Before we talk about this Green Chile Salad Dressing, let’s talk about the advantages of making homemade salad dressing. Salad dressings are the easiest things to make from scratch and dressings made at home are so much better than what you pay $5 a bottle for at the grocer, plus you can control what goes in them. All you need in your pantry are a few different types of vinegars, a couple of good oils, some herbs and spices. Other possible ingredients include mustard, mayonnaise, horseradish, buttermilk, yogurt, and my favorites – lemon and lime juice. Here are the rules that I follow for making salad dressings, along with some ideas for creating your own.
A spicy vinaigrette made with green chile powder, mustard, lime and herbs. Great for a variety of salads, but really good an apple celery salad*. This recipe makes about 1/4 cup of dressing which is enough for a salad for two people.
Course: Salad, Sauces & Dressings
Recipe Author: MJ of MJ's Kitchen
- 1 tsp. honey or maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp. yellow mustard
- juice from half a lime
- 1 tsp. water
- 1/2 tsp. mild green chile powder*
- 1/8 tsp. crushed dried oregano
- 3 Tbsp. canola oil* or to taste
- 1 tsp. minced cilantro* (optional)
- pinch of salt
- In a small bowl, whisk together the honey (or maple syrup), lime juice, mustard and water.
- Add the green chile powder and oregano. Whisk.
Slowing add the oil, whisking, creating an emulsion.
- Taste for acidity level. If the dressing is too acidic for you, add a touch more oil.
- Add a pinch of salt and the minced cilantro. Whisk.
- Use immediately. If the dressing sits too long, it becomes too thick because the chile powder starts to rehydrate. If this happens, whisk in water 1 tsp. at a time until the right consistency is reached.
Mustard – Use Dijon is you prefer. Even though I’m not a fan of yellow mustard, I find it works better in this vinaigrette.
Green Chile Powder – Green chile powder is not a very common ingredient, but it can be found online from some of our New Mexico suppliers. I find it a necessary spice.
Oil – Any light oil will work with this salad dressing. Sometimes I’ll use a light tasting olive oil with great results.
Cilantro – Parsley or lovage are good substitutes.
Green Chile Salad Dressing was originally created for an Apple and Celery Salad. It was also included in the salad’s post for a few years. However, I felt that both the salad and the salad dressing needed their own space because of the versatility of the vinaigrette. I have used this vinaigrette on several different salads as well as slaws. Below are a few suggestions, but I challenge you to come up with some creations of your own.
