I’m OBSESSED with this Miso Sesame Ginger Dressing. It’s easy to make a big batch to enjoy on salads all week long, and it’s packed with some of the most nutritious, healthy foods on the planet. White miso, fresh ginger, raw honey, unfiltered apple cider vinegar… YUM. This will make any salad taste amazing!
When asked, “what is your favorite food?”, are you likely to answer with an enthusiastic, “SALAD, of course!”? I think not.
My answer: Sushi. Or pizza. Mmmmm, pizza.
But if you have an AMAZING dressing to add a ton of flavor to those otherwise bland veggies, it will change your salad game forever. This is seriously the only way I get myself to eat salads regularly- I make my own delicious dressing in which to smother it.
Making homemade salad dressing has been a life-changer for me. It beats bottled every single time. I no longer eat salads because I should, but because I want to. I crave them.
I am in salad heaven (which isn’t as good as sushi heaven, but is still pretty great).
This dressing packs a ton of flavor and nutritional punch- the sesame and ginger pair together so well, it’s made tangy by the lime juice and vinegar, and emulsified by the miso, which adds a salty, peanuty umami to the dressing.
Let’s talk about all the super nutritious, healthy ingredients in this, shall we?
First, miso. Miso is a fermented soybean paste that’s high in protein and vitamins B, E, and K, as well as folic acid. And because it’s fermented, it’s packed with beneficial bacteria that’s helpful for your gut microbiome (similarly to yogurt).
The unfiltered apple cider vinegar also has similar beneficial bacteria.
Ginger is a great digestive aide.
And sesame seeds are a great source of all kinds of nutrients, like copper and manganese.
This dressing is just PACKED with nutrition!
This Miso Sesame Ginger Dressing is the perfect thing to make on the weekend to dress salads all week long to take to work or school.
If you are taking a salad to go, do yourself a favor and pack the dressing separately (this will prevent a soggy pile of vegetables and instead ensure a refreshing, crisp salad). Rubbermaid makes small, 1/2 cup sized containers
that seal tight for no leaks and is the perfect size for a generous helping of dressing (I never skimp on salad dressing).
This dressing is so good, I think it’s best with a simple salad. I just threw some mixed greens together with some carrots and added the dressing on top. For a full meal, it would be AWESOME with grilled chicken, or another simple protein.
And speaking of chicken, you can also use this Miso Sesame Ginger Dressing as a marinade. Yum!
I’ve made this dressing many times and have made small adjustments each time to make it 100% perfect. In fact, I updated this post from a previous one with new proportions and a few changes to the original recipe.
If you look at the notes in the recipe card below, you’ll see the original proportions (which are also DELICIOUS). I changed things up so the dressing is a little thinner (and thus more pourable). I also used canola oil instead of olive oil, which means it will refrigerate better (olive oil, while more nutritious, solidifies when refrigerated).
There is less honey now (to cut back a bit on sugar), as well as less soy sauce and miso (to cut back on salt).
Also, in a happy accident, I ran out of rice vinegar, so I used half rice vinegar and half apple cider vinegar (which has a similar flavor profile to rice vinegar). Plus, unfiltered apple cider vinegar packs a huge nutritional punch!
You can keep this dressing in the fridge for about a month, and it fits perfectly in a half pint mason jar.
If you like this recipe, try this fresh ginger and honey dressing!
Here’s the printable recipe for Miso Sesame Ginger Dressing!
Miso Sesame Ginger Dressing
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons fresh ginger peeled and minced (from about a 2-inch piece)
- 2 tablespoons white miso
- juice of one lime
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons canola oil or other neutral-tasting oil
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar unfiltered is best
Instructions
- Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl, or shake together in a jar, until smooth and emulsified.
- Just before serving, you may have to shake or stir it again.
Notes
- This dressing can be kept in the fridge for about one month.
- For a vegan option, use sugar or agave instead of honey.
- The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
This recipe first appeared on Bowl of Delicious in March 2014. I’ve made improvements to the recipe photographs, and post. The previous version of this recipe had different ingredient proportions. It used: 3 tablespoons miso, juice of one lime, 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, 1.5 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 4 tablespoons honey, 3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil, and 4 tablespoons rice vinegar.
Mary
I’ve been using this recipe for a few years now. Having a batch of this on hand pretty much guarantees that any vegetables I have in the fridge will get eaten. I especially love to toss some cabbage and kale in it and top it with mandarin oranges, almonds, green onions, furikake, etc. So good!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Nikki
This dressing is AMAZING! I almost want to drink it! I used sesame oil as my only oil because that’s all I had, but I bet it could be even better with *toasted* sesame oil! Thank you SO MUCH for this recipe! I’ll be devouring it on salads this week!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! I agree- I could drink it, too!
Samantha
Can you make a sugar free variant for those of us on keto? Maybe a sugar free honey version if it exists?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Great question! I’m the first to admit I’m not very educated about the specifics of a keto diet, but I think you can replace the honey with a keto friendly sweetener, such as stevia or something else from this list: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/keto-sweeteners You may also want to just try making the dressing without the honey at all, and tasting it to see if you think it even needs any sweetener. I do think it helps balance it out, but there are so many delicious things in there that it might be just fine without. Hope that helps!
