SUPERB Asian Salad Dressing (Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette)
Asian Salad Dressing is an easy, from-scratch sesame ginger vinaigrette that's bursting with flavors of ginger, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and honey!
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If you enjoy Asian-inspired flavors, you'll also love Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken, Slow Cooker Thai Peanut Chicken, and One-Pan Asian Ground Beef & Rice!
Hard to believe that spring is in full swing and summer is just right around the corner. But regardless of season, this vibrant, flavor-packed Asian Salad Dressing -- bursting with garlic, ginger, and sesame -- is one of my favorites.
This dressing, in fact, is one of the best I've ever had. And that's quite a statement considering that I love so many different salad dressings!
Many moons ago, when I was a first grade teacher, one of my student's sweet moms once brought me a salad with a jar of this Asian Salad Dressing, accompanied by the recipe. From that point on, I was hooked. This gingery vinaigrette is a bit salty from the soy sauce, as well as nutty from the sesame oil, tangy from the rice vinegar, warm from the ginger and garlic, and sweet from the honey.
In summary? It's a party in your mouth. I really can't describe to you how perfectly all of those flavors meld together. You're just going to have to take my word for it and try it for yourself!
Ingredients
So what do you need to make this Asian Salad Dressing recipe?
- Fresh garlic. Finely minced.
- Fresh ginger. Grated. Use a spoon, rather than a knife, to scrape the soft skin off of your ginger. Since I don't usually end up using the entire hunk of ginger when I buy some for a recipe, I like to put the leftover piece in a freezer-safe baggie and pop it into the freezer. That way, when a future recipe calls for a small amount of grated ginger, I can simply pull it out and grate off however much I need. Alternatively, you can sometimes find ready-made cubes of grated ginger in the freezer section of your grocery store. Just don't substitute ground powdered ginger in this Asian dressing recipe, as it won't yield the same fresh flavor.
- Sesame oil. Regular or toasted both work great. But here's a big tip! Since a little bit of sesame oil goes a long way, a bottle will usually last a long time. However, it will go rancid if it's kept at room temperature for too long. So I recommend always storing your sesame oil in the refrigerator! This ingredient adds such great flavor to Asian recipes that it's worth keeping on hand...but you sure don't want your money wasted if it spoils before you can finish the bottle.
- Soy sauce. I prefer using low-sodium.
- Rice vinegar. Rice vinegar is sometimes labeled as rice wine vinegar, so either will work. Just don't use seasoned rice vinegar or rice cooking wine in this recipe.
- Honey. For a touch of sweetness.
- Sunflower oil. Any other light, neutral-flavored oil will work as well. Just remember that some oils (such as olive oil) will solidify in the refrigerator, so just allow time to bring your Asian Salad Dressing to room temperature and shake well before using. Or you can pop the chilled bottle in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes to speed things up. 😉
How to Make Asian Salad Dressing
(The below photos are intended to be helpful, but please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for FULL DIRECTIONS.)
I typically use my mini food processor when I make vinaigrettes like this Asian dressing. I toss in my garlic cloves and chunk of ginger and process until they're minced to smithereens. Then I add my other ingredients and whir it all together until everything is well blended.
However, you can certainly finely mince/grate your garlic and ginger and then shake everything up a tightly sealed Mason jar. OR rapidly whisk it all together in a big bowl or measuring cup!
Salad Idea
In my humble opinion, this Asian Salad Dressing is the perfect complement to a bed of greens topped with mandarin or clementine oranges. Oranges go especially nicely with almonds, so I toss those in as well. And while avocado has a relatively neutral flavor, I love the richness and creamy texture that it adds to a salad while mellowing out the sesame ginger vinaigrette.
I'm a sucker for adding fruit and nuts to salads, and this strategy always seems to appeal to my kids as well. However, I have yet to meet anyone who doesn't love this particular fruity/nutty salad at first bite, even those who previously professed to prefer their greens unadultered.
Asian Dressing Serving Options
But don't feel restricted to the above salad idea! There are lots of delicious ways to enjoy this Asian Salad Dressing recipe:
- Drizzle it over entree salads, such as my PF Chang's "Chicken Lettuce Wraps" Salad. Or make your own entree salad using your favorite greens and/or other ingredients, and then slicing up some grilled or baked chicken (or tasty leftover Panko Crusted Chicken, if you just so happen to have some hanging out in the refrigerator). Simply lay your sliced chicken atop your greens and drizzle with Asian Salad Dressing.
- You could serve this vinaigrette over a simple side salad to accompany Asian-inspired main dishes, such as Easy Fried Rice, Teriyaki Chicken, Ground Beef and Broccoli, or Slow Cooker Thai Peanut Chicken.
- This recipe also makes a great Asian slaw dressing!
- You can dip raw veggies into this Asian dressing, including red peppers, baby carrots, shredded cabbage, or even broccoli florets.
- Or if you're not feeling your greens, a drizzle of this vinaigrette is particularly outstanding at giving an Asian flair to grilled or roasted salmon and seared tuna. If you're a fan of Ahi Tuna + Ginger, this combo will be right up your alley. Yum.
