Why I love this Japanese salad dressing
Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, and we have no plans. Marc has an away game so we will have a romantic pre-game meal of chicken parmesan with spaghetti. Then he’ll be gone for most of the day/night. So I’ll probably make my favorite one-person meal – Thai green chicken curry with vegetables and rice and a nice big salad with this hibachi-style ginger dressing. Then I’ll watch my favorite girly shows all by myself. It’s going to be great.
I’ve been in love with the ginger dressing they serve at Japanese steakhouses all over the U.S., but I’ve never been able to replicate the taste and texture together. I’ve tried and tried and tried to figure it out, and I finally came up with the simple ginger dressing I posted a while back. It had the right flavor, but it was missing the texture. Thankfully, my sister found a recipe that was (almost) perfect. With a few minor adjustments, I had finally figured out the perfect hibachi ginger dressing.
Try it for yourself and see what you think. Doesn’t it taste just like the stuff you get at your favorite Japanese steakhouse?
More salad dressing recipes: dairy free ranch dressing / thousand island dressing / caesar vinaigrette
Ingredient notes:
- I normally buy pre-grated ginger, but if you’re using fresh, I recommend using the small side of a box grater to grate it rather than a microplane. I find that the fibers just get stuck on the microplane.
Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions listed are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.
How to make ginger salad dressing
Prep your ingredients. Since this dressing is blended, it’s tempting to just throw everything into the blender, but I find that cutting the celery and grating the ginger really helps get the dressing nice and smooth – or as smooth as it’s going to get.
Blend the dressing in a food processor or blender until it’s mostly smooth. Transfer it to a mason jar or other container and refrigerate until you’re ready to use it.
Frequently asked questions
This salad dressing is gluten free, but you should always make sure to double check any of the ingredients in your packaged items to help avoid any possible cross contamination.
If you leave it stored inside of an airtight container in your fridge you can expect your homemade ginger dressing to last up to a week and still be good.
Ginger dressing is one of those weirdly textured dressings that you get used to the more you try it. It’s chunky and creamy at the same time, but when you eat it with your crunchy salad, it all works together to create a symphony of flavors and textures you can enjoy.
More dairy free salad recipes
Japanese Salad Dressing
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup roughly chopped onions
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
- 2 ribs celery, roughly chopped
- 2/ tablespoons soy sauce, or tamari for gluten free
- 3 teaspoons tomato paste
- 3 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Place all ingredients – except the water – in a food processor or blender.
- Process until mostly smooth.
- Add water 1 tablespoon at a time until you have reached the desired consistency.
- Refrigerate dressing for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
How much ginger do you put in, it was omitted out of the recipe. Thanks
It’s 3 tablespoons of grated fresh ginger. I’m so sorry I must have missed that when I was reading over the post!
I’ve always assumed it was carrots in the Benihana dressing I love so dearly, but any time i have tried to recreate it, it has come out all wrong. The use of onions seems like a great idea. I will have to try this. Beautiful photos.
How long does this dressing last I. The refrigerator?
Me too, it is always one of the two main ingredients
how do i get rid of the bitter flavor of the onions? I am thinking of cooking the onions before blending?
What kind of onion did you use? I wouldn’t use red onion for this recipe… try yellow for a milder flavor. Or even shallots if you want less flavor punch.
Oh I’m not really sure. If you think the onions are bitter, I guess I would suggest not using as much onion next time. I have no idea what cooking them will do so I wouldn’t suggest it. You could also use more celery and less onion so you have the same amount of “stuff” in it.
Soak in water for about an hour. Then drain water.
Cant wait to try it! How long would you say to keep it in the refrigerator after?
I would say about 3-5 days.
It only last 3-5 days?
Yes. At the most, one week. It tends to get watery if it sits for more than 5 days.
So you use green onions or just regular yellow onion?
You may be using the wrong type of onion. Try a sweet vidalia onion. 🙂
I probably did! You could definitely – and probably should use a sweet onion. But, I could never find sweet onions in France which is where we were living at the time. If you try with a sweet onion, let me know!
This is it!!! I have also tried and tried and tried too! We stop at our local steakhouse just to buy tubs of their dressing, but it is big bucks. My wife and I high fived after we tasted this because we were so psyched that we can do it now. Thanks so much!
Josh & Erin and our 3 kids
I am so happy to hear that you liked it! 🙂
THIS IS IT!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I just made this and it turned out PERFECTLY!
This is my absolute favorite dressing ever!! I love that i can just add it to a full plate lettuce and nothing else needs to be added because the flavor is amazing!!