Do you want to create a delicious nutty vinaigrette dressing for your salad? Look no further than pistachio dressing. It’s delicious, beautiful, and packed with nutrients.
Why you will love Pistachio Vinaigrette recipe
Nutrient-packed and full of healthy fats & Great texture
Unlike many salad vinaigrettes that are fully liquid-based, this pistachio vinaigrette recipe provides extra nutrients that green salad alone might miss, imparting the nutty flavour to the vinaigrette and providing some substantial proteins. This tangy pistachio dressing ticks all the boxes in delicious flavour and taste, nutrients and aesthetics.
Going well with vegetables
It pairs well with a variety of vegetables. The pistachio dressing can be used in in side green vegetables as a side as well as salads.
Main Ingredients for Pistachio Vinaigrette
Pistachio Nuts:
Pistachios are rich in nutrients. Compared to many other nuts such as almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, and walnuts, pistachios have lower calories and higher protein content per serving. If you want to find out more about this healthy nut, read this article. This is especially great for vegans or on meat-free days or a bit more substantial salad, so it’s something to consider.
Roast the nuts in the oven or air fryer at around 160-170°C until lightly toasted. The nutty flavor intensifies when roasted. It will take around 8-15 minutes, depending on the type of your oven. Make sure to roast them slowly at lower heat without burning them. Once roasted, allow them to cool down before using.
Red Wine Vinegar:
Red wine vinegar is the best option for this recipe due to its tangy and bold flavour. I also find a little sweet-tasting sherry vinegar or fruity-flavour apple cider vinegar as good substitutes for red wine vinegar. I recommend you use high-quality vinegar to create a delicious vinaigrette, as vinaigrette relies on two key ingredients: oil and vinegar. In this recipe, I used my own enzyme-rich homemade red wine vinegar.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVO)
A good quality olive oil, especially extra virgin olive oil, is essential for making a delicious and healthy salad or salad vinaigrettes. Extra virgin olive oil is a top-grade olive oil made by a cold-press method. This means that the oil is extracted from the first milling of olives while maintaining a temperature of less than 27° (80.6 ° F) through mechanical devices, without using heat or chemical extraction. Due to this extraction method, EVO is packed with many healthful compounds such as polyphenols and antioxidants. Read the article to find out more about this precious liquid.
Maple Syrup, Molasse or Honey
Maple syrup, molasses, or honey Sweeteners such as maple syrup or honey can balance out the acidic flavour of vinegar. It is not a must, but adding a liquid-based sweetener can create a well-balanced, glossy salad.
Asparagus or any other cruciferous vegetables
Cruciferous vegetables are a perfect pairing with this amazingly nutty, tasty, and healthy dressing full of goodness. For this recipe, I blanched asparagus in salted boiling water for about 30 seconds, then quickly soaked them in an ice bath to stop them from cooking further and from turning brown, to retain the vivid green colour of the asparagus.
What to eat Pistachio vinaigrette with
This vinaigrette goes well with any kind of fresh salad. I also find that it pairs best with cruciferous vegetables such as asparagus, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, or broccoli. In this recipe, I used the dressing with blanched asparagus, but feel free to serve it with any kind of cruciferous vegetables as follows:
- Roasted or deep-fried Brussel sprouts
- Steamed broccoli
- Roasted cauliflowers
Ingredients
- Roasted pistachios, chopped 1/2 cup
- Red wine vinegar: 3 tbs
- Extra virgin Olive oil: 1/3 cup
- Honey, molasses or maple syrup: 2 tbs
- Salt and pepper to season
- Asparagus:1 bunch
Instructions
Step 1 - Roasting pistachio
Roast the pistachios at 160°C (320°F) in a preheated oven until they are lightly golden brown. Allow them to cool before roughly chopping them for the dressing.
Step 2 - Preparing Asparagus
Blanch the asparagus in boiling, salted water for a short time. Then, place them in cold or ice water to stop further cooking and prevent discoloration.
Step 3 - Making Dressing
After the roasted pistachios have cooled, chop them roughly. Then, in a mixing bowl, combine the chopped nuts with olive oil, vinegar, and maple syrup or your choice of sweetener. Finally, season with salt and pepper to your taste.
Step 4 - Plating
