The One Dressing Formula Worth Memorising

You don't need a different recipe for every salad, you need one dressing formula that works on almost anything, so a salad becomes a five-minute decision instead of a production. This is also the piece that makes the food order idea practical day to day, vegetables dressed well are what you actually want to eat first, before the protein and carbs that follow.

The formula

• 3 parts extra virgin olive oil (or blended avocado, tahini, or plain yoghurt, if you'd rather keep it oil-free)
• 1 part acid (lemon juice, or a vinegar you like)
• A small spoon of something with extra body (mustard, or a little tahini)
• Salt, to taste

How to make it

Whisk or shake it all together until it comes together into a proper dressing. That ratio holds whether you're dressing leafy greens, a bowl of chopped vegetables, or something warm like roasted vegetables, adjust the acid up if it tastes flat. If you're using the avocado, tahini, or yoghurt version instead of oil, loosen it with a splash of water until it's pourable.

A note on the oil

Extra virgin olive oil is the right choice here because this is a cold dressing, not a cooking oil. It's meant to be poured over food, not heated, olive oil isn't for frying or high-heat cooking, but it's exactly what a dressing is for.

Why keep a jar of this on hand

Make a batch that lasts the week, it keeps in the fridge for several days, and having it ready removes the single biggest reason vegetables get skipped on a busy day, nobody wants to build a dressing from scratch at 6pm. Keep a bag of washed greens and this jar in the fridge and a vegetable-first plate becomes the easy option instead of the effortful one.

One formula, five minutes, and vegetables stop being the thing you have to talk yourself into.