Homemade Salad Dressing · Greek Red Wine Vinaigrette
Greek Red Wine Vinaigrette
Red wine vinegar, dried oregano and good olive oil, the classic dressing for a Greek salad. It also makes a quick marinade for chicken or vegetables before grilling.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 0 min
- Total
- 15 min
- Serves
- about 3/4 cup
- Level
- Easy
Ingredients
- 1 tsp dried oregano
Swaps for dried oregano
Instead of oregano
- Fresh oregano: 1 tbsp chopped fresh for each 1 tsp dried (three times as much). Brighter and more peppery; use a little less than you think.
- Dried marjoram, Italian seasoning or dried basil: The same amount. Marjoram is milder, basil sweeter; Italian seasoning already has oregano in it.
- 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
Swaps for red wine vinegar
Instead of vinegar
- Another wine vinegar: The same amount. Red, white, sherry and champagne vinegar are close cousins; sherry vinegar is the richest.
- Lemon or lime juice: The same amount. Fresh citrus flavor instead of vinegar's bite.
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
Swaps for lemon juice
Instead of lemon juice
- Lime juice: The same amount. A different, more floral aroma; works almost everywhere.
- Bottled lemon juice: The same amount. More sour and flatter; fine in cooking and baking, less bright in dressings and drinks.
- White wine vinegar or white vinegar: Half as much. Sharper, with no citrus aroma.
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
Swaps for Dijon mustard
Instead of mustard
- Another prepared mustard: The same amount. Yellow is milder and more vinegary; Dijon is sharper; whole-grain adds texture; spicy brown is in between.
- Dry mustard: 1 tsp dry mustard + 1 tsp water + 1 tsp white wine vinegar for each 1 tbsp. Sharper and less smooth.
- 1 clove garlic, finely grated
Swaps for garlic
Instead of garlic
- Garlic powder: ⅛ tsp for each clove. Mellower and sweeter, with no bite.
- Jarred minced garlic: ½ tsp for each clove. Milder and slightly sour from the preserving liquid.
- ½ tsp honey
Swaps for honey
Instead of honey
- Maple syrup: The same amount. Thinner, with a maple flavor; a little less sweet.
- Agave syrup: A little less (about ¾ the amount). Sweeter and very neutral; thinner.
- Light corn syrup or golden syrup: The same amount. Less sweet and neutral (golden syrup tastes buttery).
Don't give honey, even baked into food, to babies under 1 year old.
- ½ tsp kosher salt
Swaps for kosher salt
Instead of salt
- Table salt or fine sea salt: About half as much as Diamond Crystal kosher, about ¾ as much as Morton kosher. The same saltiness when measured this way.
- Salt by weight: 1 tsp is about 6 grams of table salt, 5 grams of Morton kosher, 3 grams of Diamond Crystal kosher. The most reliable way to swap, especially in baking and brines.
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ½ cup olive oil
Swaps for olive oil
Instead of olive oil
- Avocado oil or another neutral oil: The same amount. No olive flavor; avocado oil handles higher heat.
- Butter: The same amount. Richer and nutty when browned.
- A neutral oil + more seasoning: The same amount. Dressings lose the fruity, peppery note; a little extra lemon, garlic or mustard makes up for it.
Missing something? Tap Swaps next to an ingredient, or see all substitutions.
Steps
Kid helper. A child can do steps 1, 2, 3 and 4: no knife, no heat. Cooking with kids
- Rub the dried oregano between your palms as you drop it into a jar; crushing it wakes up the flavor.Kid step
- Add the vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, honey, salt and pepper, close the jar and shake until the salt dissolves.Kid step
- Add the olive oil andKid stepturns cloudy and blended.
shake hard until the dressing (how to emulsify)
Emulsify Whisk oil and a watery liquid (vinegar, lemon, pasta water) into a smooth, creamy mix that doesn't split. 1. Start with the watery part plus a helper that holds things together: mustard, egg yolk, honey or starch.2. Whisk while adding the oil in a thin, slow stream.3. For pasta sauces, toss hot pasta, cheese and a splash of starchy pasta water hard and fast.4. If it splits, whisk a spoonful of the broken sauce into a fresh bit of mustard or water, then whisk the rest back in slowly. Done when: The mixture is creamy and evenly cloudy with no puddles of oil. How to emulsify a dressing or sauce: mistakes to avoid - Let it sit so the oregano softens, then shake again before using.⏱ Rest dressing: 10 minKid step
Tap an underlined word for how to do it, or see all techniques.
Tips
- Use the best olive oil you have; with so few ingredients you taste it.
- Toss it with tomatoes, cucumber and feta for a quick Greek salad.
Storage
Refrigerate and use within 4 days, since it has fresh garlic. Let it sit out 10 minutes and shake before using.
How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage.
Quick answers
Answered from this recipe's own storage, make-ahead and swap notes.
Estimated nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 160 670 kJ
- Protein
- 0 g
- Carbohydrates
- 1 g
- Fiber
- 0 g
- Sugars
- <1 g
- Fat
- 18 g
- Saturated fat
- 2.5 g
- Sodium
- 160 mg
Whole recipe, 6 servings: about 990 calories.
Estimate from USDA FoodData Central; not medical or dietary advice. Based on 9 of 9 ingredients.
How we estimate
We add up USDA FoodData Central values for each measured ingredient as written and divide by the recipe's 6 servings, so changing the servings or units here doesn't change a serving. Brands, swaps, trimming and cooking all change the real numbers.
Estimated cost
About $0.35 a serving
About $2.05 for the recipe as written (6 servings).
Estimate; prices vary by store and region. U.S. average prices for September 2026 from USDA ERS Purchase to Plate prices updated with the BLS Consumer Price Index. Priced: 6 of 9 ingredients, 98% by weight.
How we estimate
Each measured ingredient is weighed as in the nutrition estimate and priced at the U.S. average: BLS's average price where BLS publishes one, else USDA ERS's Purchase to Plate price for 2017-18 raised to September 2026 with the CPI for that food group. Whole packages, store brands, sales and regions all change the real cost: treat it as a ballpark.
- olive oil $1.55 ERS
- red wine vinegar $0.30 ERS
- lemon juice $0.10 ERS
- honey $0.05 ERS
- garlic $0.05 ERS
- Dijon mustard $0.05 ERS
Not priced (no official average price we can match, so not in the total): dried oregano, kosher salt, black pepper.
More dishes for less: cheap eats.
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Gear for this recipe
- See price on Amazon: Pint mason jars with lids (opens Amazon)
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