Fast Fridays: 3 Quick Tips & Salad Dressing Ideas

I often bring lunch to work, and in the summer (as I mentioned earlier this week), I like to bring salads. You probably already know that it’s best to bring dressing along with you instead of pre-dressing the salad, lest it get soggy before lunchtime.

I have a great salad box that has a little built-in dressing dispenser, but when it’s in with the dirty dishes, I often find a small bottle or something to mix my dressing in. In this case, you’ll see (left) that I’ve taken a small plastic single-serving wine bottle and turned it into my dressing bottle. That’s tip #1: use a small, separate bottle for your dressing.

Tip #2: don’t overdress your salad, and be sure to give it a good shake. Did you know that the serving size for dressing for a single person should be 1 to 2 Tbsp? That’s half to a whole ping-pong ball. Have you seen the size of those dressing packets in restaurants? They’re like 3 times as much! At that rate, you might as well have a burger, considering how many calories you may be ingesting. Don’t overdress your salad. Pour in about a Tbsp, and then give your salad a good shake. If you have your salad in a container with a lid, just close it and give it a good shake. if you’re at home, use some plastic wrap. You’ll be surprised what a difference good distribution makes when it comes to how much you taste your dressing.

Tip #3: Think outside the box for dressing flavors and make your own dressings. A lot of commercial dressings are either high in calories or high in sodium. Dressing’s don’t have to be complicated. Just dig in your fridge for flavors you like. For the dressing pictured, I’m using soba noodle base and a little sesame oil–an idea from my mom. It gives my salad an Asian-inspired flavor and is low in calories. Think about what flavors you enjoy. If you like bright citrus flavors, use lemon juice, olive oil, and herbs. If you like sweet and tangy flavors, use spicy mustard, a dollop of honey, a little vinegar and oil. Like sour, creamy flavors? Yogurt can be a good base. Like falafel? Try tahini, a little oil, and a dash of hot sauce for an unconventional dressing.

What’s your favorite salad dressing? Leave a comment and share!

Update: Because of the website reformat, I’ve lost some of the photos on the site including the ones that used to be above.