Charlie's ultimate Dijon dressing

My friend Charlie is an excellent cook, and also a brilliant hostess. I’ve spent many a night at various stages of my life sitting around her dining table among friends, eating big portions of her perfect lasagne or famous cauliflower curry, washed down with a lot of wine. Like her mum Jane, whose home cooking used to line our stomachs before teenage nights out, she’s a feeder, and I’ve always admired her way with a simple green salad. Her trick is this killer Dijon mustard-based dressing, which cloaks fresh crunchy leaves in a thick, velvety, perfectly-balanced vinaigrette. It’s the only salad dressing you’ll ever need. Charlie says: ‘I love this dressing. It took me years to get it right, and tastes just like the one I had with an omelette and green salad when I was little in a simple French restaurant in the Alps. It’s very, very straightforward. The trick is to not over-complicate it by adding lots of other things like herbs and garlic. The main thing is to use plenty of olive oil and heaps of Dijon. I like it with lettuce leaves and nothing else.’

INGREDIENTS

pinch sea salt

1 teaspoon sugar or honey, to sweeten

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

3 tablespoons dijon mustard

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

METHOD

To make the dressing, dissolve the salt and sugar or honey in the vinegar. Add the mustard and olive oil and whisk until emulsified.

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