Chipotle Vinaigrette Dressing

September 18, 2014 by Debi 40 Comments

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This Chipotle Vinaigrette Dressing packs a spicy kick for your yummy salad! It has a great Mexican flavor that you’ll love!

Chipotle Vinaigrette Dressing | Life Currents

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Please let me know if you have any questions about this recipe. I read all the comments myself and I try to help as soon as I can. I have readers from all levels of comfort and experience in the kitchen on my site, and I’ve tried to answer some of your questions already in the post. But if I’ve missed anything, please feel free to leave a comment and ask.

Spice level

If you’re worried about the heat level in this Mexican-style vinaigrette dressing, start with 1/2 teaspoon chipotle paste and work your way up to 2 teaspoons. You can always add in heat, but you can never take it out!

Homemade Dressing

I’m happy to say that we don’t rely on bottled salad dressings anymore in our house. We pretty much only eat homemade dressings. My husband would say that his favorite, and the one he always asks for is my Sweet and Soy Dressing. But, recently I’ve been experimenting with some different flavored ones. Like this Chipotle Vinaigrette Dressing. Easy to make, and super flavorful!

I like that I know exactly what’s in my dressings (have you ever read the labels on some bottles of dressings!). I make a batch, and keep it in a little Mason jar in the fridge. That way, whenever I want a salad, I have a yummy homemade dressing at the ready. Oh, just be sure to write on the lid what’s inside the jar! Trust me on this one, you don’t want to mistake teriyaki sauce for Chipotle Vinaigrette Dressing!

Oaxacan Mole Sauce inspiration

I fashioned this Chipotle Vinaigrette Dressing after Oaxacan Mole Sauce. Oh, and since I live in Southern California, Mole Sauce is super common, but in case you aren’t familiar with it, Mole is a Mexican Sauce that combines chiles, cocoa, and nuts. It’s typically thick, red, and flavorful, but there are many variations. My vinaigrette takes the flavors of Mole and turns them into a lovely dressing.

Chipotle Paste

I love keeping this chipotle paste around. I always have some in my freezer so I can use it at a moment’s notice. Just defrost a little in the microwave, and I’m all set.

Kitchen Tip!

One other thing of note, and also a kitchen tip for you, is how I’ve written the recipe.

The dry ingredients are at the top of the recipe, with the liquid ingredients coming afterwards.

I like to measure the dry stuff first so I can use the same set of measuring spoons through the whole recipe. That way, you keep your spoons clean with the dry stuff, the paste comes next because it makes a mess of the spoon, but the liquid stuff is poured in, so no cross contamination of the ingredients in their jars. I try to do this with most recipes.

a jar of dressing with a spoon and some of the dressing is spooned out.

Want to use this dressing on a fun salad?

Try making my Spicy Lentil and Sweet Potato Salad.

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