Vinagrette 101:
Contributed from the desk of Mr. Chef
It’s no surprise Americans love two things in their food: sugar and fat. Heck, all humans love those things. The unfortunate thing is that we’re now under the grip of an ass backwards food system in this country where even the things we love and crave as human beings aren’t easily accessible or even real (looking at you HFCS and seed oils).
But like all good things, too much of it can be…too much. Balance in all things is crucial for a happy life, and the meals you eat are a cornerstone of that balance. A giant fat cap on a grilled steak? One bite is delicious but not so much after a few bites. A huge piece of blueberry pie? Amazing, but all that sugar from the filling and fat from the pastry will weigh you down and make you feel like a lump.
So where does the balance lie? Oddly enough with acid, meaning any food ingredient with a low pH. That could be anything from lemon or lime juice to white wine vinegar to even buttermilk. Take the above examples - imagine that same beautiful grilled steak with a nice fat cap of crispy, warm beef fat. That same delicious - albeit boring - dining experience gets elevated with the addition of a pungent salsa verde, a charred tomato salsa, or even just a big splash of lemon juice and a spoonful of warm melted butter. Take the pie example - the lemon juice in the pie filling not only helps set the pectin in the filling, but also helps the blueberry flavor pop and make you crave another piece or two. Add a little buttermilk glaze on top of the crust and you’ve got yet another layer of acid to drive it home.
And here’s the good news - lemons, lime, vinegar, pickles? They’re all cheap and easy to find and/or make yourself - and one of the best ways to really elevate your food is featuring these acidic components with vinaigrettes.
The basic ratio of a vinagrette is 3 parts oil to 1 part acid. You can either emulsify them together with the little help of technology (immersion blender) or science (egg yolk, mustard, garlic are all natural emulsifiers). Or you can keep the vinaigrette non-emulsified, or as what’s known in the biz as “broken”. They both have their uses, it’s just a matter of preference honestly.
This 3:1 ratio is a ratio, it’s not exact, but base it off of standard measurements of course. That could be tablespoons, cups, capfuls, grams or in a pinch even by eyesight. The biggest thing is to be sure to TASTE the vinaigrette you’re making to see if it needs anything - I find that I usually need to add a splash of honey or maple to balance out the acidity and the fat.
A simple vinaigrette is really one of those cornerstones of cooking knowledge that everyone should have, because once you learn just the most basic aspects of it you’ll be able to apply it to so many different parts of your cooking. And you’ll look super cool in front of girls and guests who think you’re super good at cooking, which is the whole reason most anyone cooks at all.
Personally for me nowadays? One of my favorite things to do is make a “pantry vinaigrette”, meaning make a vinaigrette around items that are in your pantry or fridge. Obviously this is based upon having a solid larder of products, but once you have even a small amount of items the possibilities are endless. Take a look around your own kitchen and garden and you’ll be surprised at what you already have available.
For example-
Dry storage:
Various vinegar (white wine, cider, red wine)
Spices
Olive oil
Capers
Mustard (grainy and dijon)
Honey
Maple syrup
Tamari
Miso
Nutritional Yeast
Animal fat (pork, beef, duck, bacon)
Refrigerated storage:
Pickles
Olives
Fresh herbs (parsley, dill, chives, scallions are the most readily available and versatile)
Fresh fruit
Fresh veggies
Eggs (for making emulsified vinaigrettes)
Hot sauce
Where do you go from there? Well just take the aforementioned vinaigrette ratio and play around with it.
Let’s say you’ve got a beautiful piece of skin on trout to grill up. I’d start a simple broken vinaigrette with white wine vinegar and olive oil, just mixed together in a container with a spoon.
From there - check your pantry and your fridge for what you’ve got and go from there.
A little dash of hot sauce…some minced up olives…maybe you have some leftover hard boiled eggs, mince those up real fine…maybe you’ve got some herbs in your windowsill garden…mince those up combine it all with the vinaigrette and give it a taste. You’ve got an herbaceous, slightly textured, briny, balanced sauce that is similar to a classic “Sauce Gribiche” from classic French cuisine which is perfect with fish. And you didn’t even have to leave your dang house.
Let’s try another example - you get home after a long week and realize you totally forgot about the produce you bought the weekend before and it’s going bad in your fridge. You’ve got tomatoes, garlic, and scallions all looking real sad.
Get your broiler going. Load up those veggies on a baking tray and get them real blistered and blackened under the broiler. When they smell awesome pull them out and let them cool off. Drain off some of the extra liquid and then hit with a stick blender and nice and smooth. Season that base up with salt, vinegar, and spices…you can take it a few ways here…add smoked paprika or chipotle powder or curry spices depending on what you are looking for.
That seasoned tomato base can now be the base for your vinaigrette (extra points because you could also use any extra base as a braising liquid, a base for a seafood stew, or a marinade). Put that tomato puree in a blender and use the same 3:1 ratio for finishing it off as a vinaigrette. Start the blender on low and add your oil in drops at a time…when the emulsion is strong you can increase the speed of the blender as well as the speed you’re adding the oil, until your oil is fully emulsified in there. Give it a taste again and season if necessary. Boom you’ve got a super tasty (hopefully) emulsified vinaigrette that is super versatile for beef, chicken, fish, or even on a salad with a heartier green like arugula.
Anyways, I can go on and on about delicious dressings and sauces but I hope these can help you elevate your cuisine to the next step and realize that eating well is truly the good life.
Enjoy,
Mr. Chef
