Emulsions and Vinaigrettes

by RogerMay 11, 2021

On today’s episode we tackle one of the fundamental concepts in cooking: emulsions. A good emulsion is the key to dozens of common recipes including mayonnaise, Hollandaise sauce, peanut butter, whipped cream, and of course vinaigrettes. Because they are the easiest emulsion to master, we’ll spend some time talking about methods and recipes for vinaigrettes.

Mentioned in this Episode

There is a lot of information on the internet regarding emulsions. If you want to do a little more reading into the science behind emulsification, I would recommend this article from Cook’s Illustrated as a starting point. Of course Wikipedia is always a good place to check too.

When making vinaigrettes you have many options as to what oils and vinegars to use. This article from The Culinary Cook gives a basic run-down of some options. When you are ready to venture into more interesting pairings, Food and Wine has you covered.

“Emulsifiers” can help you produce a nicer, longer-lasting emulsion. The good news is that there are many common emulsifiers readily available to the home cook. A few of the most common are mustard (either prepared or powder), egg yolk, garlic paste and tomato paste. Here is a nice list of emulsifiers that you can check out.

Here is a quick illustration of what an emulsifier can do. I took two mason jars. In the first (the jar on the left) I added one tablespoon of vinegar, a dash of soy sauce for color, and three tablespoons of vegetable oil. In the second jar (the jar on the right) I added all that plus a teaspoon of yellow mustard. I shook them both up for about 30 seconds then set them on the counter.

Both jars have oil and vinegar. The right jar also has mustard (an emulsifier).

Here are some vinaigrette recipes to get you started:
Martha Stewart’s standard Balsamic Vinaigrette.
A Spicy Asian Vinaigrette from the Food Network.
How about a Smoky Barbecue Vinaigrette?
Round things out with a nice refreshing Lemon Garlic Vinaigrette.