Naturally sweet and slightly tangy, Carrot Ginger Dressing is a light, refreshing salad dressing that is simply irresistible! (It’s like your favorite Japanese restaurant dressing, only fresher!)
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There's a little place near my house – Mr Bento’s – that serves the best teriyaki salmon burger! I always order it in a meal, which arrives on a quarter-sheet pan with four pot stickers and a cold, crisp green salad on the side. I look forward to that side salad nearly as much as the salmon burger itself: I just can’t resist that delicious Carrot Ginger Salad Dressing!
But like many of you, we’ve been eating home more lately. At one point about a month ago, I was jonesing hard for something fresh and light and bright to satisfy my umami urges. All I wanted in life was a big green salad doused with Mr Bento’s dressing. No salmon burger. No potstickers. Just the salad.
So I decided to figure out how to make Carrot Ginger Dressing for myself. Honestly, I was blown away when I learned how easy this salad dressing is to make!
I was a youth during the Japanese Steak-house trend of the late 80’s/early 90’s, and Carrot Ginger dressing has always been a favorite of mine, so I was thrilled to add this recipe to our rotation. If you aren't making your own salad dressings yet, consider this: most dressings (including this one) take less than ten minutes to mix up. You save a ton of money, and the food you eat is fresher and healthier.
The only downside is, homemade dressings do not last ten or twelve months in the fridge. (On the other hand, is that really a downside?)
(If you love versatile, delicious, all-natural salad dressings, be sure to check out our Original Taco House Feista Dressing recipe too!)
This easy blender dressing recipe has so many great things going for it: it’s super-fast to pull together, naturally dairy-free and vegan, and has no added sugar. (The carrots add just the right amount of sweetness.)
In addition to the fabulous flavor, one of the things I love most about this dressing is the stunning color it brings to the plate, especially when paired with leafy greens.
One significant change I made to the basic list of ingredients was to add a teaspoon of orange zest to the mix, which enhances and brightens the natural carrot and ginger flavors.
Carrot Ginger Dressing (Japanese Restaurant-style Salad Dressing)
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ pound coarsely chopped carrots
- ⅓ cup extra-light olive oil or other light, neutral oil
- ⅓ cup fresh ginger peeled & coarsely chopped [1.5 ounces]
- 3 tablespoons red onion coarsely chopped
- ¼ cup seasoned rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce or tamari
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon fresh orange zest
- 1 tablespoon water as needed
Instructions
- Prepare (i.e., peel, chop, etc.) all ingredients as listed.
- Combine all ingredients in blender cup. Blend until smooth. If your dressing seems too thick, you can thin it with a little more water. Personally, I prefer to make this dressing quite thick, and then add water as needed. That way, it can also double as a dip.
Notes
Nutrition
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information provided is accurate, complete, and useful.
This Carrot Ginger Dressing isn’t just for salad! Try it on salmon (so good!) or other grilled fish, rice, spring rolls, sautéed greens, sandwiches, noodles, steak, shrimp, and roasted vegetables.
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Jennifer says
I just love the combination of sweetness from the carrots with a bit of heat from the ginger. What a delicious flavor combination.
Tawnie Kroll says
Such a flavorful and tasty recipe! I had so many carrots to use up and this was just the perfect use of them. Thank you!
Cindy says
I made this today. We LOVED IT. We are always looking for new tasty ways to make dressing. We seem to get caught up in a rut. But this broke us out of that rut. So good!
Erika says
This dressing is so flavorful and delicious. Pinning too!