Ginger Dressing (Japanese Restaurant Style)

Ginger Salad Dressing is an American salad dressing made with carrots, rice vinegar and loads of fresh ginger to bring a vibrant flavor to simple salads. It's popular in Japanese American restaurants.

I grew up going to a restaurant called Tokyo Express and one of my favorite parts of the meal were the simple side salads with crisp iceberg lettuce, shaved carrots and a bright and zesty ginger dressing. This ginger salad dressing has been a hit with everyone from parents to kids. My family gets excited when they see it hit the table.

What's in Ginger Salad Dressing?

There are a lot of variations when it comes to this recipe. I include ginger, carrots, celery, garlic, onion, miso, rice wine vinegar, agave, soy sauce, avocado oil, sesame oil, and the sorta out there, less traditional ingredient: ketchup. It adds extra body to the dressing along with a nice subtle tanginess and depth.

My favorite hands-down ketchup is by Primal Kitchen. It's unsweetened and has that nice "real ketchup" texture. I'm not a fan of the usual "too smooth" kind of ketchup.

The fresh ginger is the star of this recipe. Do not substitute dried, powdered ginger. All you have to do to prepare it is peel the skin off either with a paring knife or a peeler. You want the papery brown skin gone before tossing it in the blender.

How do you make Japanese Ginger Dressing at home?

I dump all of the ingredients together into my blender and let it do the job. I've seen different variations that are a bit more labor-intensive out there, but I personally like things extra smooth anyway. This was the best method for me.

Like a lot of salad dressings, it also happens to be vegan and gluten-free.

More Top Salad Recipes

• Spinach and Mandarin Orange Salad
• Caesar Salad
• Mushroom Salad with Mustard Basil Vinaigrette
• Chicken Ramen Salad
• Arugula Apple Salad with Apple Cider Dressing

Print