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Say hello to your house dressing. Grab a mason jar because it’s time to shake up a batch of honey balsamic vinaigrette! This simple recipe shakes up nice and thick and keeps in the fridge for up to 10 days. You’ll want to use it on your dinner salads, in your sandwiches, for lunch prep, as a marinade and more!

Hello, all!

Anyone who has been following me knows that I am a long time advocate of making my own salad dressings instead of going for those easy (but not nearly as tasty! and probably over processed!) bottled ones. Instead I want control of my own destiny. And my own salad. 🙂

So I thought it was past time to introduce you to our house dressing. On a regular basis I pull out a mason jar, fill it with all the ingredients, give a good shake, and have it hanging out in the fridge for all my lunch and dinner needs.

Why I love this dressing

It’s simple to make. Use twice as much olive oil as balsamic vinegar and a little of everything else and you’re good to go.
It’s SOOO thick! Shaking makes for a thicker and more stable vinaigrette than whisking AND you have honey and mustard to emulsify the dressing.
It keeps in the fridge. Making the dressing in a mason jar (sealed container!) and keeping it refrigerated means the dressing can be stored for up to 10 days.
It’s perfect for grab and go meals. Want a quick salad? Or maybe you want to pack your lunch without spending time fussing? It is ready when you are.
It’s sweet AND tangy. You have the sweetness of the honey the sweet/acidic flavors of the vinegar, the spice of the mustard along with the garlic and shallots, all together making a wonderfully balanced dressing.
It makes the most AMAZING marinated chicken! 30 minutes and you have juicy, flavorful chicken breast. It’s a miracle.

What do you need?

Balsamic Vinegar – See below for choosing the right one for the dressing.
Olive Oil – Any tasty extra virgin oil will be great!
Honey/Mustard – Flavor + Thickening
Shallots/Garlic – To round out the flavor profile.

How to make this

To make honey balsamic vinaigrette, add olive oil, balsamic vinegar, honey, mustard, shallots, and garlic to a mason jar. Season with salt and pepper. Then shake the dressing until it is thick and well mixed.

Chop up the shallots and garlic.
Measure all ingredients into a mason jar.
Seal the jar and shake well.
Use now or for up to 10 days if kept in a sealed jar in the fridge.

Choosing a Balsamic Vinegar

Balsamic vinegar is very complicated subject and getting into too much it is way beyond the scope of salad dressing, but I think it would be useful for you have a little direction at the supermarket.

Basically, you are looking for a vinegar which has the the IGP stamp. The IGP stamp is blue and yellow and had the words “Indicazione Geografica Protetta” on it. The IGP stamp means the vinegar must be made from grape must and wine vinegar (though caramel color and thickeners are also allowed), but you can easily find one with good flavor and a price tag just right for salads.

Want to know more about balsamic? This article goes into some of the details.

Just want a recommendation already? I used this list to pick one at the supermarket. (FWIW I am using Bertolli at the moment, but I switch and try different ones.)

Uses for the vinaigrette

Obviously, you are going to use the dressing in tonight’s green salad! But how else to use it? Here are a few ideas.

Meal Prep. You may still be using the dressing in salads, but a nice thing about making dressing in larger quantities is that you can portion it out for lunches over the week.
Marinade. It makes an excellent marinade for chicken and other meats!
Glaze. Instead of marinating, you can use it as a glaze on grilled salmon or chicken.
Sandwich dressing/spread. You can drizzle a bit over a salami sandwich or mix it with mayo for a spread on bread.
Salads. In addition to green salads, you can use on potato salad, coleslaw, tomato salad, savory salads with fruit (grilled peaches anyone?) and other veggie recipes.

More Homemade Salad Dressings

If you try my recipe for Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette, I would love to hear from you in the comments with your experience and rating! And I’m happy to answer any questions you might have.

You can connect with me by subscribing to my emails or liking my Facebook or Pinterest (see the form and icons in the sidebar or below the recipe card)

– Happy Salad Making, Annemarie

Put away the bottled salad dressing and shake up a mason jar of the best honey balsamic vinaigrette! This thick and tangy homemade vinaigrette is great for dinner salads, marinades, and easy meal prepping for lunch. | justalittlebitofbacon.com #salads #saladdressing #vinaigrette #saladrecipes #balsamicvinegar

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