Bursting with flavour, this bright and tangy Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette will wake up and shake up even the simplest of salads. Made with oil-packed sundried tomatoes and a handful of pantry ingredients, this deliciously easy dressing comes together quickly to perk up a busy weeknight dinner, or to wow weekend dinner party guests.
We eat a lot of salads at our house, and I refuse to let them be boring! This richly flavoured sundried tomato vinaigrette brings even the simplest green salad to life. Made with fresh and natural ingredients, this vinaigrette delivers all the robust flavour of a store-bought dressing, but without added chemicals or preservatives, making it both a delicious choice AND a healthy choice. .
What is in Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette?
Whirl just a handful of pantry ingredients through the blender or mini food processor to make this zesty dressing.
- Sundried Tomatoes: For this recipe, use sundried tomatoes that are sold packed in oil. Jars of oil-packed sundried tomatoes are sold in the deli section, or in the pickle aisle of most grocery stores, Drain the sundried tomatoes well before adding them to the recipe. You can also use dry-packed sundried tomatoes, but you will need to rehydrate them first as they will be tough and chewy right out of the bag. See the Recipe Notes section below for rehydrating instructions.
- Red Wine Vinegar: Sundried tomatoes offer a lot of acidity to this dressing, so just a little vinegar is required. Red wine vinegar offers just enough rich, tart flavour to compliment the tomato flavours.
- Dijon Mustard: Dijon adds savoury flavour and helps emulsify the vinaigrette.
- Honey: Honey adds just enough sweetness to offset the acidity of the tomatoes and vinegar, for a perfectly balanced dressing.
- Seasonings: Dried oregano, basil, fresh garlic and salt all add punches of flavour. Fresh oregano and basil can also be used if you have it, but you will need about twice as much of the fresh herbs as the dried to deliver a robust, herby flavour.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Use a good quality olive oil since the flavour will shine through in the vinaigrette.
- Water: The sundried tomatoes in this recipe make the dressing very thick. Thinning the dressing with just olive oil makes for a very heavy vinaigrette. Lighten things up by adding 1/3 cup of water. If the dressing is still too thick for your liking, you can add additional water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until your desired consistency is reached.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
There are so many uses for this versatile vinaigrette! Keep a jar in your fridge for tossing with greens, drizzling over grain bowls or slathering on a sandwich. Sundried Tomato vinaigrette is the perfect dressing for pasta salad and bean salad. Serve it as a sauce for chicken or fish, or drizzle it lavishly over steamed vegetables. Add it to a charcuterie board for dipping veggies and bread, or for slathering on meats. For an unexpected twist on shrimp cocktail, serve Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette alongside a platter of juicy, roasted shrimp.
Sundried Tomato Vinaigrette
Keep a jar of this richly flavoured vinaigrette in the fridge to add a punch of flavour to salads, chicken and fish!
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup sliced oil packed sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 small clove garlic, chopped
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/2 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Add the sun-dried tomatoes, red wine vinegar, dijon, honey, oregano, basil, garlic, salt and water to a blender or small food processor. Blend until smooth, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Turn off the blender and scrape down the sides. With the blender or food processor on low speed, slowly drizzle in the olive oil through the opening in the lid. Blend until the dressing is emulsified. If you prefer a thinner dressing, add 1 Tbsp of water at a time until desired consistency is reached. Transfer the dressing to a jar with a tight fitting lid and store in the fridge for up to 1 week.
RECIPE NOTES
- Use good quality olive oil in salad dressings as the flavour will shine through.
- You can use dry-packed sundried tomatoes in this recipe if you don’t have a jar of oil packed sundried tomatoes, but you will need to rehydrate them first. To rehydrate the tomatoes, place them in a heat resistant bowl and add enough hot water to cover them by an inch. Soak the sundried tomatoes in the hot water for about 15 minutes, until they have plumped up. If the dry-packed tomatoes are older and are well, very dry – soak them for up to 30 minutes. (The drier the tomatoes, the longer they will need to soak.)
- Adding the oil very slowly with the blender running helps the vinaigrette to emulsify. (Dijon mustard also helps with emulsification, so be sure not to omit it.)
- Don’t overblend the dressing – some little flecks of sundried tomatoes in the dressing are nice.
