Apple Cider Vinegar Salad Dressing

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This 5-ingredient Apple Cider Vinegar Salad Dressing is the stress-free vinaigrette you’ll want to pair with all of your fall produce. With just cider vinegar, shallots, Dijon mustard, maple syrup, and olive oil, you get a delicious dressing with no hidden sugar or weird preservatives.

As a former personal chef, I’ve tested more dressings than I can count, but this is the vinaigrette I turn to every fall. It works for green salads with crisp apples and pears, adds great flavor to grain bowls with roasted vegetables, and doubles as a quick marinade for salmon or chicken.  I’ve got the step-by-step below, and tips to get you the perfect emulsion every time.

Jump to:

• Why You'll Love This Apple Cider Vinaigrette Recipe
• 🥗 IngredientsHow to Make Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing
• How to Make Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing
• Do you need to refrigerate Apple Cider Vinaigrette?
• 👩‍🍳 Expert Tips
• What to serve with Apple Cider Vinaigrette Dressing
• Other Delicious Salad Dressings
• 📖 Recipe
• More About Molly

Why You'll Love This Apple Cider Vinaigrette Recipe

• Perfect for fall: This dressing pairs beautifully with salads packed with apples, pears, or fall vegetables.
• So easy: Just 5 ingredients whisked together, then seasoned with salt and pepper. You can make this in 5 minutes!
• Apple cider vinegar is good for you!: Like other fermented foods, apple cider vinegar includes healthy bacteria (probiotics) that help promote gut health and build a healthy immune system.

🥗 IngredientsHow to Make Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing

• Olive Oil: Since olive oil is a big part of this recipe, it's great to use a high-quality extra-virgin olive oil if you have it. If not, feel free to substitute another oil like grapeseed oil or walnut oil.
• Maple Syrup: You can substitute honey or even a teaspoon of granulated sugar for the maple syrup.
• Shallot: I love the mild kick of the chopped shallot in this dressing, but you can leave it out entirely or replace it with a tablespoon of a chopped mild onion like a Vidalia or a white onion.

How to Make Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing

For this recipe, whisk together 1 T. chopped shallots, 2 T. cider vinegar, 1 t. dijon mustard, and 1 t. maple syrup in a small bowl. The dijon mustard adds flavor but also helps emulsify the vinegar and oil together.

Once those are combined, drizzle the 6 T. olive oil slowly into the bowl while whisking. Add salt and pepper, to taste, and whisk again.

Now dressing is ready to serve, though it will separate quite quickly as it sits. Just whisk again right before serving. 

Do you need to refrigerate Apple Cider Vinaigrette?

Yes, because it has dijon mustard in it, you’ll need to store it in the refrigerator. I recommend a jam jar or mason jar with a lid to store your dressing. Keep it in the fridge, and take out a half hour or so before you want to use it. Olive oil has a tendency to solidify a bit in very cold refrigerators. When you’re ready to serve, just shake vigorously in the jar with the lid on to re-emulsify the dressing. 

👩‍🍳 Expert Tips

Making salad dressing is very easy—the key is to first whisk together all ingredients except for the oil. Then, slowly whisk in the oil. This gives you the best chance for an emulsified dressing.

Quick note on making your perfect vinaigrette. The classic ratio for a vinaigrette is 1 part vinegar (or lemon/lime juice) to 3 parts oil. But some people prefer anywhere from a 1:2 to a 1:5 ratio, in part depending on taste, and in part depending on the rest of the ingredients in the dressing and salad itself. So when you add the oil in this apple cider vinaigrette, taste as you go. That way you can control exactly how tart the dressing is. You might prefer yours silky rather than sharp. Or you might find that one or the other is a better fit for the salad you are making that day.

What to serve with Apple Cider Vinaigrette Dressing

This dressing goes with all sorts of salads. Try it with a fall salad with apples or pears, walnuts, and blue cheese. Use it with this Hearts of Palm Salad with Avocado or this Arugula Salad with Apples and Quinoa. Or an arugula salad with roasted butternut squash. It’s also delicious when tossed with cooked quinoa, farro, or barley along with roasted vegetables.

This dressing also goes wonderfully with crunchy salads like this Cucumber Carrot Salad.

Apple Cider Vinegar Salad Dressing also makes a great marinade for fish and chicken. Grill them along with bell peppers, and drizzle remaining vinaigrette on top to serve. This dressing is gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegetarian, so it's a great recipe for almost any diet.

Other Delicious Salad Dressings

If you're looking for other great salad dressings, I've got some great ones here! Don't miss these:

If you try this Apple Cider Vinegar Salad Dressing recipe, I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below—I read them all, and your feedback is invaluable to me.

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📖 Recipe

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