Bottled salad dressing (Recipe: hot roasted veggies)

Psssst. I've got a secret.

Paul Newman is playing peek-a-boo in my refrigerator. And he's not alone.

You'll always find three or four bottled salad dressings hiding in there with him.

These salad dressings aren't for salad; they're the best, quickest marinades in the world.

Not that making a marinade from scratch is a difficult thing, you understand, but bottled dressings win the speed and storage space competition. A great marinade takes a bit of time to concoct, as you fiddle with the balance of flavors and spices. Often it starts with oil and vinegar. Then, you might add mustard, yogurt, honey, buttermilk, tomato juice, salt and pepper. All of those bottles and containers take up a lot of room in the pantry and on your work table, too, and that's before you've zested a lemon or minced a scallion or plucked the leaves off a branch of rosemary.

Bottled salad dressings make cooking simple. The infinite variety of good-quality products (if I can find organics here, in my small-town market, you can find them anywhere) makes it easy to match dressings with meat, fish, chicken or veggies. Read labels carefully to avoid the dreaded high-fructose corn syrup.

For marinating veggies, shrimp and chicken, I love Newman's Own (which now offers an organic creamy caesar, along with a wonderful balsamic vinaigrette) and Seeds of Change. I use Annie's from time to time. Don't overlook the products available at farmstands, too; our local Chepachet Farms maple vinaigrette, far too sweet for salad, makes a perfect marinade for chicken cooked on the grill.

Hot roasted veggies

One of those wonderful recipes that expands, contracts, adapts, and always pleases. I served this to some chef friends who came for dinner. Gutsy, don't you think? And everyone asked for the recipe! Make this totally vegetarian, or add shrimp or chicken. Use your favorite combination of vegetables. Great for potluck, picnic or buffet. Serves 6 or more.

Ingredients

2 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 red bell peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 green bell peper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 yellow or orange bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
3-4 portobello mushroom caps, stems removed, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 giant (or 2 smaller) red onion, peeled, cut into quarters and pieces separated
1 can jumbo black pitted olives, drained
1 bottle Newman's Own Creamy Caesar salad dressing, or bottled dressing of your choice
1 lb frozen shrimp (21-25 or 26-30), peeled and deveined, OR 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into one-inch cubes (optional)
2 boxes instant couscous (I use Near East brand, with roasted garlic and olive oil)

Directions

In a large nonreactive bowl, combine all of the vegetables, the olives, and enough of the salad dressing to coat the vegetables. Mix, and let stand at room temperature for at least one hour, and up to several hours.

[Note: if you are using chicken, marinate the cubes in a small bowl with enough salad dressing to cover, for 1-4 hours in the refrigerator. If you're using shrimp, one hour before you're ready to serve, defrost the shrimp, and marinate them in a small bowl with enough of the salad dressing to coat them. Don't marinate meat/fish/poultry with the vegetables; use a separate bowl, and keep in the refrigerator.]

Preheat the oven to 500°F. Make the couscous according to package directions, and set aside. Add veggies (and chicken) to a roasting pan or cazuela, and cook for 15-20 minutes. Add the shrimp, and continue cooking until the shrimp are done, 5-8 minutes.

Fluff the couscous with a fork, and place in a large serving platter. Top with veggie mixture, including any pan juices. Enjoy hot, room temperature, or cold.

[Printer-friendly recipe.]

Comments

That does sound good - and all of those lovely salad dressings.
When we lived in the U.S. I always used them for marinades as well. I actually saw 2, count'em, 2 bottles of 'salad cream' in the supermarket the other day.
Sometime I'll make a list of the differences in 'pantry staples', but the two I miss the most are salad dressings and dill pickles!
For a crowd you could use the shrimp AND chicken and have a couscous-paella!

I'm buying a bottle of Newmans tomorrow. I'm not sure what varieties we get here, but I can remember seeing his face on a bottle!

KJxx

I use Newman's Own dressing as a marinade too! I first learned about using it in a recipe for a chicken marinade that combined Newman's Olive Oil and Vinegar dressing and a packet (dry powder) of Zesty Italian dressing mix. It's really quite delicious, especially for people who want something that tastes good but who don't like to fuss around with their food.

I've heard other people talk about Annie's Green Goddess dressing, but I haven't tried any of her products.

I admit I am not big on salad so there is no bottle salad dressing in my pantry unless I have a party on. I think we have the Newmans range here, too. I will give it a try next time.

