If you enjoy the refreshing salads served at Japanese restaurants, this delicious Carrot Ginger Dressing recipe is for you. Made with carrot, ginger, and miso, the sweet-tangy dressing will zest up your salad. It’s light, refreshing & healthy too!
Many Japanese restaurants in the U.S. serve a salad with either Sesame Dressing or Carrot Ginger Dressing (にんじんドレッシング). While the sesame dressing is creamy and mild, this carrot ginger dressing is light and refreshing with a kick of ginger.
Why You’ll Love This Carrot Ginger Dressing
- It’s SUPER easy and quick to make. Ready in 10 minutes.
- Tastes just like the Japanese restaurant dressing you love. Maybe better!
- Homemade dressings are healthier than store-bought.
- Works great in any salad combination.
- Look at the color. It’s bright, refreshing, and zingy!
All You Need is 10 Pantry Ingredients!
If you cook a few Japanese dishes, you will have these ingredients in your pantry and refrigerator.
- Carrot
- Onion
- Ginger
- Rice vinegar
- Oil
- Sesame oil
- Miso (I use mellow and mild white miso)
- Sugar
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
That’s it, you can make the carrot ginger dressing right now! 🙂
For the authentic taste, use rice vinegar because it is much milder in flavor than other vinegar.
Use a Food Processor or Blender
Using a food processor makes it easier to create a smooth texture for the dressing.
I use my Cuisinart Food Processor that I have had for years, but if you have a high-powered home blender such as Vitamix, it will work really nicely too.
How to Store Carrot Ginger Dressing
You can store this homemade dressing in an airtight container like a mason jar for up to 1 week in the refrigerator. I recommend pouring out the amount you use in another serving dish and putting the rest of the dressing back in the refrigerator right away. That way, you can keep it for up to 2 weeks. Shake well before you use it.
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Carrot Ginger Dressing
Ingredients
- 1 carrot (4.8 oz, 135 g)
- ¼ onion (2.5 oz, 70 g)
- 1 knob ginger (1", 2.5 cm; 0.6 oz, 17 g; preferably young/spring ginger for a milder taste)
- 1 ½ Tbsp sugar
- 1 Tbsp miso (I use mild and mellow white miso)
- ¼ tsp kosher salt (Diamond Crystal; use half for table salt) (to taste)
- freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- 1 tsp roasted sesame oil
- ½ cup rice vinegar (unseasoned) (rice vinegar is mild; DO NOT substitute it with other vinegars as they are too acidic and strong)
- ¼ cup neutral-flavored oil (vegetable, rice bran, canola, etc.)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Peel the carrot and chop it into ½ to 1 inch pieces.
- Chop onion into 1-inch pieces.
- Peel the ginger and slice into small pieces. Put all the chopped vegetables into the food processor.
- Puree the veggies until fine and smooth.
- Add sugar, miso, salt, and pepper.
- Add sesame oil, rice vinegar, and oil.
- Process until the dressing is completely smooth. Taste the dressing and adjust with salt. If it's too sour, add a bit more sugar. If you prefer the dressing to be lighter, add water to thin it (I don't add water so the dressing will last longer).
To Serve and Store
- Shake well before you serve over a green salad (here I have iceberg lettuce, cucumber slices, and tomatoes). You can store the dressing in an airtight container like a mason jar for up to 1 week. If you take out the portion you need and put the dressing back into the refrigerator right away, you can keep it for up to 2 weeks. You can store it in the freezer for up to a month.
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on Mar 23, 2014. The post has been updated with new images and step-by-step images in April 2020.
