Salad Dressing Debate!

Does anyone have any thoughts or faces on the differences between regular/low-fat/nonfat salad dressings?

The regular ones (if you buy a good brand) seem to have the least crap in them, IE, propylene glycol, extra sugars, things I cannot even identify. The regular ones seem to be laden with fat though, and I am seeking a little advice on what's best. I want to keep it low sodium too, when possible. I can't seem to get away from my dressings, but am able to use moderation with no issues. My fave is blue cheese. Yum! Never seen a low fat version of that.

Personally, I'd choose a little extra (healthy) fats over some unnatural additives that I seem to read on the bottles of low/no fat dressings.

Any input, anyone?

how about looking at some recipies and making your own?  I also tend to by my low fat/fat free dressings from the "natural foods" area of the store.

 

I love me my blue cheese though -- but now I buy the actual hunk of blue cheese (some places sell them as "crumbles") and just sprinkle a bit of blue cheese on my salad and use a vinagrette style dressing.  I still get the rich, creamy blue cheese taste - but not the fat of the mayo, 

Everyone has different thoughts on things.  I have no problem at all eating "fake" foods.  I could care less if I can pronounce the ingredients or not.  "Better living through science" is my mantra.  Obviously, not everyone shares my views.  But the nice thing is that I'm not forcing them to eat the way I do, and they cannot to me either.  Our bodies, our choice.

I use hummus. It's not watery or anything, but if you mix it up real well it can be good on salad.

i find salad dressing to be too sweet, in general.  so i just sprinkle a little salt on top and it the salad without the dressing. 

I second the "make your own" option above. It's simple to make your own, low fat, low calorie salad dressings.

If you don't want to do that, I suggest Newman's Own dressings, they are good, wholesome, and delicious. I've found I don't usually need the 2 T serving size because they are so flavorful, even with the "Lighten Up!" line, which has low cal/low fat options.

I just use malt vinegar, salt and black pepper or you can make your own.

1tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp balsamic (or wine vinegar), 1 tbsp Dijon or wholegrain mustard. Place in a jar. Screw lid on tightly and shake

I love blue cheese, and I know of two companies that make a low fat/calorie (Light) version and thats Wishbone and Maries. The Maries is much better in my opinion, and its 2 tablespoons for 80 cals whereas the Wishbone is only 50 for 2 tablespoons, but I'd opt for the Maries tastewise.

Also, I know a lot of people that sont use salad dressings, but things like salsa or hotsauce. Like others have said, making your own would probebly be your best option sense you can control what goes in it.

http://www.bellybytes.com/recipe/dressing/

Theres a link to a site for some dressings that are supposibly healthy, I just browsed real quick, didn't look too far into it though, but I hope they help!

I'm a "make your own" type of girl as well. I like to make a little dressing by mixing olive oil, vinegar, and lemon juice with salt, pepper, terragon, and basil. Then I either put blue cheese, feta, or parmesan on my salad with it...sooo gooood.

I think you need to eat some fat with your salad to get the maxium benefits of all the fat soluable vitamins in veggies... Can't remember where I heard that though.  Check out your local natural food store... whole foods sells Cindy's Kitchen brand which is in the refrigerated section of the produce....Its pretty tasty...

theres this brand of dressing thats like 1 or 2 calories per spray.. depending on which kind.. i love the asian silk flavor, and you only need about 10-20 sprays on your salad (depending on how much dressing you like) and so thats only 10-20 calories!

The fat is what helps the rest of the dressing stick to leaves and other smooth surfaces. So if you cut out the oil the dressing is likely to collect at the bottom of the bowl. Its seems a wast of effort if people will not spoon up the fresh basil ,parsley etc. at the bottom of the bowl.  So if I'm not using oil, I try to dry the washed salad as much as possible so they are more likely to be coated with the oil free dressing.

I don't really use salad dressing anymore. I used to eat the fat free stuff all the time on salads but there is so much junk in there that I never knew about. I also like hummus on my salads! Or sometimes I'll eat them plain as long as there isn't too much lettuce in there. Lemon juice is pretty good too.

Paying close attention to serving size makes a big difference. I always thought that 2 tbs of dressing would never be enough, but it really is. Especially if you choose something that is very flavorful like a Red Wine Vinaigrette (80 cals/ 2 tbs serving)

deju vu....:)

I hate ready-made salad dressings (I was tempted to buy some a couple of times but stopped as I could hardly recognize it for what it was...). I also hate having to prepare some each time I want salad (every day...). So I prepare my own in bulk. It's very easy.

I have a special shaker for that, but you can use any old watertight jar with a screw-on top. I make mine with salt, pepper, vinegar (I am fussy about vinegars and use a Tbsp balsamic and 1/4 cup apple cider, or red wine, or cherry, or raspberry vinegar, depending on the inspiration), Dijon mustard (about 3 Tbsp), plain yogurt (1/4 cup), and 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil. You close the jar and shake it until everything is perfectly blended and creamy. You can keep this for quite a while in the fridge (I would say about 2 weeks). That's my recipe, but you can alter it if you find it too sharp, or add whatever it is you like in a salad sauce. This base can be used for blue cheese: you just crumble it on top after you have tossed your salad...

It takes about 2 minutes to prepare and it's all natural. But I agree with tealeaf: if you don't mind eating fake food, it's easier to buy the stuff with unknown ingredients...

Oh! I forgot: I use only 1 Tbsp of this dressing on my salad, and it is enough as it is very creamy. That's only 35 cals a Tbsp... You may even splurge and use 2 Tbsp at that "price"! LOL 

 

 

Just plain virgin olive oil -- only like a teaspoon -- tossed through the lettuce is all I need. I'm not a big fan of fat-free salad dressings, but we did find one in the store the other day that is good: Honey Mustard! The ingredients were simple and it was naturally low in fat and sodium.

I used to love bleu cheese dressing but now I think it's kind of disgusting to be putting it on a lovely green salad!

This is a good topic!

I'm all about "low fat" and "low sugar" foods...except salad dressing. I've found that no matter what brand it is, low fat dressing tastes awful. Way too sweet.

Whenever I have a salad, I use regular Ranch dressing (usually Kraft). The serving size isn't actually that bad either. 50 calories for a tbsp seems plenty for me. I kind of like the idea that zenmama proposed too...adding a little bit of fat to your salad.

So I'm with you on regular dressing!

olive oil, red wine vinegar and a little salt.  best salad dressing ever :-)

Lily42-

The simple ones are the best!

I like olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and garlic.  This and dusting the salad with a little parmesan cheese is perfect!

My daughter taught me a trick I have used for years. I have a 'serving' of salad dressing next to my salad and dip the ends of whatever is on my fork into the dressing. I never use the whole amount I poured out or was served and still the great flavor. I use much less dressing and feel more free to go with what tastes best.