Preserved lemon vinaigrette

One of my favorite healthy ways to jazz up any dish with lots of flavor is with a vinaigrette. Not only do I toss my salads in fresh, homemade vinaigrettes, but I also drizzle them over roasted veggies and use them as marinades for all kinds of meats, veggies, and tofu.

My preserved lemon vinaigrette is the quintessential versatile dressing, plus it’s vegan-friendly and gluten-free! Hints of earthy oregano and thyme sing a background chorus, but it’s the Neat Nick Preserves Tunisian Preserved Lemons that’s the leading vocalist in this bright, citrusy vinaigrette. Lemons, salt, and sugar are the only ingredients you’ll find in these preserves – clean, simple, delicious – and the vinaigrette itself only has seven common pantry ingredients to round out the dressing.

While my featured recipe is for Brussels sprouts dressed in the warm vinaigrette, like I mentioned earlier, you can use it in so many other dishes! One recipe makes plenty to use in multiple dishes. Here are some other ways I love to use this dressing:

• tossed with mixed salad greens with diced avocado, crushed pistachios, and sliced fennel
• drizzled over roasted broccoli or cauliflower
• as a marinade for grilled chicken chicken breasts
• drizzled over baked or roasted potatoes
• spooned over rice
• tossed in quinoa or rice salad
• mixed with canned skipjack tuna
• as a garnish a fresh batch of hummus

When making the vinaigrette, there are a few key tips you should keep in mind

1. Be sure to use extra virgin olive oil, as this is the highest-quality, fruity olive oil you can use. It is meant to be eaten raw, not cooked. Heating extra virgin olive oil to high temperatures (above its smoke point of about 350 F) denatures the oil and its heart-healthy unsaturated fats and antioxidants. So a nice rich, fruity extra virgin olive oil will do wonders for your vinaigrette.
2. You’ll want to warm up the preserved lemons just slightly prior to mincing them up. Not only does this help loosen the lemon quarters to ease them out of the jar, but it also melts the sweet, tangy liquid they are preserved in so you can pour a little into the vinaigrette.
3. Finally, mincing up the whole lemon and peel is essential so the lemony oils get evenly dispersed throughout the vinaigrette and each taste is just as good as the next. Think minced garlic size. And just like it’s not incredibly palatable to bite into a large chunk of raw garlic, so also is the same with the preserved lemon; small, dainty lemon bits are much more toothsome.

So whether you drizzle your vinaigrette over roasted veggies or use it as a marinade for your meat, you can always make extra to have on-hand in the fridge for anything that might need some last-minute sprucing up.

Roasted Brussels sprouts with warm preserved lemon vinaigrette

For the Brussels sprouts:
1 lb. Brussels sprouts
1-2 Tbsp. avocado oil
¼ tsp. salt
Pinch of black pepper

For the preserved lemon vinaigrette:
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 Tbsp. raw apple cider vinegar
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. black pepper
¼ tsp. dried oregano
¼ tsp. dried thyme
2 preserved lemon quarters, plus from ½-1 tsp. jelly from Neat Nick Preserves Tunisian Preserved Lemons

First, roast the brussels sprouts. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Wash and pat dry the brussels sprouts. Remove the ends and cut the mini cabbages in half. Toss in a glass baking dish with the avocado oil and salt and black pepper. Roast for about 45 minutes, or until the veggies have begun to crisp and turn golden brown.

While the Brussels sprouts are roasting, prepare the vinaigrette. In a jar or small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, salt, black pepper, oregano, and thyme. Warm up the jar of Neat Nick Preserves Tunisian Preserved Lemons in the microwave for about 30 seconds, or until the preserves slightly melt and loosen. Pour in about ½ to 1 tsp. of the preserve liquid into the vinaigrette. Mince 2 preserved lemon quarters and add those to the vinaigrette as well. Whisk everything together and set aside until ready to use. Once the Brussels sprouts have finished cooking, remove them from the oven, and immediately toss with 3-4 Tbsp. of the vinaigrette. Reserve the rest of the vinaigrette for salads and marinades.