Giada De Laurentiis Elevates Her Homemade Salad Dressing With This One Ingredient

More often than not, a salad seems incomplete without a tasty dressing to bring all the composite components together. Be it a rich and creamy dressing or a lighter vinaigrette, it's safe to say that any salad becomes instantly elevated from bland to brilliant simply by adding a dressing to the mix. Word on the street is that once you start making your own salad dressings, you'll never go back, which makes sense! Why spend money on store-bought dressings when you can make delicious dressings at home while having full control over the ingredients, at a fraction of the cost? It's no wonder that salad dressings are the condiment to avoid buying at the grocery store. 

When crafting your own dressing, it's good to have a few tricks up your sleeve to ensure delicious results. Something as simple as messing up the ratio of the ingredients can completely ruin the final result. That said, there are a number of ways to elevate your salad by incorporating more flavorsome spices and seasonings, and one such ingredient that chef Giada De Laurentiis uses in her homemade salad dressings is her lemon and oregano salt. What you'll have is the vibrant herbaceousness that is reminiscent of the Mediterranean coast.

According to a video posted to her Instagram, De Laurentiis makes her go-to vinaigrette by combining ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar (or white wine vinegar), 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon of sweetener, ½ cup of good-quality extra virgin olive oil, and ¾ teaspoon of lemon oregano salt. The resulting condiment is quite versatile, and you can use it to dress a salad, drizzle over a grain bowl or roasted veggies, or coat your choice of protein in.

For a taste of Giada De Laurentiis' culinary prowess, you can buy her own brand of this zesty lemon and oregano salt. However, making your own is pretty straightforward, and in no time, you will have a seasoning that you'll want to sprinkle over almost anything. De Laurentiis' product uses only three ingredients: dried salt, lemon, and oregano. So, if you're going the DIY route, all you need is the same set of ingredients. Just combine a cup of kosher salt, a quarter cup of fresh, de-stemmed oregano, and the zest of one lemon in a blender, and pulse until you achieve a uniform salt-like consistency. Since you're making your own batch, feel free to adjust the measurements to your taste preferences. Spread the mixture out evenly and allow it to air-dry for 24 hours before storing in an airtight container, and that's it! 

Making this seasoning blend is a great way to use up leftover lemon zest, and if you want to amp up the herbaceous notes, you can incorporate more herbs like rosemary, thyme, and sage. Fancy a little kick? Add some dried red chilies or chili flakes as well. It's safe to say that there is no shortage of ways to customize your lemon and oregano salt and create a variety of dressings that will bring some tasty nuance to your usual salads.