Angie Ikeda
Hi I don’t have rice vinegar can I substitute with just vinegar ?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Rice vinegar has low acidity, but regular distilled vinegar has high acidity. So you may want to substitute with another low acidity vinegar, like more apple cider vinegar, instead. Or, you can water down regular vinegar- I’d just do 1 Tbs. vinegar and 1 Tbs. water as an alternative. Hope that helps!
Kin
This was so delicious, I could have drank it all. Used it in my rice bowl and marinated my tofu. Just can’t get enough.
Elizabeth Lindemann
Every time I make this, I seriously eat half the batch with a spoon before it gets anywhere near a salad. So glad you liked it!
Sonia
This is just ridiculously delicious! I could just drink the dressing by itself, it’s that good. Whenever I make it for friends, they always want the recipe. Make it and you’ll be craving salad all the time!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you like it! Thanks for the comment!
Jane
Very good! Thank you. Will try a little OJ and rind next time.
Elizabeth
Oh I LOVE the idea of adding orange to this! Thanks for the suggestion, and glad you liked it!
Donna
This sounds so good! Can’t wait to test it out on a recipe! :)
Elizabeth
Hope you like it!
olivia
Fantastic dressing! Just made it now for a kale-cabbage-cilantro-edamame-etcetc salad and it is the bomb. I added the lime zest, and did halve the honey (as hard as I tried, just couldn’t justify putting in a whole 1/4 cup honey on a detox week… leading up to a blow-out week)), but otherwise made it verbatim. Sooo good. Thank you,
Elizabeth
So happy you liked it! Honestly I don’t think you missed much with the honey, since it’s packed with so many other flavors. Your salad sounds fantastic.
Kelsey
This is incredible. I have been looking for a dressing that is close to sweetgreen’s miso sesame dressing, and this is so close. I added a few squirts of siracha for a little heat kick and I’m going to have to make it again soon because I’ve been using it so much!
Elizabeth
So happy you liked it! Love that you added sriracha, thanks for the suggestion :-)
Martin
Came here looking for a replacement of Organic Lemon Ginger Sesame by Culinary Treasures which I can’t get here. I’ll be using it to make baby Romaine lettuce boats filled with cole slaw and cashews: always a big hit when catering. People love vegetarian finger foods that are more interesting.
Elizabeth
Hope you like it!
Cori
I, too, was looking for a substitute for Organic Lemon Ginger Sesame by Culinary Treasures! We had been using it for 2 years on our mobile salmon bbq trailer and I was so disappointed when Costco stopped carrying it. Can’t wait to try this recipe, Elizabeth, as it sounds exactly what we’re looking for.
Elizabeth
So happy you found a replacement for the dressing! Hope you like this :-)
annette Chow
love the recipe! Just wondering if you’ve ever tried thinning it out with anything other than oil?
Elizabeth
Thanks! I have not tried, but since it’s so packed with flavor, I think you could use a little water to thin it out without sacrificing taste. If it’s not already too tangy, a little more lime juice might work as well. Keep in mind, it will thicken in the fridge because the oil will solidify at cool temperatures- this is easily remedied by running the jar under hot water for a little while and shaking it up a bit to break up the solid oils. Hope that helps!
Jen
OMG this was a BOMB dressing!!! I made it with Mirin and with less sesame oil and still turned out sweet enough. I’m watching calories so I think that even made with less oil, it tasted amazing!!!
Elizabeth
I’m so happy you liked it!! Love your suggestions :-)
Amy Marie Orozco
Your recipe is a keeper! Made it last night and loved it. Thanks for sharing. Next time I might give it another squirt of lime (maybe!). Going to try it as a marinade for chicken skewers.
Elizabeth
So glad you liked it, and thanks for the comment!
Lisa Johnson
This makes quite a lot! Tastes just like the dressing served at every sushi restaurant. Very good. Put it on salads alongside fried rice for dinner.
Mandy
Hi! do you have the nutritional information for this recipe? By the way, i am absolutely obsessed with this dressing. Ive actually started craving salads thanks this recipe! Thank you so much!
Elizabeth
I’m so glad you like the recipe! I don’t provide nutritional information on my blog currently because I am unable to guarantee accurate information. However, I’ve used this calculator before to get a basic idea of the nutrition information- hope it’s helpful for you! https://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
Christina
Simply delicious and easy to blend up. Had no limes in the house so substituted with a big slice of organic lemon. Definitely a recipe that I will remake. With gratitude.
Barbara V
So delicious! Thank you!
Elizabeth
Yay! Glad you liked it :-)
LISA
I LOVE this dressing. It was super easy and as good as the dressing at my favorite sushi place.
I actually had all the ingredients on hand for a change too!
Thank you for this recipe that I will use again and again!
Elizabeth
Yay!! So glad you liked it!