Healthy and flavorful dressing perfect for summer salads
- Carbohydrate 4.66119000548434 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 9.01284585920556 g
- Fiber 0.0709999995248465 g
- Protein 0.0818783333783123 g
- Saturated Fat 1.24421750357233 g
- Serving Size 1 1 serving (21g)
- Sodium 97.6498333342191 mg
- Sugar 4.59019000595949 g
- Trans Fat 0.248315417369157 g
- Calories 97 calories
Step-by-step
- Place the jalapeno pepper, garlic clove, and ginger into a food processor or blender; pulse until the jalapeno and garlic are finely chopped.
- Pour in the lime juice, honey, balsamic vinegar, and salt, add the cilantro leaves; pulse a few times to blend.
- Turn the food processor or blender on, and slowly drizzle in the olive oil until incorporated into the dressing.
- Season to taste with salt before serving.
Why does the oil refuse to incorporate until that exact final moment in the blender? Acid and fat naturally repel one another, requiring mechanical force to shatter the oil into microscopic droplets suspended within the lime juice and honey. Coarsely chopping the fibrous ginger, garlic, and jalapeno first in the food processor ensures those solid cell walls break down completely before any liquids dilute the blades' cutting efficiency.
Drizzling the extra-virgin olive oil in a slow, pencil-thin stream while the machine runs continuously is the singular mechanic that forces temporary emulsion stability. Pouring the oil too quickly overwhelms the shearing capacity of the blades, resulting in a broken mixture where the heavy fat separates from the aqueous citrus juice within minutes of resting.
Balsamic vinegar provides a subtle acetic backbone that counterbalances the assertive sweetness of the honey without dominating the fresh herbaceous notes of the cilantro leaves. Removing the white pith and seeds from the jalapeno prior to blending eliminates most of the capsaicin, leaving behind bright vegetal fruitiness rather than burning heat that would otherwise mask the delicate aromatics.
Dietary adaptations require no structural recipe changes since the base ingredients are naturally free of dairy, gluten, and animal products. Storing the finished dressing in a sealed glass jar in the refrigerator for up to five days allows the garlic compounds to mellow, though vigorous shaking is required before each use to re-suspend the settled oil phase.
