The French Vinaigrette is Doing Collabs

You know that sound when you open your refrigerator door? The gentle clinking of half-empty salad dressing bottles with colors that have shifted from vibrant to…huh. Expiration dates older than your last vacation—sadly, mine was a while ago. Then when you finally pick one up to check the label, the first ingredient makes you do a double-take: water?

Water? For salad dressing?

Then comes the real frankenfood parade: soybean oil, distilled vinegar, sugar, garlic*, onion*, lemon juice concentrate—and that asterisk means it’s all dehydrated powder. Plus calcium disodium EDTA “added to protect flavor” and mysterious “natural flavors” that could mean literally anything.

It doesn’t take water and 24 other ingredients to make great dressing. And you don’t have to run to the store every time you want something fresh on your salad.

The French vinaigrette has been quietly perfecting the same five-ingredient recipe for centuries. And now it’s ready to show these imposters how real flavor collaborations work.

When Classic Meets Contemporary

The French vinaigrette is like that reliable studio musician who’s been backing every great track for decades. Dijon mustard for depth, vinegar for brightness, quality oil for body. Simple, clean, effective. But now it’s stepping into the spotlight with a series of collaborations that prove sometimes the best remixes come from the most authentic foundations.

Unlike those factory-made dressings with their cost-cutting soybean oil, these collabs only feature real ingredients bringing genuine talent to your kitchen.

The Collaboration Collection

Base Track – French Vinaigrette (Makes about 6oz)
Perfect for: Classic mixed greens, tomato salad, or roasted beets

• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (for a French Vinaigrette). Use avocado oil (as the neutral base in all 5 collaborations)

Note: If you’re making the traditional French vinaigrette solo—the one they teach at the CIA—use extra virgin olive oil. Use avocado oil for all the other 5 collabs; its neutral taste lets the guest ingredients shine.

Add vinegar, mustard, salt, and pepper to a jar. Blend in oil with an immersion blender until it thickens. That’s your foundation—now let’s see who’s ready to collaborate.

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Collab #1: Lemon + Dill

Perfect for: Grilled salmon or roasted vegetables

Take the French vinaigrette and add 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon lemon zest, and 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill. Use your immersion blender to incorporate. This collaboration adds Mediterranean brightness – the citrus cuts through rich fish while the dill adds an herbal note that makes vegetables actually exciting.

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Collab #2: Tahini Soy

Perfect for: Asian slaw or grain bowls

Take the French vinaigrette and add 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger, 1 clove grated garlic, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons tahini, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, and 1 tablespoon soy sauce. Use your immersion blender to incorporate. This is the collaboration nobody saw coming but everyone’s talking about – creamy, nutty, with layers of umami that make even basic cabbage taste like restaurant-quality slaw.

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Collab #3: Caesar

Perfect for: Obviously, Caesar salad, but also roasted Brussels sprouts

Take the French vinaigrette and add 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, 2 cloves minced garlic, 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, and 2 tablespoons mayonnaise. Use your immersion blender to incorporate. (For a lighter version, skip the mayo—the French technique can carry this collaboration solo.) It transforms roasted Brussels sprouts from side dish to show-stopper.

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Collab #4: Honey Mustard

Perfect for: Chicken salad or as a dipping sauce

Take the French vinaigrette and add 2 tablespoons honey, 1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard, and 1 additional tablespoon Dijon mustard. Use your immersion blender to incorporate. Sweet meets tangy meets creamy – it elevates simple chicken salad into something worth making again and again.

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Collab #5: Green Goddess

Perfect for: Crudité platters or herb-heavy salads

Take the French vinaigrette and add 2 tablespoons thick Greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon fresh tarragon, 2 tablespoons fresh chives, 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, and 2 tablespoons lime juice. Use your immersion blender to incorporate. This is the French vinaigrette going full California—fresh, herbal, and vibrant. It makes vegetables taste like the main event, not the opening act.

The Duet Strategy

Here’s the beauty of this collaboration series: make the base once, then customize throughout the week. Each variation makes about 8oz—perfect for a week’s worth of salads without watching half a bottle go bad in your fridge door.

Unlike those processed dressings that stay “fresh” for months (thanks, preservatives!), these collaborations are meant to be enjoyed within a week. Let herb-based versions sit for 30 minutes before serving so the flavors can harmonize. Shake before each use—separation is normal when you’re working with real ingredients instead of emulsifiers.

Why These Collabs Work

The French vinaigrette brings structure—that perfect oil-to-acid ratio (3:1), the emulsifying power of Dijon mustard, the foundation that lets other flavors shine without competing. Each collaboration adds its own personality without overwhelming the base track.

Compare that to store-bought dressings where everything tastes vaguely the same because they’re all built on the same industrial foundation of cheap oil, artificial flavors, and chemical stabilizers.

The Bottom Line

The French vinaigrette has been waiting in the wings while processed dressings dominated the charts with their flashy packaging and mysterious ingredients. But these collaborations prove that authentic flavors never go out of style—they just need the right remix.

Your salads deserve real collaborations between real ingredients that actually complement each other.

So which collaboration are you trying first? Drop a comment or share your favorite combo on IG @remixology.