- Christina Applegate loves a simple olive oil, Dijon mustard, garlic and lemon vinaigrette.
- The actress says her version of the classic dressing is inspired by salads she ordered in France.
- Applegate loves serving hers with a beet salad, but any salad would pair well with it.
Whether you lean on popular salad greens like spinach and romaine or lesser-known leaves like escarole and endive, it can be lots of fun whipping up new salads in the kitchen. Add in the perfect salad toppings and a really good dressing, and it’s easy to see why fans of leafy greens find salads anything but boring. Just ask Dead to Me actor Christina Applegate, who recently shared her favorite easy-to-make salad dressing. Spoiler alert: It’s only four ingredients, and it sounds delicious.
While chatting with actor Jamie-Lynn Sigler on their podcast, MeSsy, Applegate was quick to dish on the salad dressing she makes all the time when cooking at home. “I make this dressing, it’s the French Dijon vinaigrette that they have in all French restaurants when you go to France,” said Applegate. “Your side salad always has that dressing on it. I taught myself how to make it.”
“If you ever want to make the vinaigrette it’s olive oil, Dijon mustard, garlic and lemon, and that’s it,” Applegate continued. “You don’t even need salt and pepper because the Dijon has a bite to it and the lemon’s got a sour note. Then you put it into a [blender or food processor] to give it viscosity—it’s so easy and so delicious.”
Applegate’s go-to dressing sounds a lot like one of our salad dressing favorites, Garlic-Dijon Vinaigrette, a recipe that only takes about 10 minutes to make and doesn’t even require a food processor. To make it, combine ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil, ¼ cup lemon juice, ¼ cup red wine vinegar, two tablespoons Dijon mustard, four minced garlic cloves, salt and pepper in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake the mixture right in the jar until it’s emulsified and serve.
Whichever version of this tasty vinaigrette you make, there are lots of health benefits to the ingredients. Olive oil can support heart and bone health and reduce inflammation and garlic is great for supporting the immune system and promoting a healthy gut.
An added bonus to Applegate’s podcast dressing discussion? The Married With Children alum shared one of the salads she loves to pour her vinaigrette over. “The beet salad was delicious,” she shared. “It’s really easy, but it’s freakin’ delicious and we just roast the beets and put that in there with pistachios and chiffonade kale and stuff, and it’s really good.”
We’re big fans of beet salad, from Beet Salad With Goat Cheese & Balsamic Vinaigrette to Strawberry-Beet Salad (both would be great with Applegate’s dressing subbed in). And, since beets can help improve things like blood pressure, athletic performance and inflammation, beet salad is a great dish to add to your arsenal of go-to meals.
But Applegate wasn’t the only star to share their go-to dressing recipe on the podcast. Sigler chimed in, too, with a concoction of her own. “Can I share with you a dressing that I make?” Sigler asked. “Olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper and a little bit of honey.”
“I’ll chop up an apple,” Sigler added. “I’ll chop up some cucumber, bell peppers, feta cheese and avocado, and throw that dressing on top.”
Whether you’re more into Sigler’s cool and crisp side salad option or would prefer to go the beet route, a stunning salad dressing can take any salad up a notch. Check out some of our favorites for a little inspiration.
