Are you looking for easy ways to add more real food to your family’s diet? One simple way is to make quick and easy vinegar and olive oil dressings and use them on salads and as marinades for chicken, meat and vegetables.
I make Red Wine Vinegar Dressing and Marinade and Balsamic Vinegar Dressing and Marinade at least once a week. I use them on all of our salads and for quick and easy meals like Grilled Chicken with Roasted Vegetables and Salad with Grilled Chicken.
Not only do they taste delicious, they also provide a healthy dose of extra virgin olive oil and allow you to skip the artificial ingredients included in many commercial dressings and marinades. The recipes below are really just a starting point – you can vary the ingredients and proportions in dozens of ways.
Red Wine Vinegar Dressing and Marinade
Print recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/2 - 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- 2 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning
Directions
| Combine all ingredient in a glass bottle or jar. Shake well to combine ingredients. Store in the refrigerator. Shake well again before serving. | |
Notes
To save time, mince several cloves of garlic and add them to the bottle of vinegar as soon as you open it. Then use the garlic-infused vinegar each time you make the recipe, so you don't have to mince garlic each time.
Use this dressing on any salad and as a marinade for chicken or meat prior to grilling or vegetables prior to roasting or grilling.
Balsamic Vinegar Dressing and Marinade
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1/2-3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning
Directions
| Combine all ingredient in a glass bottle or jar. Shake well to combine ingredients. Shake well again before serving. | |
Notes
Use this dressing on any salad; it's particularly good on salads that include a bit of fruit (dried cranberries, chopped apples, etc.), although we love it on regular mixed vegetable salads too. You also can use it as a marinade for chicken, meat or vegetables prior to grilling or roasting.
Bea says
Do you have any salad dressings that don’t taste like vinegar? I can’t stand the taste and I haven’t been able to find a dressing that is healthy that both my husband and I will eat.
GC says
Hi Bea – I have sometimes made salad dressing with lemon juice in place of vinegar, and it was very good.
Gaye
Nicky says
These are great dressings Gaye. I like to add a little Dijon mustard in my vinaigrettes. It helps hold them together better.
GC says
Thanks Nicky!
Gaye
heidi says
These will be great with pretty much any salad. Thanks for the great recipe.
GC says
Thanks so much, Heidi. Both of the dressings are delicious.
Gaye
GiGi Eats Celebrities says
Fantastic and simple! These would pair well with just about EVERYTHING 🙂
GC says
Thanks Gigi! I have to admit that I use these with just about everything!
Gaye
Nicole says
Thanks for linking up to Let’s Get Real. These look great! So much better to make things for yourself. Usually cheaper, too!
GC says
Thanks Nicole! I agree – when I try bottled dressing now (one of my sons still prefers it!), it just tastes yucky!
Gaye
Lori says
Love the idea of putting the garlic directly into the vinegar! Do you keep it in the ‘fridge then? (the vinegar?) Years ago I read how fresh garlic left at room temp in oil will go rancid and cause digestive issues…
GC says
Hi Lori – I’ve heard that too about oil, but it doesn’t seem to be the case with vinegar. I guess weird stuff has a hard time growing in the acidic environment? I have to admit that I leave my salad dressings on the counter too. Not sure if that is the best strategy, but nothing weird grows in them and we have never gotten sick. But I definitely would not put garlic or herbs in oil and leave it out.
Gaye
April Harris (@apriljharris) says
I love homemade dressings and marinades – there are so many different variations you can make. Both your red wine vinegar and balsamic versions sound delicious. Thank you for sharing them with the Hearth and Soul hop.
GC says
Thank you, April. I love them too – they are delicious and so versatile!
Gaye
katbiggie says
It’s amazing that they are THAT simple, yet they really do taste better than a lot of the really fatty dressings!
Valerie says
There’s nothing quite as tasty as homemade dressing. Thanks for the ideas!
GC says
Thanks Valerie! I agree – I simply cannot go back to bottled dressing.
Gaye
DeDivahDeals says
I love Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar marinade.
GC says
I do too! I think it’s my favorite.
Gaye