TL;DR
Get coffee and tea gear delivered free with Prime
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
- Member-only deals all year
The Kitchn recipe producer Jan Valdez reports that blending a whole sweet onion into salad dressing gives it a creamy texture and natural sweetness. Her account is a personal recipe recommendation, not a comparative test showing that onion dressing is the most delicious or that it outperforms bottled options.
The Kitchn recipe producer Jan Valdez has recommended adding a whole sweet onion to homemade salad dressing, describing how it blends into an oil-and-vinegar mixture and, in her experience, helps create a creamy texture. The suggestion comes from a recipe in Sheldon Simeon’s cookbook Cook Real Hawai’i; Valdez’s account is a personal cooking report, not evidence from a controlled comparison of dressings.
Valdez said she came across the recipe while looking through Simeon’s cookbook and was surprised that it called for a whole onion. She had previously used smaller amounts of shallot or garlic in vinaigrettes, but said the larger quantity seemed unusual enough to try. Her article describes the result as a reason to make dressing at home, while stopping short of offering a formal taste test against commercial products.
The dressing combines a sweet onion, neutral oil, apple cider vinegar, granulated sugar and Dijon mustard. Valdez also singles out celery salt, saying it contributes a savory note. She reports that the blended onion helps the oil and vinegar come together and gives the mixture a creamy quality without mayonnaise or yogurt. These are her observations about the recipe, not independently established findings about how all onions behave in every dressing.
Valdez says she used olive oil instead of the neutral oil specified in the recipe and liked that version. She suggests trying other mustards or replacing some of the sugar with honey or maple syrup. For serving ideas, she names kale with apple, Cobb salad, spinach with tart apples and walnuts, cabbage slaw, roasted vegetables and grain bowls.
A Pantry Ingredient Changes the Texture
The appeal of the method is practical: a whole onion is an accessible ingredient that, when blended into dressing, may add sweetness and body without relying on dairy or mayonnaise. That can offer home cooks another way to make a thick, tangy-sweet dressing from familiar ingredients, while adjusting the oil, sweetener and mustard to suit their preferences.
The limits of the claim matter, too. The article records one cook’s experience with a cookbook recipe; it does not provide a price comparison, nutrition analysis, standardized recipe testing or evidence that this is the most delicious dressing. Readers can treat it as a useful idea to try rather than a proven ranking of salad dressings.
Products Worth Considering
Vitamix Propel Series 510 Professional-Grade Blender, 3 Programs, Black
Vitamix Propel Series 750 Professional-Grade Blender, 4 Programs, Black
Ninja Crispi Glass Air Fryer (Stone) – 4‑in‑1
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
From Simeon’s Cookbook to the Kitchen
The recipe comes from Cook Real Hawai’i by Sheldon Simeon. Valdez identifies herself as The Kitchn’s associate recipe producer and says she has 10 years of experience in research-and-development test kitchens and at food publishers, including Serious Eats and EatingWell. That background describes her experience; it does not turn this specific account into a published comparative study.
In the source article, The Kitchn also discloses that it independently selects products and may earn a commission if readers buy through its links. The supplied material does not identify a product purchase connected to this dressing or suggest that the dressing itself is sponsored.
““It calls for something I’ve never used in a dressing: a whole onion.””
— Jan Valdez, The Kitchn associate recipe producer
No Comparative Taste Test Reported
The source gives Valdez’s personal assessment, but does not report a blind tasting, recipe-test results across multiple cooks, cost per serving or nutritional comparison with bottled dressing. It also does not establish that the onion improves every vinaigrette or that a particular onion variety is required. The article names Maui, Walla Walla and Vidalia onions as sweet options, but the supplied material does not compare their results.
The exact quantities and full preparation directions are not included in the source material provided here, so readers should consult the original recipe for measurements and method rather than infer them from the ingredient list. The article does not provide storage times or food-safety instructions for the finished dressing.
Readers Can Test Their Own Batch
No further testing or follow-up announcement is specified in the supplied report. Readers interested in the recipe can consult Simeon’s cookbook or The Kitchn’s original article for the full instructions, then try Valdez’s suggested variations, such as olive oil or a different sweetener. The source does not say whether The Kitchn plans additional testing of the dressing.
Key Questions
What ingredient does Jan Valdez add to salad dressing?
She recommends blending in a whole sweet onion, such as a Maui, Walla Walla or Vidalia onion, following a recipe from Sheldon Simeon’s Cook Real Hawai’i.
What else goes into the dressing?
The source lists oil, apple cider vinegar, granulated sugar, Dijon mustard and celery salt alongside the onion. It does not include exact quantities in the supplied material.
Why does Valdez use an onion?
Valdez says the blended onion helps the oil and vinegar come together, adds natural sweetness and gives the dressing a creamy texture without mayonnaise or yogurt. Those are her reported observations about this recipe.
Can the ingredients be changed?
Valdez says she used olive oil in place of neutral oil and liked the result. She also suggests trying different mustards or substituting some sugar with honey or maple syrup.
Does the report prove this is the most delicious dressing?
No. The headline reflects a personal recommendation. The article describes Valdez’s experience but does not report a controlled comparison or establish that the dressing is best for all tastes.
Source: thekitchn.com