Yessiree, Bob...you can turn an ordinary salad into something special just by adding a splash of this extraordinary Asian Salad Dressing. And if you're already a fan of ginger, sesame, and all flavors Asian, I think you are going to downright love it. 🙂
Tips & Tricks
- Some of the ingredients that comprise this vinaigrette might not be ones that you already have laying around. But if you buy them once, I promise you'll be using them to make this Asian dressing recipe time and time again! 😉
- As with any salad dressing recipe, tweak amounts of this and that according to your tastes. For instance, after you blend everything together and give it a taste, you can always add another squeeze of honey if you prefer your dressing a tad sweeter.
More Salad Goodness
- Thai-Inspired Chicken Chopped Salad
- Holiday Honeycrisp Salad
- Tomato Cucumber Poppy Seed Salad
- Brain Healthy Salad
SUPERB Asian Salad Dressing (Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette)
Video
Ingredients
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger (from an approximately 1"x1" piece of fresh peeled ginger)
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil, regular or toasted
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, (sometimes called rice wine vinegar)
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ¼ cup sunflower oil, (or your favorite light-flavored oil)
Salad Idea
- Mixed greens
- 1 small orange, such as a mandarin, clementine, Cutie, tangerine, etc.
- ½ avocado, cubed
- 2 tablespoons toasted almonds
Instructions
- Pulse garlic and ginger in a mini food processor until finely chopped. Add the remaining dressing ingredients and process until smooth and blended. (Alternatively, you may mince the garlic, grate the ginger, and then add them to a jar with a tight-fitting lid along with all of the other ingredients. Shake vigorously until mixture is well-blended).
- Store Asian Salad Dressing in the refrigerator and remove it 30 minutes before serving to come to room temperature. Shake well before serving.
Salad Idea
- Place desired amount of mixed greens on a plate. Arrange orange segments and avocado chunks over the top. Sprinkle with toasted almonds and drizzle with Asian Salad Dressing, to taste.
Notes
- Use a spoon, rather than a knife, to scrape the soft skin off of your ginger.
- If you would like to toast sliced almonds for a salad, spread them out on a sheet pan and bake them in a preheated 350° oven, checking every minute or two. You will know they are done when they are fragrant with just a hint of color. They typically take around 5 minutes, but watch them carefully as they can burn in an instant!
- The estimated nutrition information for this recipe was calculated for one serving (2 tablespoons) of Asian Salad Dressing. The ingredients for the suggested salad idea are not included in the nutrition calculations since this dressing can be enjoyed in a variety of different ways.
Nutrition
Post originally published on October 23, 2013, and updated on August 24, 2022, and April 23, 2024.
This was my first time trying sesame ginger vinaigrette and it was soooo gooood! My whole family enjoyed the flavors in this Asian dressing.
I'm always on the hunt for new homemade dressing recipes. This one is really different, but so good and so easy!
So happy I found this recipe, it's way better than anything you can buy at the store!
I just made it and the dressing was delicious. Like you I used the blender. I recently bought a small glass sized carafe for my Vitamix and I love it for mixing smaller amounts.
It is funny, but I read on your Italian salad dressing recipe that in Spring we say goodbye to soup season and say hello to salads. I must be the only person who makes salads in the dead of Winter and soups in the Summer. When it comes to soup versus salad the season doesn't make much difference to me one way or another. Some of the ingredients are the same and in the Summer the vegetables make great soups. Plus with soup you don't have to turn on the oven like you do with other dishes. Now ff I wrote a cooking blog I would certainly stick to tradition on that question.
One thing that I have noticed that works well with salads with chicken or beef is that if you toss the meat with the dressing prior to making the salad the meat taste better. It also dries out less in storage that way. So I tossed your dressing on my hand shredded chicken breast and coated each piece in toasted sesame. It was heavenly. Thank you for the wonderful recipe and enjoy those soups. :))
absolutely delicious a big hit with my company.
Thank you for this delicious recipe! I know without making it, that it will be absolutely fantastic So I am going to make it for Sunday lunch to accompany cold roast chicken and freshly baked, crunchy Ciabatta. :-))))
This looks delicious! Can't wait to try it:)
This salad was not only incredibly delicious, but gorgeous!! I love all of the color! 🙂
Thanks so much, Jocelyn! It did look pretty colorful and refreshing after some of the monotone soups and casseroles I've been cooking lately... 😉 Hope your week is off to a great start!
Anytime is a great time for a salad. Specially if it looks as tasty as this one. And that vinagrette? Wow, it sounds amazing! I'm so trying it soon. I lvoe the avocado addition as well, you can never go wromg with it 😉
Thanks, Consuelo! I totally agree...avocado makes everything better. Maybe it's related to bacon somehow? 😉 Thanks for stopping by...hope you had a great weekend!
This was amazing! Thank you!
Thanks so much, Stephanie!
YUMMY! This was delicious, I love trying new salads!
Love how fresh and tangy this looks! I gotta make asian inspired dressings more often, I tend to forget how good they taste!
Thanks, Yvonne! I agree...I'll go awhile without making this one, and then when I think to make it again, I can't believe I went so long without it! It really is one of my favorites. Hope you get to try it and enjoy it, too. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
This salad looks delicious, Samantha! Salads like this are the best way for me to eat a lot of veggies.
Thank you, Carrie! I totally agree...I seem to get lots more veggies into my family (and myself!) on the days I fix a salad. My boys can be reluctant about eating salad unless I make it interesting, but this is one of their favorites. 🙂 I really appreciate you stopping by...hope your day is great, too!