Eating healthy? Here are 3 delicious homemade salad dressings made with simple ingredients to toss your salads in

Ditch store-bought salad dressings and instead try to make yummy and healthy dressings at home – they are quick and easy, made with simple ingredients.

Salad is a go-to choice for many when it comes to healthy eating. It is as balanced as it gets, with a mix of leafy greens, proteins, and cooked or raw vegetables. Salad is typically uncooked, and the fresh ingredients are free from heavy spices to retain their nutritional value, which is often lost during cooking on heat. So to infuse flavour, salad is tossed in dressing.

Salad dressing is a kind of sauce, a mixed liquid of condiment that further elevates the flavour profile along with the natural freshness of uncooked, boiled or lightly seared (chicken/fish) ingredients.

Other than boosting the flavour, it also adds more moisture to the ingredients. Mostly since salad is uncooked, it is also dry. But dressing adds that moisture which makes salad palatable.

Since you are already eating healthy, why go for store-bought dressing? The store-bought dressings usually are highly refined with lots of sugar, oil and salt; completely ruining the purpose of salads. Most importantly, store-bought dressings have a higher shelf life due to additives and preservatives. Whereas the homemade salad dressings are natural with a low shelf-life of 4-7 days when stored in the refrigerator. Here are some healthy homemade salad dressings you can try:

Salad dressing with paneer and curd

Tanya Jajodia shared a salad recipe which is packed with protein from paneer and probiotics from curd. Yes, even salad dressing can be nutritious and include proteins like paneer. This also helps you meet the daily protein requirement more organically. Furthermore, this salad dressing is refreshing with coriander. The cashews impart a nutty, scrumptious and creamy addition to fresh veggies.

Ingredients:

• Paneer
• Soaked cashews
• Thick curd
• Salt
• Seasoning (chilli flakes and oregano)
• Coriander

Method:

• In a blender, add paneer cubes, and soft cashews which were soaked, and curd. Then add salt as per taste, and seasoning of choice.
• After grinding to a fine paste, add freshly chopped coriander.
• Evenly spread onto your salad and mix well.

Salad dressing with chickpea

Tanya Jajodia's series of healthy homemade salad dressing recipes includes all the superfoods that make the dressing as healthy as the salad itself. This time she used chickpea for a hummus (middle-eastern savoury dip) inspired salad dressing. Chickpea is a great source of fibre.

Ingredients:

• Boiled chickpea
• Ice cube
• Salt
• Garlic
• Chilli flakes
• Mixed herbs
• Water
• Olive oil

Method:

• In a blender, add all the ingredients and grind it a creamy consistency. Pour it on the salad.

Salad with caramelized onions

Salad doesn't have to be boring! You can also include components that may be a little bit cooked. This dressing, made with caramelized onion, adds a delicious twist with a roasted flavour. Much like there was a hero ingredient in the previous recipe, this recipe Tanya Jajodia shared had onions as the hero ingredient. Onions are loaded with antioxidants.

Ingredients:

• Paneer
• Curd
• Salt
• Mixed herbs
• Onions
• Chilli flakes
• Oregano
• Salt
• Olive oil
• Coriander leaves

Method:

• In a blender, add curd, paneer, salt and mixed herbs. Blend it well.
• In a pan with heated olive oil, add chopped onions along with seasonings. Saute it until they turn golden brown.
• Now to the previous mixture, add the caramelised onions and freshly chopped coriander. Mix well and serve with salad.