Italian Dressing {Easy Yummy Healthy Way}

Italian Dressing made easy at-home features red wine vinegar, olive oil, dried oregano, freshly ground black pepper, and minced garlic. Drops of honey sweeten the dressing just right for an appetizingly delicious flavor.

So easy to make, naturally tasty, and abundantly versatile. Use it for salad, noodles, and more.

This Italian Dressing is an excellent Idea for packing lunch for school or work

This Italian Dressing is one of my go-to packed lunches these days for my kids.

I would make the dressing in advance, store it in a glass bowl in the refrigerator. I would also cook some spaghetti in advance and store it in the refrigerator too. See here for tips on how to cook dry pasta easy and delicious.

In the morning, I would just toss the dressing with cooked spaghetti, along with chopped vegetables in a heated hard-anodized fry pan for a few minutes.

This is especially suitable for situations where heating devices such as microwaves are not available. You can eat the Noodle Salad at room temperature. This is important as during the covid-19 pandemic era when kids do not have access to microwaves at school.

How to make a quick, easy and tasty Italian Dressing at home?

Tip No.1 is to use wine vinegar and olive oil as the dressing base

Either red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar works, though I often use red wine vinegar. In a simple way to put it, red wine vinegar is from fermented red wine. Aged red wine vinegar has a smoother and less intensive taste compared to the not aged version.

In terms of olive oil, use organic extra virgin olive oil, if possible.

Tip No.2 is to season with oregano, black pepper, and freshly minced garlic

Oregano is a popular herb/spice in many cuisines across the world. Italian-style cuisine is one of them. Like many herbs, oregano is also packed with antioxidants, which are essential for our bodies to fight off free radicals and all sorts of inflammations. Undoubtedly, oregano is no exception another superfood herb.

Like peas and carrots, oregano and black pepper complement each other extremely well. Freshly minced garlic further completes the duo’s flavor and taste.

By the way, a compact food processor is such a handy kitchen gadget for tasks such as mincing garlic. I use minced garlic a lot for many delicious dishes. Mongolian Beef, Stir-fried Eggplant with garlic sauce {Yu Xiang Qie Zi}, Garlic Sesame Dressing, just to name a few.

Tip No.3 is to add a few drops of honey

A tiny bit of honey will help reduce the sharp acidity, slightly sweetens the dressing, and give you this appetizingly yummy flavor.

Last but not least is to add chopped parsley on the go

Chopped parsley not only adds additional refreshing flavor but also the contrast beautiful green color.

I usually make just a little over a quarter cup of Italian Dressing, which is the portion of this recipe, for the week and store it in an air-tight glass container in the refrigerator. I would also chop some parsley in advance and store it in another air-tight glass container in the fridge. On the go, mix the dressing with chopped parsley.

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Italian Dressing Recipe

Yield: 1/2 cup Italian dressing

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Italian Dressing made easy at-home features red wine vinegar, olive oil, dried oregano, freshly ground black pepper, and minced garlic. So tasty and versatile, for noodles or salad.

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Ingredients

• 1/4 cup (4 tbsp) red wine vinegar, organic preferred
• 1/4 cup (4 tbsp) olive oil, organic extra virgin preferred
• 1 tsp honey, organic raw preferred
• 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard, original
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• 1 tsp salt, Himalayan pink salt, or sea salt preferred
• 1/2 tsp crushed red chili pepper, organic preferred, optional but recommended, see notes
• 2 tsp freshly minced garlic, or 1/2 tsp garlic powder, see notes
• 4 stems of parsley, chopped

Instructions

• Gather ingredients. Use a compact food processor to mince garlic.
  
• Add red wine vinegar and organic extra virgin olive oil to a small mixing bowl, and whisk to mix well.
• Add the rest of the ingredients, except for the chopped parsley into the mixing bowl. Whisk vigorously to blend evenly.
  
• Store the dressing in an airtight glass container with a lid in the fridge and use it in the following week.
• Chopp parsley into small pieces and store in another airtight container with a lid in the fridge.
• Mix the dressing with the chopped parsley on the go.
  

Notes

• Crushed red chili pepper is optional, but adds another layer of taste and color. If you are fond of spicy food, add up to 1 tsp or to the taste.
• A compact food processor is a handy tool for tasks such as mincing garlic. Freshly minced garlic tastes so wonderfully. Alternatively, you can substitute it with garlic powder.
• A spice grinder is another handy kitchen gadget to turn whole spices into powdered form.

Recommended Products

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  Amazon Brand - Happy Belly Raw Wildflower Honey, 32 oz (Previously Solimo) (Packaging May Vary)
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  Organic Red Chili Pepper Crushed
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  Soeos Whole Black Peppercorns 18OZ + Himalayan Salt 38oz + Grinders 2 Packs.
• 
  HQOExpress | Oregano Medium Cut Organic | 5 oz. Chef Jar
• 
  Organic Himalayan Pink Salt
• 
  Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 
  Organics Red Wine Vinegar

Nutrition Information

Yield 6 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 96Total Fat 1gSaturated Fat 0gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 0mgSodium 596mgCarbohydrates 5gFiber 0gSugar 1gProtein 0g

Nutrition calculation is provided by Nutritionix to the best knowledge per ingredients description and isn't always accurate.

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