It Seems Every Member of the Family Has Their Favorite Type of Salad Dressing
Salads have long been shown to be one of the healthiest things that people can eat. The mix of wonderful greens and vegetables offer a power boost of vitamins, minerals and nutrients. There’s always been a downside though. Standard salad can be very bland, or downright bitter. This is where salad dressing comes in. Salad dressing gives salads a kick by giving them an accompanying flavor to titillate the taste buds and keep people eating more salad. That being said, there are simply dozens of different styles of salad dressings. Then consider the number of variations of those styles and you’re easily into thousands of options! This article is going to take a look at some of the different types of salad dressings and try to help people know exactly which are going to be the best accompaniment to their salads.
1 - Ranch
Alright, everyone knows ranch. When it comes to the United States, ranch is just everywhere! There’s many variations on ranch with some added features. Typically this may be some spicy jalapeno flavor, some cheese flavor or many others. What’s great about ranch is it’s also good as a dipping sauce for many foods in addition to being a great salad dressing. Ranch is made from a few simple ingredients including mayo, buttermilk, sour cream and a blend of herbs. This dressing started in the 1950's certainly is showing no signs of stopping.
2 - Vinaigrette
Typically, vinaigrette starts as the simplest version of any salad dressing. It’s just a combination of an oil and a vinegar that applies itself to salads very nicely. In fact, this is thought to be the world’s oldest salad dressing! Vinaigrette starts with a 3 to 1 ratio of oil to vinegar (or other acid) and from there you can add in a huge number of flavors through different herbs, garlic, mustard, wine or really anything else. What’s fun about vinaigrette is it’s really easy to make, allowing you to experiment with your own. If you really nail one recipe and serve it to guests, it’s an easy brag. Balsamic vinaigrette may be the most popular, but the number of options is endless!
3 - Italian
This is another popular salad dressing. Italian dressing is very similar to the previous entry vinaigrette. However it’s a little more complicated and includes garlic, lemon juice and a number of different herbs. Some people may add additional ingredients to give it an extra “zip”. While most Italian dressings use herbs common to Italian cuisine, more are turning away from the oregano to try some different takes. Italian dressing can also work as a lovely marinade for people who enjoy tofu (or chicken if that’s your preference).
4 - Caesar
Many people compare caesar dressing with ranch as they are both creamy varieties of salad dressing. However, it’s the fish that really makes the caesar dressing what it is. Caesar dressing actually uses anchovies or anchovy paste as a main ingredient to give it the flavor it has. Beyond that, it has egg yolks, garlic, salt, lemon juice, black pepper, oil and lemon juice. Some people prefer to replace the anchovy as it’s not an ingredient many people cook with on a day to day level, but the dressing does lose some zip when it’s gone.
5 - Thousand Island
This salad dressing is named for a group of islands in the great lakes between Canada and the United States. That being said, beyond that, the origin of it is somewhat shrouded in mystery. Thousand island dressing takes mayo, ketchup and other items and mixes them together to make a creamy and usually tangy sauce. Thousand island dressing is commonly used on salads, but is also used on sandwiches, burgers and many other items that need a little sauce or zip to their flavor profile.