How to make sherry lime vinaigrette
Sherry lime vinaigrette is a delicious dressing for your salad or vegetables. The combination of sherry vinegar and tart lime juice not only makes this vinaigrette super tasty, it is very versatile.
This homemade vinaigrette with fresh lime juice is fresh and zingy, and it is great for meal prep recipes!
How to make lime vinaigrette with sherry vinegar
Making a homemade herb vinaigrette from scratch is actually one of the easiest things you can do with a handful of ingredients and five minutes.
There is only one general guideline and one you can easily commit to memory – 3:1 ratio.
Three parts oil to one part vinegar. If you don’t especially care for the flavor of sherry vinegar, add in extra lime juice and adjust the sweetness. Another option to reduce the vinegar is to make a vinaigrette with a 4:1 ratio.
The first step is blending all of your ingredients, except oil, together. Once you have a fairly smooth mixture, very slowly drizzle the oil into the vinegar in a slow, thin stream.
If you pour too quickly, the vinegar and oil have a difficult time emulsifying. If you do it slowly, it helps the mixture stay together better.
That’s all there is to it. Once you have the sherry lime vinaigrette blended together, give it a final taste for salt, sweetness and acidity. Adjust to your own personal tastes.
Ways to use sherry lime vinaigrette
When I make salad dressing, I usually make a vinaigrette. It is quick and easy, plus I can use it for other things as well as my salads.
It is a great marinade for grilled vegetables – Toss cut up zucchini, peppers, tomatoes and potatoes with a few tablespoons and roast or grill the veggies. It gives them a ton of flavor.
You can also use this sherry lime vinaigrette on fish, like corvina, or roasted chicken and vegetables. I wouldn’t let them marinate for a long time, but a splash of this dressing will take your chicken from bland to “holy cow that’s good”.
Why does vinaigrette separate?
Many people wonder why homemade vinaigrettes eventually separate, while some store-bought vinaigrettes do not.
Store-bought dressings have emulsifiers in them. Some of these are natural and some require a PhD in chemistry to figure out what they are.
Dry mustard and egg yolk are two examples of natural emulsifiers commonly found in foods like salad dressing.
Vinaigrettes are a temporary emulsion, versus a permanent emulsion, like mayonnaise.
Without getting super sciencey – an emulsion happens when one liquid is suspended inside of another liquid. In a temporary emulsion, like a vinaigrette, the oil will eventually rise to the top because it is less dense.
No matter how much whisking you do, they will eventually separate. It is absolutely normal and to be expected.
If your dressing has separated after a day or two in the fridge, it hasn’t gone bad, just give the jar a good shake and it’ll be good as new.
I hope you go forth and fill your fridge will all kinds of delicious combinations, like this orange ginger dressing.
What do I need to make salad dressing?
Here are a few helpful tools for making vinaigrettes, although they are useful for much more than making salad dressing.
- Immersion blender – My go to tool for blending dressings
- Vitamix blender – This is the blender I own. It’s spendy, but worth every cent.
- Balloon whisk – a well made, sturdy whisk is essential in the kitchen
- Cruet for dressing
Please share
If you love this recipe, please give it 5 stars!
Your shares help this site to grow and I appreciate it so much. Do you know someone who would like this? I’d love it if you would share it on Facebook or pin it to your favorite recipe board.
Please consider rating and/or commenting. I love hearing from you! Did you make this recipe? Tag me on instagram @pookspantry or share it in the Fabulous Foodie Friends Facebook group! I can’t wait to see your version!
More vinaigrette recipes
Sherry Lime Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 1 small shallot minced
- 3 tbsp honey or agave
- 1 sprig thyme chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt I use diamond crystal
- 5 tablespoons sherry vinegar
- 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 1/2 cups olive oil
Instructions
- Put all ingredients except the oil in the blender, or in a quart-size container.
- Blend on low speed until mixture is fairly smooth.
- Increase speed slightly and drizzle in the oil in a thin stream until it is fully incorporated.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Notes
Nutrition
Thanks for stopping by! Have a delicious day 🙂
Questions? Send me an email, I’m happy to help. I’d love to send you weekly tips and recipes, so you can get updates about what’s happening in the kitchen!
Hello! All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use my photos or recipe without prior written permission. Thank you!