Sweetness from Hawai’i! – Sweet Onion Dressing

I pretty much eat the same thing for both breakfast and lunch, 5 days a week. Breakfast is (currently) vanilla Greek yogurt with blueberries and orange juice. Lunch is a salad comprised of romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, pickled onions, and feta cheese. I spice up my weekday salads by varying the dressing that I use. My recent dressing obsession is a sweet onion one. The base is a fresh, raw sweet onion, that is blended with some cider vinegar and sugar, a bit of Dijon mustard, some seasoning, and olive oil.

Sweet onions are different from their yellow and red onion counterparts in a noticeable way. They have less sulfuric acid in them, the compound responsible for the pungency of onions and for our watering eyes when we cut them. Less sulfurs allow for the natural sugars (present in all onions) to take center stage in the flavor profile of the onion. Sweet onions tend to be larger with a thinner skin than either yellow or red onions. Varieties of sweet onions (including Maui Sweets, Vidalia Sweets, Texas Sweets, and Walla Walla Sweets) are ideal for eating raw. Or turned into a dressing for salad!

Sweet Onion Dressing

Sweet Onion Dressing (adapted from Cook Real Hawai’i by Sheldon Simeon and Garrett Snyder via epicurious.com) Makes about 2 cups of dressing

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 medium sweet onion, quartered
  • 2 teaspoons celery salt
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 3/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup water

Directions:

In the cup of a wand blender, combine the vinegar, sugar, 3 ounces of the oil, the onion, celery salt, mustard, and black pepper.

Add the ingredients to the large cup of a wand blender.

Blend until smooth. Gradually add the rest of the oil in a steady stream until the dressing is thickened.

Add the rest of the oil in a steady stream.

Use on your favorite salad. Transfer the remaining dressing to a sealable jar and store it in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Sweet onions make for a sweet and tangy salad dressing!  ~Linda

Sweet Onion Dressing (adapted from Cook Real Hawai’i by Sheldon Simeon and Garrett Snyder via epicurious.com) Makes about 2 cups of dressing

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 medium sweet onion, quartered
  • 2 teaspoons celery salt
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 3/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup water

Directions:

In the cup of a wand blender, combine the vinegar, sugar, 3 ounces of the oil, the onion, celery salt, mustard, and black pepper. Blend until smooth. Gradually add the rest of the oil in a steady stream until the dressing is thickened. Use on your favorite salad. Transfer the remaining dressing to a sealable jar and store it in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.