Denise's Favorite White Wine Vinaigrette

My all-time MOST USED white wine vinaigrette is tangy, slightly sweet, and the perfect all purpose vinaigrette for any salad. Prep a batch with simple pantry ingredients and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks!

A good salad absolutely needs a good dressing! Some of my go-to vinaigrettes include a classic balsamic vinaigrette, and a red wine vinaigrette. But my most used recipe is hands down this white wine vinaigrette!

Why do I reach for this recipe time and time again when I have 7 vinaigrette recipes on the blog to choose from? The white wine vinegar is tangy, but neutral. Combined with honey, dijon and extra virgin olive oil, this vinaigrette will help all the other flavors in your salad come to life!

Not only is it delicious, but so so simple to prep, and I bet you already have these ingredients sitting in your pantry 😉

Don't forget to pin this recipe to save it for later!

Ingredients you'll need

It's so simple and requires just four pantry staples:

1. 1. White wine vinegar- NOT to be confused with white vinegar. White wine vinegar is far less sharp and acidic than white vinegar. It is more neutral in flavor than red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar (which I find to have a slightly sweet taste). It is tangier than apple cider vinegar and a better choice in a vinaigrette (in my opinion!)
   2. Olive oil- I opt for a good quality olive oil when making a vinaigrette, so I pick extra virgin olive oil.
   3. Dijon- I am not a mustard fan, but adding just a smidge of dijon to a vinaigrette helps bring all the flavors together. It is an emulsifier, which is fancy speak that means it prevents the oil and vinegar from immediately separating.
   4. Honey or maple syrup- we don't use much, but adding a sweetener really rounds out the flavors. Without it, the dressing is just tangy and flat.

The ratio

Traditional vinaigrettes use an oil : vinegar ratio of 3:1, but I find this far too tame. I personally prefer a 1:1 ratio, which gives it a tangier and more pronounced flavor, and encourage you to play around with different ratios to get your perfect vinaigrette!

• traditional (and mild) ratio: 1 part vinegar: 3 parts olive oil
• slightly tangy: 2 parts vinegar : 3 parts olive oil
• tangy (my fave!): 1 part vinegar : 1 part olive oil

A variation of this vinaigrette was used on Kale Barley Salad

Storage

A great feature about homemade salad dressings is that they keep really well! This white wine vinaigrette may be prepared ahead and stored in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

While storing in the fridge, the oil and vinegar in the vinaigrette will separate into two layers, so be sure to give it a good shake up before drizzling over your salad.

Salad

What type of salad can you use this vinaigrette on? The sky is really the limit. I have used this on almost every type of salad you can think of including:

• barley-based salad- Chickpea, Barley & Butternut Squash Lunch Bowls
• cucumber salad - Spiralized Cucumber Salad with Feta & Mint
• spinach salad - Pear, Gouda and Hazelnut Spinach Salad
• bulgur wheat salad- Chopped Chickpea Salad
• quinoa salad - Charred Corn Salad with Feta, Mint & Quinoa

Black Bean Quinoa Salad has a variation of this vinaigrette

Variations

The base vinaigrette recipe is so fun to play around with. So many of my vinaigrette recipes on this blog are slight variations on this base.

• add some chili powder, garlic and lime juice and you've got a chili lime vinaigrette
• add some chili powder, paprika, cumin and lime juice and you've got a fajita vinaigrette
• add some sesame oil and you've got a sesame vinaigrette
• add some lemon juice and zest and you've got a honey lemon vinaigrette
• add some herbs like basil and oregano for an italian version

More vinaigrette recipes

• Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing
• 5-Minute Asian Salad Dressing
• Fresh Rasbperry Basil Vinaigrette
• Roasted Strawberry Black Pepper Vinaigrette
• Classic Greek Salad Dressing