Cooking with Oil: Healthier Salad Dressings with Walnut Oil

Walnut oil is extracted from English walnuts and contains polyunsaturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fats, and saturated fats, and is rich in zinc, manganese, niacin, potassium and copper. An earlier article discussed how to achieve silky and stronger hair with walnut oil.

Walnut oil has a nutty aroma and flavor, which is very pleasant to the senses. Its monounsaturated fats, omega-3 fats and antioxidants content is part of what makes it an excellent and healthier option as a salad dressing in dishes. Additionally, it helps control cholesterol levels and improve the functioning of our cardiovascular system.

Jean LeBlanc French Walnut Oil 

Walnut oil has a low smoking point hence why it works best as a salad dressing. It can also be used in sauce preparation and bread and vegetable dip recipes. There are many mixes for walnut oil dressings but below is the mix I use the most.

DIY Walnut Oil Salad Dressing

• ½ cup of walnut oil.
• 2 tablespoons macadamia nut oil.
• 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper.

Add all ingredients into an empty dark coloured bottle and mix thoroughly then set aside for future use. I shake the bottle before drizzling lightly over my salads and sprinkle some more black pepper. This is the only dressing I use. If you like creamy dressings, you can mix the oil with mustard just before drizzling over salads.

La Tourangelle Roasted Walnut Oil

I also drizzle over my pan-fried salmon prior to eating. The taste of seafood makes me gag but this mix helps to mask the smell significantly and give it an interesting flavor.

Another brand of walnut oil is black walnut oil, which comes from a different tree. However they have similar properties with the taste and aroma of black walnut being a bit stronger. You can test the two to see which one will work best with your salads.

Always purchase virgin walnut oil. It’s a bit more expensive but rest assured all the nutrients are retained in it.