Dressings

A dressing has the ability to bring a salad to life. It not only adds flavour and texture, it can often unify a sometimes disparate selection of ingredients, whether they be fresh vegetables, beans, grains, nuts, pasta or noodles. The best dressings shouldn’t mask or dominate a salad but enhance the main ingredients and bring out their flavour.

For me, you can’t beat a simple dressing of extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice and a touch of sea salt. It’s also the perfect foundation for other additions, such as herbs, spices, citrus zest, mustard and honey. With any dressing, it’s best to use the highest-quality ingredients you can afford, so for starters it pays to splash out on a good bottle of extra virgin olive oil and wine vinegar. It’s also worth experimenting with different types of oil, including nut and avocado oil, as well as vinegar, including balsamic and sherry.