This bold and zesty pomegranate vinaigrette salad dressing recipe is the perfect way to easily incorporate seasonal flavors into your fall and winter salads! It’s made with real pomegranate juice and a pomegranate simple syrup (though you can swap honey or your other favorite sweetener), and it doubles as a flavorful marinade, too!
Even though I’ve gone to culinary school, it’s not a prerequisite for making delicious meals at home! Making your own salad dressings is the perfect way to get started cooking more seasonally in the kitchen. Not only does it encourage you to use fresh seasonal produce in salads, but you can save a boatload of money from store-bought dressings, too! Homemade vinaigrettes are bright, flavorful, and easy to customize, and they’re a great way to use fresh fruits, veggies, and herbs.
This pomegranate dressing is incredible for fall and winter salads, whether you’re spicing up a simple green side salad for pizza Friday or looking to amp up the flavor in your main dishes and meal preps. Fresh pomegranate juice and homemade grenadine give this condiment it’s signature flavor and deep red color, both made from whole pomegranate fruits! Freshly squeezed orange juice and a handful of other ingredients come together to make an emulsion that you’ll want to add to your fall and winter recipe rotation every year!
why this pomegranate salad dressing recipe works:
♥️ bold pomegranate flavor. Unlike store-bought brands, this dressing has REAL pomegranate flavor that’s not from concentrate!
🙌 multipurpose. Sure, you can use it to dress a salad. But you can also use it as a veggie dip, a marinade for your favorite proteins, or a light sauce on sandwiches, too!
🤌 festive + elegant. This is the perfect vinaigrette for taking a holiday spread past a basic balsamic dressing. It’s light and elegant in flavor, and the vibrant color is perfect for autumn and winter gatherings!
🛒 ingredients
See the recipe card for the exact quantities.
🍳 how to make pomegranate salad dressing
1: Combine pomegranate juice, pomegranate syrup, orange juice, and vinegar.
2: Blend well to combine.
3: Add mustard and spices.
4: Blend while slowly drizzling in olive oil to emulsify the dressing.
5: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
6: Drizzle over your favorite salad and enjoy!
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💡tips & tricks for getting it right
🍽️ how to serve your homemade dressing
- in your favorite salads – from a simple side salad to a seasonal main salad for lunch or dinner, this is the perfect dressing to add bold pomegranate flavor! It works especially well in salads that have a few pomegranate seeds sprinkled on top, too!
- as a marinade – I love using salad dressings as a marinade, too! You can add some to your favorite proteins and marinate for 30-60 minutes before grilling, pan frying, or baking!
- as a sauce – you can also use this pomegranate dressing as a sauce on your favorite sandwiches or as a dip for veggies! I’ve even placed salad dressings on charcuterie boards as a sauce!
ℹ️ troubleshooting tips
- broken vinaigrette – a “broken” vinaigrette is one that splits into separate layers in the bottle. So you’ll see a layer of oil and then a layer of juice, vinegar, and other ingredients. Since this dressing has quite a bit of fresh juice, it tends to break easier than other salad dressings that have more oil than juice. The good news is, even if your vinaigrette breaks, it’ll still taste great. All you need to do is shake up the bottle or jar to recombine the ingredients before serving.
- too acidic – if your dressing is too acidic in flavor, you can add a bit more syrup or salt to balance things out.
- too sweet – if your dressing is too sweet you can add in a little more vinegar or a squeeze of lemon juice to help zest it up a bit.
- add the oil slowly – if your pomegranate salad dressing is too thin, you may have added the oil too quickly. Make sure to slowwwwwly stream in the olive oil, like, suuuper slow. This is the biggest key to proper blending!
- right temperature – having all your ingredients at room temperature helps ensure they will emulsify evenly, too. Allow your ingredients to sit at room temperature for a few minutes before mixing everything together.
♻️ customize your pomegranate dressing
- swap the oil – avocado oil or another neutral oil will work in place of olive oil, too! Just be sure that the oil is not super strong in flavor so the pomegranate taste can really shine.
- swap the vinegar – you can also use apple cider vinegar, champagne vinegar, or white balsamic vinegar in place of the white wine vinegar. I don’t recommend using distilled vinegar because it tends to be overly harsh in flavor. Balsamic would also work, but it’ll deepen the final color.
- swap the sweetener – no grenadine? You can also use honey, maple syrup, or agave to sweeten this dressing! I do not recommend leaving the sweetener out, because it does help to balance the flavor, so even a little bit helps! I’ve even tested this recipe using pomegranate molasses, which is pomegranate juice reduced until it’s a thick syrup!
