A homemade blackberry vinaigrette recipe is just what you need for fresh salad recipes, especially when blackberries are in season. Drizzle the tart and tangy dressing over your favorite salad greens, sandwiches, and hearty cheeses, or you can use it to marinate grilled bison, chicken, or steak.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Garlic: I recommend using two fresh garlic cloves, but measure with your heart.
- Blackberries: I love blackberries, and this dressing is a perfect recipe for using extra berries from berry picking or a grocery store deal. Fresh blackberries are in season from late spring through the end of summer, so the flavor of the dressing will vary depending on the ripeness of the berries you use. Ripe blackberries produce a sweeter dressing, whereas the less ripe berries make the dressing more tart, requiring honey to balance the flavor.
- Balsamic Vinegar: Adjust the vinaigrette’s flavor with tangy, aged balsamic vinegar (aged is the best because it has a sweeter flavor).
- Dijon Mustard: Dijon mustard adds creaminess to the dressing.
- Honey: Adding honey is a great way to offset the tartness of the blackberries if they are less ripe or if you enjoy a sweeter dressing.
- Olive Oil: Use extra virgin olive oil as a base for blackberry vinaigrette.
- Spices: Season the homemade dressing with salt and black pepper.
Additions and Substitutions
- Use fresh lemon juice, lime juice, red wine vinegar, white balsamic vinegar, or apple cider vinegar instead of balsamic vinegar.
- Replace the honey with maple syrup, agave nectar, or a sugar-free option like monk fruit for added sweetness.
- Include fresh herbs such as basil leaves, rosemary, or thyme.
Tools Used to Make This Recipe
You can use an immersion blender, food processor, or high-speed blender to make creamy blackberry vinaigrette. However, I highly recommend using an immersion blender when making salad dressings or sauces that require emulsification.
Use the tall cup provided with the immersion blender (or one of these meal prep containers) to ensure the blender works properly and to avoid a big mess. Transfer the leftover vinaigrette to a large liquid measuring cup so you can pour it through a fine mesh sieve to strain the blackberry seeds.
How to Make Blackberry Vinaigrette
The full recipe with measurements is in the recipe card below.
Step 1: Combine garlic and blackberries into a paste using an immersion blender, food processor, or blender.
Step 2: Add balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey (if using), salt, and black pepper. Combine until smooth.
Step 3: Pour the olive oil into a tall cup or a blender in a slow, steady stream, a little at a time, while blending or whisking the ingredients.
Step 4: Transfer the mixture to a liquid measuring cup and pour the dressing through a fine mesh sieve into an airtight container, discarding the seeds.
Expert Tips
- I recommend blending the ingredients, tasting, and then adjusting the salt, pepper, sweetener, oil, and vinegar until you find the perfect balance.
- Skip straining dressing if you don’t mind having blackberry seeds in the dressing.
Tips for Emulsification
What is Emulsification?
Emulsification is a fancy cooking term that describes combining ingredients that do not naturally mix, such as oil and vinegar, and making them stay together using an emulsifier.
What is an Emulsifier?
An emulsifier acts like a bridge between two opposing ingredients, holding them together in a smooth, stable mixture. The best emulsifiers contain water and oil-friendly properties to help the ingredients combine. The most common emulsifiers include egg yolks, mustard, mayonnaise, soybeans, honey, and xanthan gum.
How to Create a Stable Emulsification
If you want to learn how to make homemade vinaigrette, dressing, hollandaise sauce, aioli, or mayonnaise, then learning how to create a stable emulsification is key. Plus, it’s easier than you think!
- Choose an Emulsifier: Select an emulsifying ingredient based on what you are making.
- Combine the Ingredients: Mix the water-based ingredients, such as vinegar or lemon juice with an emulsifier.
- Slowly Add Oil: Add a few drops, then pour the oil gradually in a slow, steady stream while whisking or blending the ingredients. The gradual addition helps to achieve a stable emulsion (so the two liquids combine instead of separate).
- Adjust the Consistency: If the mixture gets too thick, add more water-based liquid to thin it out while continuing to mix.
If you enjoy the dressing, pair it with one of these healthy lunches!
Serving Suggestions
Use the homemade blackberry vinaigrette to dress a cucumber salad, vegetable chopped salad, or arugula spinach salad. Drizzle the delicious dressing over smoked brie or sliced goat cheese for charcuterie boards or a cheese board.
What to do with the Leftovers
- Refrigerate: Store the leftover vinaigrette in an airtight container like a mason jar for one week, and guess what? It taste even better the next day! However, the dressing will thicken once refrigerated because of the olive oil. I recommend removing it from the fridge 30 minutes before you need it, giving it a good stir.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use frozen blackberries to make the vinaigrette?
Use fresh or frozen blackberries to make the blackberry salad dressing. If using frozen berries, thaw them first. Frozen blackberries will produce a thinner dressing, so be ready to adjust the oil and vinegar accordingly.
More Dressing Recipes:
Blackberry Vinaigrette
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 package (6 ounces) blackberries, washed and rinsed
- ⅓ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey, optional
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Combine garlic and blackberries into a paste using an immersion blender, food processor, or blender.
- Add balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, honey (if using), salt, and black pepper. Combine until smooth.
- Pour the olive oil into a tall cup or a blender in a slow, steady stream, a little at a time, while blending or whisking the ingredients.
- Transfer the mixture to a liquid measuring cup and pour the dressing through a fine mesh sieve into an airtight container, discarding the seeds.
- I recommend blending the ingredients, tasting, and then adjusting the salt, pepper, sweetener, oil, and vinegar until you find the perfect balance.
- Skip straining dressing if you don’t mind having blackberry seeds in the dressing.
- The nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for professional advice.