Balsamic Vinaigrette
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Published Apr 09, 2024
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This easy balsamic vinaigrette comes together in just 5 minutes with only 6 simple ingredients. It’s tangy, slightly sweet and extremely versatile!
Balsamic vinaigrette was one of the first homemade salad dressings I ever learned to make and it’s still a staple in our kitchen.
Over the years I’ve perfected my go-to balsamic vinaigrette recipe to create a version with the optimal amount of vinegar, oil and seasonings. It has just the right amount of tang and sweetness and it’s seriously so delicious… you’ll want to drizzle it on everything!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Healthier and cheaper – Many store-bought dressings are loaded with processed ingredients, preservatives and sugar so making your own dressing is much healthier. Plus, it’s cheaper!Â
- Easy to make – It can be whipped up in 5 minutes with just 6 pantry staple ingredients.
- Versatile – Toss it with a salad, drizzle it over roasted veggies or use it as a marinade.
Balsamic Vinaigrette Ingredients
This dressing is simple to make with just a few pantry staples. Here’s what you need:
- balsamic vinegar – feel free to use regular or aged balsamic, but go for one that is high-quality (aka not the cheapest bottle on the shelf). Spending a little more is worth it when it comes to balsamic vinegar, especially when it’s the star of the show like it is when making balsamic vinaigrette.
- extra virgin olive oil – I recommend using a higher quality extra virgin olive oil for salad dressings like this. Save your regular olive oil for cooking.
- maple syrup – this is what makes this salad dressing in my opinion. The extra hint of sweetness really ties the dressing together and gives it the perfect balance. Honey or agave would work if you don’t have maple syrup on hand.
- dijon mustard – it might seem like you can skip this ingredient but don’t! It adds flavor and helps to emulsify the dressing.
- garlic – I love the flavor of fresh garlic in salad dressings, especially balsamic vinaigrette!
- sea salt – a little salt balances the dressing and brings out the flavor from all the other ingredients.
- dried basil and/or thyme – these dried herbs are totally optional, but I like adding them in for extra flavor!
How to Make Balsamic Vinaigrette
Homemade salad dressing couldn’t be any easier to make and this recipe is no exception.
Just add all your ingredients to a blender and blend until combined. Or you can use a mason jar and shake or whisk until fully emulsified. Taste and adjust the seasoning as desired. Then use immediately or store in the fridge for up to 7-10 days.
Brittany’s Tip!
Use a high-quality balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil when making homemade salad dressing since those are two of the main ingredients!
How to Use Balsamic Vinaigrette
This balsamic dressing is such a powerhouse and so versatile. Here are a few of my favorite ways to use this dressing:
- With a salad: Some of my favorite salads to pair with this balsamic vinaigrette include this beet salad, roasted tomato salad or spinach salad. Or it’s delicious drizzled over this caprese salad.
- As a marindade: Use this dressing as a marinade for protein like chicken, salmon or steak. I highly recommend my balsamic salmon!
- Drizzled over roasted vegetables: I love adding a drizzle of this dressing to roasted vegetables before serving. Or make these balsamic roasted brussels sprouts.
How to Store Balsamic Vinaigrette
I like to mix my balsamic vinaigrette in a mason jar (I use these 8 oz mason jars and plastic lids), which is easy for shaking and storing! In general though, you want to store homemade dressings in an airtight container with a lid in the refrigerator. This balsamic vinaigrette should last for up to 7-10 days in the fridge.
More Dressing Recipes
- Mexican Goddess Dressing
- Avocado Ranch Dressing
- Lemon Vinaigrette
- Turmeric Tahini Dressing
- Avocado Caesar Dressing
- Chili Almond Dressing
- Raspberry Vinaigrette
- Healthy Caesar Dressing
- Italian Dressing
Be sure to check out all of my salad dressing recipes on EBF! No time to make your own dressing? Check out my favorite healthy store-bought salad dressings.
Balsamic Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon dijon
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 Tablespoon fresh or ½ teaspoon dried basil and/or thyme, optional
Instructions
- Add all ingredients into a blender and blend until combined or alternatively you can add all the ingredients into a mason jar and shake or whisk until emulsified.
- Store the vinaigrette in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. If the olive oil becomes solid (this is normal), simply let the dressing sit out on the counter for 10-15 minutes and then whisk or shake to combine and serve. Recipe makes about 3/4 cup.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was originally published on August 12, 2020 and republished on March 9, 2023 and again on April 9, 2024.
Why does this only last a week in the frig?
Hi Theresa – It should be okay in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, I will update the recipe! Hope you enjoy!
Is that enough olive oil? Normally you put more oil than vinegar in a vinaigrette, no. I definitely had to add more. It’s good but I’d definitely cut back on the raw garlic next time. I like garlic but not that much raw in my vinaigrette.
Hi Michelle – I typically recommend equal parts, but it will depend of your flavor preference. Glad you enjoyed this recipe!
My son recently had a heart attack. I found this recipe while searching for healthy homemade dressings for him to make to help him eat more salads. He loved it soo much!! He also uses it as a marinade and seasoning for proteins. My husband loved it as well. We only make homemade dressings now. Thank you so much!!
Aw I am so excited to hear that you and your family are loving this recipe, Mimi. Thank you so much for coming back and sharing your review + star rating, I appreciate it.
Great dressing! I’m lazy, so I used .5 tsp. of garlic powder instead of minced. I like a little more tang, so I doubled the mustard. I also used Italian seasoning instead of basil/thyme. It tastes yummy on our homegrown butter crisp lettuce.
Yay! So glad you loved this dressing, Carol. Thanks for making my recipe and for coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it!
This sounds great and I’m going to try it, but I’m wondering why it says it will keep up to week in the fridge?
Since it contains both vinegar and salt, both preservatives, and doesn’t contain anything that would go off as far as I can tell, wouldn’t it be good for a very long. time? I ask because I’d like to make up a bunch in advance.
Hey Kimberly – You should be fine to store this dressing in the fridge for 2-3 weeks, I just say 1 week to be on the safe side and because mine never lasts more than 1 week. Thanks!