German Salad Dressing

I moved to the US in 1998. Prior to that, I didn’t know that salad dressing is sold premade… because that’s just not how the Germans roll. We strive to make our own and boy did I get spoiled. I quickly learned the words ranch, 1000 island (Still not sure what’s up with that name…), bleu cheese (Which isn’t blue?), Cesar dressing etc. It was like a foreign language to me!

But nothing beats mom’s dressing that she makes from scratch. It only has a few simple ingredients so if you ever want to venture outside of the premade dressing aisle.. check out this recipe below! I make it at least once a week and will link some yummy salads I have made and thrown together with this dressing too so you can combine them and let me know what you think!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sour cream (Mom swears you have to use the full fat for the creaminess.. I use light.. but don’t tell my Mama)
• salt and pepper
• Parsley (I buy the one in a tube and squirt about 2″ in the bowl)
• Italian Herbs (Also in a tube in the fridge section at your grocery store. 2″ ribbon)
  • If you prefer to use fresh herbs, I would say 2 tablespoons of parsley, basil & Oregano as well as a bit of cilantro. You can taste test and adjust to your liking. I have always done the tube method so I don’t have a 1:1 ration on fresh herbs at the moment.
• 1-2 tablespoons of diced onion

Instructions:

• Chop the onions (I sometimes leave the onions out if I am in a rush but they taste great mixed together), herbs (if using fresh) and combine with the sour cream in a bowl. Add your additional seasonings and let it sit for about 10min. Adjust the seasoning or sour cream to your liking. If it’s too herb like and strong, add some sour cream. If you can’t taste anything but sour cream, add more herbs etc.

This dressing lasts in the fridge for up to 3 days. I also sometimes smear it on toast with avocado or when I make a deli meat sandwich. Enjoy!