I don’t think America will have really made it until we have our own salad dressing. Until then we’re stuck behind the French, Italians, Russians and Caesarians.
Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β Β ~Pat McNelis
Ok. So we all know that recipe.
If we donβt know one, we know of one.
The recipe everyone wants. That thing you made for a party one time that somehow became your legacy. The one thing that seems to resonate with everyone that tries it, even people who are not keen to having such delights. This recipe has the power to make you popular, which would have been awesome some 15 years ago, but now that you know better itβs a bit of a let down. It may have been handed down for generations; possibly found in a bottle floating in the Mediterranean or maybe it was just off of some blogβ¦ No one really knows but you, and since people act like this is the recipe that can spark love, cure diseases and save the world, you can look forward to getting stuck having to make it all the time.
All. The. Time.
Case in point: Look at the comment in my last post by my sister, asking for this recipe. I speak the truth!
Now, Iβm not bragging or anything, but I have 3 or 4 of said recipes. A burden, I know. Iβve acquired and mentally recorded them from various places and times in my life, like any good cook would do. Trust me, Iβll let you know when Iβm giving you one of these bad boys, so donβt fret about missing them. This one in particular though is special because it was one of the first recipes I ever learned in my career. And even back then the wetness behind my ears didnβt stop me from knowing that this was a keeper.
It may be hard to comprehend why itβs such a big deal, but once you taste it, youβll understand that this is no ordinaryβ¦ salad dressing.
Yes, yes. I said salad dressing. Wai.. Wait! Come on, hear me out, give it a chance.
This dressing – or, The Sauce, as I like to refer to it – is practically liquid gold. Ever since the first time I made it and tasted it, the dancing it did on my taste buds made me feel like a kid again. The sweetness that it packs is front and center, but it can’t mask the peppery kick that really brings it home. So simple, yet so rich and enticing, I wouldnβt be surprised if youβre disappointed itβs not part of the main course.
Itβs perfect for salads but could also be used for dipping fried shrimp or spring rolls, the dressing in chicken or fish wraps, or my favorite place to splatter it, inside quesadillas. There are so many uses for this nectar of the Gods, using it just for salads would be doing it an injustice. Although, it is a vinaigrette at heart, which means it does have limits. Like donβt go trying to heat it up or anything, itβll just end in you crying over a messy pan.
So here I am, giving it to you. I hope you appreciate it the way I have, and I hope you enjoy it. I know you’re probably thinking I’m building this up too much. Already counting on The Sauce being a disappointment or that you’re not going to be skilled enough to make it. Well, first, The Sauce will never disappoint anybody, so never doubt it again! And secondly, it’s so easy to make, it’s stupid…
Chili Lime Vinaigrette (The Sauce)
If you’ve never used Sweet Thai Chili Sauce before, you’re in for a treat. The sweetness it has along with the spiciness from the chili are reasons to have it pumping into your blood stream. It comes in a bottle that looks like this:
I’ve bought tiny, 6 oz bottles of this in the regular grocery store’s ethnic aisle for a gut wrenching $7 or so. But here’s a tip…
If you live near a fairly big city, odds are you have a Little Saigon, or at the least an Asian marketΒ somewhere in your area. My advice is to find it (which you should have done already), casually stroll into one of the numerous markets you’ll find bustling with culture (seriously, you haven’t done this?!), and find a bottle with stuff that looks like what’s pictured above for a whopping $4. Where I lived in Orlando, we had an entire district full of restaurants and markets just 5 minutes down the street. It’s a community rich with culture, diversity and food that I did not take advantage of like I should have.
Now that you know what you’re looking for and where to find it, you have no excuse.
To make it, I highly recommend a food processor or stick blender for this. Or even a regular blender, it doesnβt matter. It can be done by hand, and itβll taste exactly the same, but you wonβt get the desired emulsion and it will always separate, causing you to shake it up before each use. Plus if you do it by hand, youβll have to chop the garlic and cilantro with a knife, and nobody likes manual laborβ¦
So Iβm assuming you have a food processor or at least a blender. Hereβs what you do:
- Rip off half a bunch of cilantro and wash it! The stuffΒ I’veΒ seen come off of cilantro is no laughing matter. After itβs washed, throw it in the machine with the garlic cloves and chop it up.
- Once itβs all chopped, add the chili sauce, lime juice, and sugar. It should look something like this:
- Turn on the food processor and sloooooooowly add the oil. A nice thin drizzle till itβs all gone. Then a pinch of salt and pepper andβ¦ Thatβs it!
Taste it to see if it needs more salt and pepper, but other than that, itβs finished.Β
If you need somewhere to put it just pour it back into an empty oil container. I always make enough that uses a whole bottle of oil so in there it goes, or you can give it away in mason jars if you need new friends. Store it in the fridge for about 2 weeks. If it lasts that long.
Good right? Easy? I know. Now, stop embarrassing yourself, and take the straw out of food processor. No oneβs around, huh? Ok, fine. At least unplug the damn thing.
u….i got as far as finding the thai chilisauce. ughhhhhhhh…it's been a long week.
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