🧰 equipment needed & storage tips
🫙 how to store pomegranate salad dressing
Store your finished dressing in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. If your vinaigrette breaks, or splits into two layers in the fridge, simply give your jar or bottle a good shake before serving and that’ll help everything emulsify again.
Salad dressing that has separated, or broken, in texture.
A quick shaking of the jar restores the emulsified dressing!
💬 q+a
Why does my salad dressing separate?
When a salad dressing separates while standing or in storage, this is called a broken vinaigrette. This happens for a few reasons. Either the ingredients weren’t blended (emulsified) properly, or the ratio of fat to other ingredients (vinegar, juice, etc.) is off. Thankfully, your dressing will still taste great, even if it’s separated. Simply shake the bottle until the ingredients incorporate again, then use it as normal!
Can I use store bought juice?
Yes, you can! I tested this recipe using both fresh and store bought pomegranate juice and while I preferred the vibrancy of the fresh juice, it did also work well with store-bought juice. I do recommend using the refrigerated juice over the shelf-stable variety for the best flavor, though.
If you make this recipe, please leave a review in the comments and a star rating!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Pomegranate Vinaigrette (Easy Pomegranate Salad Dressing)
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Equipment
- 1 immersion blender or food processor or tabletop blender
- 1 jar for blending in
- 1 kitchen scale or measuring cups + spoons
Ingredients
- 120 g pomegranate juice 1/2 cup
- 30 g orange juice 1 ounce, 2 TBSP
- 35 g pomegranate syrup 1 ounce, 2 TBSP
- 25 g white wine vinegar 1 ounce, 2 TBSP
- 100 g oil 1/2 cup
- 8 g mustard 1 tsp
- 2 g salt 1/2 tsp
- pinch pepper freshly ground
Instructions
- Combine base ingredients. Combine the pomegranate juice, orange juice, pomegranate syrup, and white wine vinegar. Blend together until well combined.120 g pomegranate juice, 30 g orange juice, 35 g pomegranate syrup, 25 g white wine vinegar
- Add seasonings + blend. Add the mustard, salt, and freshly ground black pepper to mixture. Blend until the mustard and seasonings are fully incorporated.8 g mustard, 2 g salt, pinch pepper
- Stream in oil. While blending continuously, slowly drizzle in the olive oil in a thin, steady stream. This will help create a smooth emulsion. Continue mixing until the vinaigrette is fully emulsified and has a slightly thickened consistency.100 g oil
- Taste + adjust. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt and pepper if needed.
- Store. Transfer to a jar or airtight container and refrigerate until ready to use.
Notes
troubleshooting tips
- broken vinaigrette – a “broken” vinaigrette is one that splits into separate layers in the bottle. So you’ll see a layer of oil and then a layer of juice, vinegar, and other ingredients. Since this dressing has quite a bit of fresh juice, it tends to break easier than other salad dressings that have more oil than juice. The good news is, even if your vinaigrette breaks, it’ll still taste great. All you need to do is shake up the bottle or jar to recombine the ingredients before serving.
- too acidic – if your dressing is too acidic in flavor, you can add a bit more syrup or salt to balance things out.
- too sweet – if your dressing is too sweet you can add in a little more vinegar or a squeeze of lemon juice to help zest it up a bit.
- add the oil slowly – if your pomegranate salad dressing is too thin, you may have added the oil too quickly. Make sure to slowwwwwly stream in the olive oil, like, suuuper slow. This is the biggest key to proper blending!
- right temperature – having all your ingredients at room temperature helps ensure they will emulsify evenly, too. Allow your ingredients to sit at room temperature for a few minutes before mixing everything together.
customize your pomegranate dressing
- swap the oil – avocado oil or another neutral oil will work in place of olive oil, too! Just be sure that the oil is not super strong in flavor so the pomegranate taste can really shine.
- swap the vinegar – you can also use apple cider vinegar, champagne vinegar, or white balsamic vinegar in place of the white wine vinegar. I don’t recommend using distilled vinegar because it tends to be overly harsh in flavor. Balsamic would also work, but it’ll deepen the final color.
- swap the sweetener – no grenadine? You can also use honey, maple syrup, or agave to sweeten this dressing! I do not recommend leaving the sweetener out, because it does help to balance the flavor, so even a little bit helps! I’ve even tested this recipe using pomegranate molasses, which is pomegranate juice reduced until it’s a thick syrup!
