to other healthy recipes like salads, pasta and rice.
Inspired by my Honey Balsamic Dressing and Lemon Tahini Dressing – this recipe for lemon herb dressing pairs perfectly with my gluten free pasta salad.
INGREDIENTS
I love easy recipes like this lemon-herb dressing recipe! With 6 simple ingredients you can have this perfectly balanced, zingy, evoo lemon herb salad dressing (also known as a lemon-herb vinaigrette). You will need:
- extra-virgin olive oil
- fresh lemon juice (fresh is best)
- raw honey
- sea salt
- black pepper (optional)
- dijon mustard
- fresh herbs fresh parsley, basil or marjoram or fresh dill
Equipment
- measuring cups and spoons
- mason jar or other glass jar with lid
- sharp knife
- chopping board
Method
Read on to see just how easy it is to make this lemon vinaigrette recipe.
STEP 1: Add ingredients to a jar or bowl. Pour the fresh lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil to a glass jar or medium bowl. Add the honey, sea salt, pepper, dijon mustard and fresh herbs of choice.
STEP 2: Shake or whisk. If adding ingredients to a jar and give it a really good shake to combine. If using a bowl, whisk and whisk and whisk until the oil and lemon juice has emulsified. You should end up with a smooth dressing.
Substitutions
The best thing about making this homemade vinaigrette is that you can adapt it easily with ingredients that you have on hand. See a list of ingredient substitutions that you can make.
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- Extra virgin olive oil – swap for avocado oil, hemp seed oil, flaxseed oil, or macadamia oil.
- Lemon juice – swap for another acid of choice like apple cider vinegar, white wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar. Add lemon zest if desired.
- Honey – use maple syrup.
- Dijon mustard – omit altogether or swap for wholegrain mustard.
- Fresh herbs – use fresh mint, fresh chives, green onion or any other fresh herb. Swap for 1/4 teaspoon of dried herbs if necessary.
The Basics for making a HOMEMADE vinaigrette / SALAD DRESSING
Making salad dressings at home is really easy to do (plus they’re much better for you then store-bought). Here’s how:
- Choose your oil – for this lemon herb salad dressing I have used extra virgin olive oil.
- Choose your acid – for this recipe I have used fresh-squeezed lemon juice but you could also use apple cider vinegar.
- Balance with sweetness – using honey helps to balance the tang of the acid.
- Balance with salt – adding salt balances out the sweet flavour.
- Add flavour – I like to add things like wholegrain or dijon mustards or herbs. In this recipe I have used dijon mustard.
- Make creamy – for a creamier dressing add one to two tablespoons of yoghurt or tahini.
I find the perfect ratio for oil:acid is 3:2 – or like in this recipe I have used 60mL oil:40 mL acid.
Health Benefits
There are many health benefits to making your own dressings. Here are some:
- Extra virgin olive oil can help to reduce high cholesterol and blood pressure.
- Lemon juice or apple cider vinegar help to increase digestive juices and therefore aid in digestion of raw vegetables like salad greens.
- Adding oil to salads helps to increase the absorption of fat soluble vitamins like Vitamin A, E, K and D.
- Using homemade salad dressings vs store bought helps to reduce added sugars in the diet.
See recipe card for nutritional information.
HOW TO USE LEMON HERB vinaigrette
Homemade salad dressings are great to add to your meal plans and a perfect way to spruce up so many different dishes. This dressing is so versatile and can be used on so many different dishes. Here are some of my favourite ways to use my Lemon Herb Dressing:
- use to dress a leafy green salad, garden salad or greek salad.
- drizzle over steamed vegetables.
- drizzle over roasted sweet potato, potato or Brussels sprouts.
- use to dress pasta salad or spaghetti.
- Pour over cooked chicken breast or fish.
- Add to a healthy breakfast of eggs, rocket and avocado on toast.
Pin For Later
Lemon Herb Dressing
Equipment
- Measuring Cups & Spoons
- Small jar
- Sharp knife
- Chopping Board
Ingredients
- 60 mL olive oil, extra virgin
- 40 mL lemon juice, fresh
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tbsp basil, parsley or marjorim, finely chopped
- pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Add the olive oil, lemon juice, dijon mustard, honey, salt and herb of choice to a small jar.60 mL olive oil extra virgin, 40 mL lemon juice fresh, 1 tsp dijon mustard, 1 tsp honey, 1 tbsp basil parsley or marjorim, finely chopped, pinch sea salt
- Place the lid on and shake vigorously to emulsify.
- Store in fridge for up to 7 days.
Nutrition
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