This creamy honey Dijon dressing is my new favorite. Not too sweet and not too spicy, well-balanced flavors are what makes this dressing a winner!
As I’m growing a human being inside me, I’m trying not to live on just carbs (POTATOEEES!!), sugar, chocolate, ice cream, etc. I’m actually doing my best to incorporate more greens in my diet. It’s not an easy task, you know, when your body craves all things deep-fried, bacon, cakes and cheesecakes. It’s a constant battle, I tell ya!
Well anyway, I recently made my favorite salad dressing from scratch. Yep, you guessed it right, honey Dijon dressing! It turned out so good that I was actually looking forward to my daily salad fix, which, of course, is usually followed by whatever sweets I’m craving at the moment. Life is all about balance, right?
Why you’ll love this honey dijon dressing:
The beauty of this dressing is its simplicity and perfect balance between the flavors. There is not one flavor really stands out in this super easy salad dressing. Let’s talk details…
For this recipe, I’m using grapeseed oil instead of olive oil. Unlike olive oil, grapeseed oil is much milder in taste, which helps to highlight the Dijon mustard flavor.
Raw honey is again my all-time favorite ingredient. As I mentioned here, I always specify raw honey in my recipes, because the sweetness level may vary between raw honey and processed honey. Depending on what kind of honey you have, you might need more or less of it. Taste test and go from there.
Let’s talk about rice vinegar. Compared to regular white wine vinegar, rice vinegar is milder, which is why I chose it for this recipe. Again, I’m after well-balanced salad dressing here. Not overly sweet and not overly tangy.
Hot question: what’s the difference between rice wine vinegar, rice vinegar, seasoned rice vinegar and rice wine? Basically, rice wine vinegar = rice vinegar. They’re the same thing. Period. Seasoned rice vinegar is rice vinegar with added sugar and salt. It’s usually used to season sushi rice. (Remember, my homemade sushi roll recipe? Yeah, that’s where we need this stuff.) And lastly, rice wine (such as Mirin) shouldn’t be used for rice wine vinegar. As the name implies, it’s wine, not vinegar. Easy, right?
Now, that you’ve got all the ingredients, just shake everything in a mason jar and you’ve got yourself some tasty dressing!
Here is to more green salads in our life with winner dressing!
If you love homemade salad dressings, try this easy Greek dressing or Spinach Arugula Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette as well!
Honey Dijon Dressing
Ingredients
- ½ cup 120ml grapeseed oil
- ½ cup raw honey
- ¼ cup rice vinegar aka rice wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon mustard seeds
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a mason jar, combine all the ingredients except mustard seeds, salt and pepper.
- Put the lid on and shake until the mixture is well combined (aka emulsified). Stir in mustard seeds and salt and pepper to taste.
I halved the recipe and made this dressing to go with a Brussel sprout salad I made based off the Sweet & Savory one. (I made a lot of modifications to the salad per what I had on hand) The dressing was delicious and could be use in many salads.
So happy you enjoyed it. Thank you for your feedback, Faith!
I thought I had grape seed oil but didn’t so I substituted a high quality olive oil and it was really good just like that. My wife is usually picky on dressings and she loved it. Thanks for the awesome new recipe!
Hi, Paul! Yes, olive oil works great too! I’ll add that note in my recipe. Thanks for reminding!! And I’m so happy you and your wife loved the dressing! I appreciate you feedback!
This is a very good dressing. Perfect with shaved Brussels sprout salads.
Thank you, Doreen.
I no longer buy ANY salad dressings or mayonnaise. Tried this tonight. Very nice, although a bit sweeter than I usually use, but nice for something different. Thank you for sharing.
Awesome, glad you liked the dressing Gwynn! Feel free to adjust amount for honey next time. 😉 Thank you for your feedback.
This dressing is amazing! We made it tonight and my 6 year old son would have been drinking it if I let him. He kept eating more salad (3 servings) just so he could have more dressing! Thanks for a new favorite dressing recipe. I know i will be using this one again a lot!
It made my day, Kati! So happy your son loved the dressing. It’s always great to see the kids eat more salad. 🙂 Thanks for trying my recipe and your comment!
I always make my own salad dressings! I’m going to have to try this one with rice vinegar!
Thanks, Michelle. Would love to know your feedback, if you give it a try.
I love home made salad dressings! This one looks delicious!!
Thanks, Jessica!
This dressing looks really good. I love salads and we’ve been eating a lot of them lately. We’ve been using the store bought honey mustard and like it pretty good. But homemade is always better and u bet with the Dijon mustard it would have a little spice to it. Will have to give it a try. Thanks! Pinning!
Thanks, Linda. Yes, homemade is always better.
This sounds so yummy! Pinned. Can’t wait to try.
Thank you, Malia!
I generally don’t love store bought dressings so I typically just make a vinaigrette at home. But, I need to expand my homemade dressing ideas and this one looks perfect!
Yeah, give this recipe a try and let me know what you think. It’s my new fave! Thanks, Liz!