I Make This 3-Ingredient Dressing Every Week — So Should You

Do you have a go-to dressing, one that’s always in your kitchen ready to pour on salads or use for marinating vegetables or meat? We do. Ours is a simple maple syrup and mustard dressing, and I make it every week. It has become so ubiquitous in our kitchen that I hardly ever think about it until we run out. It’s just three ingredients (plus a little salt and pepper) dumped into a mason jar and shaken, but it’s pure genius.

We put it on everyday salads and slaws. It’s perfect for coating vegetables and even whole chickens before roasting. It’s great for marinating pork chops. I’ve even used it to finish off pots of slow-cooked beans and braised greens.

Here’s how a 3-ingredient dressing (or sauce, or marinade, or whatever you want it to be) became my family-meal MVP.

My obsession with the combination of maple and mustard started years ago when I worked in a little cafe. The place served a gingery vinaigrette with a base of maple syrup and grainy mustard, plus a few other ingredients the owners kept secret. I loved that dressing and ate it for weeks straight.

It was when I started working here at Kitchn and my colleague, Kelli, developed a recipe for Maple-Mustard Chicken Thighs, that I really began to realize just how hard it is to get tired of that particular flavor. It made those chicken thighs and my family devoured it. Then I used the sauce recipe as a base for a simple dressing, adding just a little olive oil, and some salt and pepper.

My oldest daughter started asking if she could have some to dip carrot sticks into. It became a regular request, so I started making a batch of maple-mustard dressing every week during meal prep. Anytime I felt stuck looking for a sauce or marinade for meats or vegetables, I reached for the jar. So I started making a bigger batch.

These days I make a pint of this dressing every week. I don’t measure: Instead, I just eyeball it based on my jar. Still, this is a good ratio to work from: Use 1/3 cup maple syrup (grade B is great if you can get it), 1/4 cup Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, and a pinch of salt and pepper to taste. Combine in a jar, then cover with a lid, and shake to combine. You can store it at room temperature for a few days or in the fridge long-term.

What’s your family’s favorite dressing or marinade? Do you make it on repeat?