Name: Sesame-Ginger Miso Salad Dressing
Prep time: 7 min
Total time: 7 min
Yield: 1
Cuisine: Plant-based
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons miso, any variety; 1/3 cup warm water; ¼ cup safflower or other neutral oil; ¼ cup rice vinegar; 1 tablespoon agave nectar, maple syrup, or barley malt syrup; 2 teaspoons grated fresh or bottled ginger; 2 teaspoons sesame seeds

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If you’re craving a bold-flavored way to boost your salads, this sesame-ginger miso salad dressing might be just what you’re looking for. This easy miso dressing is great on all kinds of salads.

Use this assertive dressing on simple green salads, cucumber salads, seaweed salads, and cold noodle dishes. Easy to make with just a few ingredients, this dressing keeps well in the refrigerator for weeks — though you’ll likely use it up long before that!

A bit about miso

Miso is a nutritious, high-protein fermented paste made from soybeans (or a combination of soybeans and grains). If you’re soy sensitive, Miso Master® now makes a chickpea miso that’s soy-free.

Available in natural food stores and Asian groceries, pungent-tasting miso is best known for its use in the type of simple, traditional soup popular in Japanese cuisine. It can also be used to make full-flavored sauces and plant-based gravies, as well as salad dressings like this one.

Miso comes in several varieties. These are the most common in the North American market: Soybean (hatcho) miso is the most intense. Shiro miso is a variety of mild, pale yellowish miso sometimes labeled “mellow white miso.” Barley (mugi) miso falls somewhere in the middle between hatcho and shiro in terms of intensity.

Which variety of miso to choose is entirely up to you and your palate. Because they’re aged and fermented, miso and tempeh are considered the two most digestible forms in which to enjoy soy foods. See more in our Guide to Miso.

This recipe makes about 1 cup dressing, or about 6 to 8 servings.

See more easy vegan salad dressings.