This is the secret ingredient that makes your salad dressing 100x better
Salad dressings are 100 times more delicious when you make them yourself. And they’re better for you than supermarket dressings, because those things are usually ultra-processed. Lacking inspiration for putting together a tasty dressing? There’s a very surprising, secret ingredient that takes your dressing—and therefore your salad—to an unprecedented level. Even if you put a simple lettuce-tomato-cucumber salad on the table, you’ll impress everyone.
Chorizo is the answer
What am I talking about? Chorizo—specifically, chorizo fat. Because how flavorful is this Spanish sausage?! It gives your dressing a smoky, spicy, slightly hot flavor. Combined with something acidic (such as vinegar or lemon) and something sweet (such as honey), you get a dressing that’s perfectly balanced. It’s also perfect over grilled vegetables, a pasta salad, or grilled chicken. Incredibly versatile, then. Why didn’t we think of this years ago?
How to make salad dressing with chorizo
You can put together a chorizo salad dressing in just fifteen minutes. Here’s how:
- Cut 100 grams of chorizo lengthwise and then crosswise into pieces of about 2.5 centimeters (about 2/3 cup). Chop 1 medium shallot (about 1/3 cup). Finely chop the leaves and tender stems from 5 fresh cilantro or parsley sprigs.
- Place the chorizo in a medium frying pan and add a quarter of the olive oil (about 30 milliliters). Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the fat is released from the chorizo. This takes about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the chorizo from the pan and place it on a paper towel-lined plate.
- Add the shallots to the frying pan and cook until translucent and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir occasionally. Remove the frying pan from the heat.
- Squeeze the lemon juice into the frying pan (about 1 tablespoon). Add the cilantro or parsley, sherry vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, and salt. Mix together. While continuing to whisk, slowly pour in the remaining olive oil. Taste and season with more salt and black pepper, if needed.
- Spoon the warm vinaigrette over your salad. Serve with the crispy chorizo from the pan.
Another top ingredient for your dressing
By the way, there’s another secret ingredient you can use to make a super-tasty salad dressing: vanilla extract. A completely different product from chorizo, but also a genuinely surprising twist for your salad. Want to give the salad buffet at the table a little shake (and not stir)? Then make this Dirty Martini salad dressing. It really tastes as good as it sounds.
Also read:
- Hello, mayo friends—these are the 9 things you really want to know
- 8x the tastiest (and easiest) salad dressings
- After reading this, you’ll never throw away the liquid from a jar of olives again!
Recipe: The Kitchn
