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Chapter 8: Salad Dressings


Fats and Oils
Pages 101-107
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/9780913250907.008
ISBN: 0-913250-90-2






Abstract

Topics Covered

  • Pourable Salad Dressings
    • Composition
    • Oil Characteristics
    • Emulsifiers and Thickeners
  • Spoonable Salad Dressings
    • Mayonnaise
    • Starch-Based Dressings
  • Troubleshooting

Introduction to Chapter

A 17th century cookbook, referring to the preparation of “salattes,” admonishes the chef to “be not too generous with the vinegar, nor yet too sparing with the oil.” The cruet set, a pair of containers for wine vinegar and salad oil, is still found, but pourable salad dressings today are sold preformulated, containing all the flavorings and additional ingredients in one bottle. Spoonable salad dressings, in their original concept, were not intended for salads. Mayonnaise (created for the Comte de Mayonne) was used as a sauce on seafoods such as lobster and shrimp. Today its main use is in potato, tuna, and chicken salads, in tartar sauce, and as a substitute for butter or margarine in sandwiches.