Salad dressing oil and vinegar
Getty ImagesFood writer Michael Ruhlman's book, Ratio, might just free you from cookbooks forever. Instead of relying on recipes, Ruhlman breaks down cooking into easy-to-understand ratios of ingredients, a method he says allows for more creativity in the kitchen. "When you know a ratio, you don't know a single recipe, you know a thousand," he says. Once you've mastered the basics, you're free to start experimenting by adding or subtracting flavors.

VINAIGRETTE RATIO: 3 parts oil: 1 part vinegar

Simple, inexpensive, and remarkably flavorful, a classic vinaigrette is perhaps the best example of how ratios can transform everyday eating. If you've always reached for bottled dressings, think again, says Ruhlman. "They're ridiculously expensive," he says of mass-market brands. "You're going to pay five bucks for a decent vinaigrette in a supermarket, when vinaigrette you make yourself is literally pennies worth of oil and vinegar."

And then there's the matter of taste. "They're fresher, have a cleaner flavor, and don't have chemicals in them -- many dressings have chemicals in them to keep them emulsified and give them a certain texture. So it's a better product for you and your body, and you can vary it as you want."

So how does Ruhlman's ratio principle work? At its most basic, a vinaigrette is just a combination of acid and a fat. Stirring together three parts oil to one part vinegar gives you a balanced base to start experimenting. And don't limit yourself to iceberg or arugula. "You shouldn't think of a vinaigrette as a salad dressing, you should think of it as a mother sauce," he says."

He ticks off simple variations on the basic ratio: Add a handful of fresh herbs, you get a salsa verde, which is beautiful over roasted chicken. Some ripe cherry tomatoes create a vinaigrette that's perfect for a filet of fish. Making Brussels sprouts? A vinaigrette made with walnut oil adds depth and flavor. Even ho-hum green beans perk right up in a bath of bright, citrusy, lemon vinaigrette.

All it takes to get started is a clean bowl, a fork or whisk, and whatever kind of vinegar and oil suits your fancy. "There are technique levels that as you feel comfortable you can work up to, but for the most part, it's just stirring things together," he says. So don't let the bottles win.

"Yes," he admits, "it only takes two seconds to open a bottle and pour it on greens, but I don't really buy the fact that time or effort is a factor. Using good vinegar and a nice, clean, neutral oil, there's not reason you shouldn't be able to make great vinaigrette in 60 seconds. "

From RATIO: THE SIMPLE CODES BEHIND THE CRAFT OF EVERYDAY COOKING by Michael Ruhlman. Copyright 2009 by Ruhlman. Reprinted by permission of Scribner, a Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.


Want more tips on making a basic vinaigrette? Watch this video from The Culinary Institute of America to learn how to make your own vinaigrette using a few simple ingredients.