Mr Newman does reside in my fridge as well and my favorite at the moment is the ginger sesame something or other and I use is on a lot on things yes including marinade.

Katie, wouldn't it be fun to compare pantry staples? Sometimes the same thing but different names, and other times completely different stuff. I've done the shrimp and chicken version sometimes -- especially when I find a bit of each stashed away in the freezer.

Kelly-Jane, I confess that there's more than one Paul Newman in my fridge. He's so darned cute!

Kalyn, that chicken marinade sounds great. Annie's is an easy-to-find product line here on the east coast.

Anh, I'm guessing there is something similar to salad dressing in your market that would work for this recipe. I like the Newman's Own because it's all natural.

Doodles, that ginger sesame flavor is great. I've used it to marinate shrimp and fish.

My husband uses Newmans Raspberry dressing for his ribs and I long ago learned the values of a good stash of dressings for marinades.

The Italian market in my town has some house dressings that are wonderful.

Lydia, I love your roasted veggies accomplanied with the couscous. It sounds utterly tasty & healthy.
Indeed, already prepared salad dressings are life saviours ;)

you have a great collectiono of salad dressing!
My salad dressing is only for marinating meat (as I don't eat salad), yes, the job is a breeze :D

Lydia,
You are like the 007, my dear - what a great strategy to make marinating easier and faster!

I usually go with the home made xvoo/red wine or balsamic vinegar jig...but this recipe sounds great, and, it must make a nice creamy sauce without all the efforts of having to do it! I'll surley give it a try!

great recipe!
my wife teasingly calls me a 'salad snob' because i prefer to make my dressings from scratch but we always have a bottle of italian in the fridge - it's perfect for marinating chicken for the grill and an essential part of her killer cole slaw.

Mimi, raspberry and ribs sounds like an amazing combo. What time is dinner???

Valentina, this dish is beautiful for everyday or for entertaining. And nobody ever guesses how humble the origins of the "sauce".

Gattina, it's great that good-quality bottled dressing is getting easier to find now.

Patricia, this kind of marinating is almost too easy. I don't have much of a sweet tooth, so I don't use these for salad, but for marinating they are perfect.

Pam, this recipe will work with your homemade marinade, too!

Shawn, welcome to The Perfect Pantry. I love to serve this dish to people who are great cooks, because they never guess what's in it. (although now you know, so I guess I won't be serving it to you!)

I don't keep bottled Italian around, but I do keep the packet kind (you know, the wishbone shaker kind...) for marinades. I also ALWAYS have at least two different varieties of ranch in the fridge. Mostly because I've never seen the recipe to make it myself. (lazy, I know)

Lydia how come you need to marinade the protein from the veggies separately. Is it just because of the time in the dressing? Definitely gutsy, but delicious.

I'm a life-long vegetarian. There's usually a few bottles of salad dressing in my fridge but the one that always gets used for stir fries, adding zest to wraps, in sandwiches, etc is Kraft Signature Sundried Tomato & Oregano. I just can't get enough of the stuff. I tried other brands and would prefer an organic version but this is the product that hits the spot for me.

Jerry, I'll find a ranch dressing recipe for you. Buttermilk is the foundation (and you can use powdered buttermilk), plus mayo, sugar, herbs....

Callipygia, I marinate meats and fish in the refrigerator (to prevent growth of bacteria), and veggies at room temperature, so I keep them separate until it's time to cook.

Leon, welcome to The Perfect Pantry. I'm not familiar with the Kraft dressing you mentioned, but I'll see if I can find it. The sundried tomato must be a lovely companion to all kinds of veggies.

The chef's secret ingredient, indeed! During barbecue season, I always use bottled dressing as an easy marinade before tossing flank steak on the grill. It always tastes great and everyone wants to know your secret!

TW, I'm delighted to find so many people who have the same secret ingredient as I do. Guess the cat's out of the bag now.

I'm delighted too - to hear of other's secret stash! We are dressing snobs in my house - my older sister has made a version of a Julia dressing for more than 30 years. We all defer to her and always ask her to make up a batch when she visits for a meal. But my younger sister secretly keeps Newmans on her shelf and adds various things to it when mixing.
I buy all sorts of locally made vinegars and dressings that I use for my greens or marinating whatever.
And honestly what is better than a bit of yummie EVOO (see Lydia's previous posting!) with shallots, onions, garlic, and herbs from the garden.
The cat has definitely left the area!

Link, for salad, there's nothing better than great EVOO and herbs from the garden. But for marinade, there's nothing faster than salad dressing -- it's just sooooo easy!