Hi My Friends! Today I am presenting an easy recipe that uses one of my favorite fermented pantry items. I always have it on hand and put it on everything; raw apple cider vinegar. This is a staple in my house and I douse almost every salad and veggie that I make with it. It adds a burst of tangy flavor to anything and is super versatile. You can make health tonics and drinks with it, like my Apple Cider Vinegar and Honey Drink or this Nutrient Dense Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing. This salad dressing is lemony, nutty and cheesy (without the cheese). It goes well with any salad and a little bit goes a long way so you can dress your salads lightly and still retain the flavor.
Raw apple cider vinegar is made by fermenting apples or apple skins. I haven’t made it myself yet, but It’s on my list of fermented foods to make. I find it convenient to have a big bottle of Bragg Raw Apple Cider Vinegar on hand to make dressings, drinks and to flavor vegetables.
I call this dressing nutrient dense, because in addition to the raw apple cider vinegar (ACV), I add nutritional yeast, which is chock full of vitamins and minerals, high quality extra virgin olive oil for a healthy fat and high quality sea salt which has minerals important to a healthy body. Lastly, I squeeze juice from 1 lemon to add freshness to the dressing and even more minerals and live enzymes.
Raw Apple Cider Vinegar
For those of you that want to experience the benefits of fermented foods but haven’t tried making them yet or don’t have a steady supply on hand, using raw apple cider vinegar in your recipes is an easy way to consume more fermented foods.
According to Paul Bragg in his book, “Apple Cider Vinegar Miracle Health System”, some benefits of raw apple cider vinegar are:
- Rich in potassium and live enzymes.
- Helps promote youthful skin and a vibrant, healthy body.
- Helps digestion and controls weight.
What is nutritional yeast?
Nutritional yeast is yellow, flaky and has a cheesy, nutty flavor. It’s full of minerals, B vitamins and contains 18 amino acids. Seriously, it lives up to its name. I always have some in my pantry and sprinkle it on stir-fry when Im not using it in salad dressings. Nutritional yeast is available in most health food stores or online.
Extra virgin olive oil
I use extra virgin olive oil as the healthy fat in this dressing to hold all of the ingredients together. It contains monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) which are considered a healthy dietary fat, as opposed to saturated fats and trans fats.
Himalayan sea salt
Lastly I use Himalayan sea salt to add that extra punch of minerals. It’s the purist salt in the world and is said to have come from the primal sea.
Known as “pink gold,” Himalayan crystal salt is actually a beautiful translucent pink and contains all of the 84 elements found in your body.
As you can see, this Nutrient Dense Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing lives up to its name. Every ingredient is packed with minerals and vitamins that are essential for a healthy body.
It’s tangy, lemony and the nutritional yeast makes it savory, nutty and cheesy. It goes well with any salad and a little bit goes a long way so you can dress your salads lightly and still retain the flavor.
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- Juice of 1 lemon
- ¼ tsp Himalayan sea salt
- Combine all ingredients in a container or small mason jar.
- Seal the jar and shake it until the ingredients are well combined.
- Eat it with your favorite salad.
Resources
Fermented Food Lab’s Apple Cider Vinegar and Honey Drink
Bragg Raw Apple Cider Vinegar
Bragg Nutritional Yeast
Himalayan Sea Salt
Articles & Books
“Apple Cider Vinegar Miracle Health System”, By Paul Bragg
Article from Natural Health Magazine, “Nutritional Yeast Demystified”
Article from Medical News Today, “What are the health benefits of olive oil?”
Article from DrAxe.com, “10 Benefits of Celtic Sea Salt and Himalayan Salt”
Some links on this page are affiliate links and they are all for companies that I support and buy from myself. If you decide to purchase any of these products through these links, I will earn a small commission and you will have my sincere thanks for supporting Fermented Food Lab.
I don’t have a lemon! What can I use instead?
You could use a lime or just leave it out.
Quick question… does this need to be refrigerated?
Yes.