Citrus Vinaigrette Salad Dressing (Vegan, Paleo)

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This homemade Citrus Vinaigrette Salad Dressing recipe made with olive oil, white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, lemon and orange is the best refreshing condiment to brighten up your summer salad!

I am a big fan of making salad dressing at home using simple fresh ingredients. Though it might be more convenient to buy from a local store, it never tastes the same as a homemade vinaigrette.

Another reason is if you look at the ingredient’s labels of store-bought dressings, you will see a lot of added ingredients that shouldn’t be there, like sugar, preservatives, and many others. When you make it at home, you can control the ingredients and overall quality.

I love adding this Citrus Vinaigrette  to my Arugula Salad!

What is Vinaigrette?

The word “Vinaigrette” came from a French word “vinaigre”, which means “vinegar”.

According to history, this term was first mentioned by John Evely in his book about salads, “Acetaria”, in 1699. However, it wasn’t really used until the end of the 19^th century and became more popular as “French dressing”.

Originally, vinaigrette is a mix of oil, acidic ingredients, like vinegar or lemon juice, and some herbs or spices. Usually it is used as a salad dressing or a marinade.

What is the difference between Vinaigrette and Dressing? 

Despite the fact that we usually call all salad dressings a “Dressing”, there is a slight difference between them.

Vinaigrette is a type of dressing that is made with oil and vinegar and has a light runny texture.

Dressing usually has more creamy texture and is based on mayonnaise, yogurt, vinegar and some other ingredients.

How to make Citrus Vinaigrette

This Citrus Vinaigrette will take you no more than 5-7 minutes to make and all you need is just a few basic ingredients:

• Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
• White Wine Vinegar
• Dijon Mustard
• Lemon
• Orange
• Garlic
• Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Put all the ingredients in a mason jar, close the lid and shake it up to mix everything together.

Notes for the perfect Citrus Vinaigrette:

There are a few notes I would like to mention for the best results.

1. It is very important to use good quality Extra-Virgin Olive Oil. If you use a cheaper one, it might have a bitter aftertaste. To fix it, you can try to add more orange juice and maple syrup.
2. Also, if your olive oil is not the best quality and your vinaigrette is too oily, try adding more orange juice.
3. We all have different tastes. So, after you make this vinaigrette, taste it. You can adjust the flavors and the acidity by adding more white vinegar or Dijon mustard.

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