I never was a salad dressing fan growing up. I ate my salad naked– and I still enjoy it that way often. Especially if there is cheese, flavorful protein, or dried fruit. Sometimes, salads need a little spicing up. Homemade dressings, like this homemade Catalina salad dressing, are worth the extra 5 minutes they take to throw together.
We’ve been back from Thailand a couple of days now, and I am trying to organize how I am going to spend my time this summer. I know how quickly 7 weeks can go! I need to be productive, or I will never get through my to-do list. The last two days have been go-go-go, and I am not sure how much I have really done.
I did bring back another recipe from Thailand to post on here. I made it the first night back, but didn’t take photos. Once I have a chance to remake it, I will post some more pictures from our trip to Phuket along with it.
Homemade salad dressings have 2 advantages over store bought.
- They taste A MILLION times better.
- You control the ingredients.
Both are important to me- but I definitely am a fan of #2. I remember in college having a taco salad with an old roommate, and she put Catalina salad dressing on it. I had never used dressing on taco salad, but really like the sweet tang of that dressing on it. Recently, I googled recipes for Catalina- and up came a bunch of recipes made with ketchup, canola oil, and white sugar. While I do love ketchup, it’s something I eat in moderation, and can’t imagine pouring it over my salad. No thank you!
Contents
Catalina Salad Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup tomato paste
- 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons shallots roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon paprika
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a blender, and mix until shallots are pureed and the oil is emulsified.
Nutrition
What salad dressings do you buy store bought? Are there ingredients in there you would never cook with?
the colour looks a lot alike to Thai garlic chili sauce!!
That might be good on salad, too! I think Catalina is definitely an American thing. My Australian friend hadn’t heard of it.
Too much vinegar!!! I tried making it. $8 down the drain.
I am so sorry you didn’t enjoy it, Jessica! I will have to revisit this recipe — it was from 4 years ago and I haven’t made it in a really long time. Thanks for bringing that to my attention!