If Your Salad Dressing Got Clumpy In The Fridge, Here's How To Fix Its Consistency

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We've all been there. You're just about to put the finishing touch on a delicious, healthy salad for lunch, or maybe you're meal prepping the salad for a later date. Either way, you reach for the dressing, and, lo and behold, it's turned into a thick, clumpy mess. No one wants dressing that they have to chew, but you don't have to throw the bottle out yet.

To get rid of the clumps in your salad dressing, pour some out into a bowl, warm it up for a short time in the microwave (try 10-second bursts), and whisk or stir well. Don't microwave it directly in the plastic bottle since that could cause toxic materials and microplastics to leach into the salad dressing. In addition, repeated heating and refrigerating can affect the taste and quality of food. As for the small portion, there's no reason to heat the whole bottle's worth unless you plan to use it up entirely.

The reason salad dressing gets clumpy in the refrigerator is because of the process of emulsification. This happens when two liquids that are immiscible (meaning they don't mix together naturally) are blended together with the aid of a substance called an emulsifier. Salad dressings are typically just such a mix, but emulsification only lasts so long. As it breaks down, the dressing can separate into clumps. It's easier for store-bought dressing to stay emulsified than homemade thanks to much stronger emulsifiers than what's likely in your homemade or additive-free dressings.

Fortunately for your lunch, there are ways to keep even homemade salad dressing from going clumpy, so you can upgrade a baked potato with salad dressing or plan your next meal worry-free. For starters, when you're making your homemade salad dressing, mix in vegetable oil in addition to olive oil, since polyunsaturated oils like the vegetable variety don't solidify in the fridge the same way olive oil does. Exact ratios can vary, but a 2:1 ratio of olive to vegetable oil is a good place to start.

Another good way to keep your homemade dressing smooth is to add an emulsifier. Eggs are one such ingredient and are commonly found in store-bought salad dressing, along with soy lecithin powder. Soy lecithin is generally considered a natural emulsifier, so it's ideal if you're trying to avoid more artificial ingredients. It's also a powerful one, so use a light hand when measuring it out. Just a small scoop in your homemade dressing can keep your dressing ready to eat at any time.

An important part of the emulsification process is mixing. Emulsification is all about making two ingredients that don't typically blend stay together, so you need to mix your dressing well to keep it from going chunky. An immersion blender (KitchenAid makes a popular version) is great for salad dressing since it's easy to use and powerful enough to break up the oil for proper emulsification.