The Vinaigrette To End All Vinaigrettes

This week, we are in the kitchen with Laroot founder Tash, whose renowned vinaigrette is one of our kiosk staples, widely loved throughout NY and beyond. The magic – as with many of our favorite food alchemies – lies in its perfectly proportioned simplicity. So, let us take you on a little dressing voyage…

The Tash dressing came into existence one summer about fifteen years ago. In plain terms, it is a traditional homemade French dressing. My boyfriend at the time (who later became my husband) explained that at home in Paris every meal was accompanied by a very simple salad, with even simpler dressing. Three ingredients, not counting salt and pepper.

The trick of the dressing is not a heavy mix of components but the proportion, the sequence, and the love, very similar to many other staples of French (and generally ancestral European) food. Over time, I appropriated this customary French sauce, and no meal in my house was served without a simple – but perfect – salad.

Somehow, I got it right and people started telling me I should bottle it, though it seemed like a crazy thought at the time. So when we started creating Laroot dishes, it seemed only natural to make this dressing part of our offering. As per Ayurvedic protocol, our uncooked salads are always a side: it is important that raw food should be consumed as an extra and a choice, not as a mandate. But if someone craves fresh greens, this dressing is our trusty go to.

When working with Megan on making it last (naturally it’s not the same when it’s freshly made for the salad that minute), Megan chose to add a splash of agave, which adds a tiny bit of sweetness and preserves the look and the experience of our dressing.

Head to the kiosk to add some to your next order, and taste for yourself how delicious three simple ingredients can be. The plain salad days are officially over.