This 5 minute Asian salad dressing is simple, tangy and so delicious! Made with sesame oil, rice vinegar, honey and soy sauce, it is great on any type of salad.
A good salad dressing is really what brings 'life' to a salad. Making your own dressing from scratch might sound like extra work, but it really only takes 5 minutes and has so much more flavor than store bought! I have seven basic vinaigrette recipes on the blog, and this Asian sesame dressing is one of our all time faves.
Homemade dressings can easily veer off into the "too sweet" or "too acidic" pretty easily, but I'm happy to say this easy Asian-inspired salad dressing is perfectly balanced! With over 200 5-star reviews, I'm obviously not the only person in love with it. You never have to worry about greasy separation turning your favorite salad into an oily mess because we've got the ratios just right, ensuring proper emulsification and perfect mouthfeel. This balance of salty, sweet, and umami promises complex flavors that bring out the best in any salad!
Why You'll Love This Asian Salad Dressing Recipe
- it's ready in 5 minutes or less using simple pantry ingredients
- you can make it up to 2 weeks ahead
- you can adjust the vinegar to make it more or less tangy
Don't forget to pin this recipe to save it for later!
Sesame Dressing Ingredients
- olive oil- a healthy and neutral oil. I opt for extra-virgin olive oil for all of my vinaigrette recipes.
- rice vinegar- I used seasoned rice vinegar in this recipe, so if you use an unseasoned rice vinegar, make sure to taste the dressing and adjust salt/sweetener to your taste.
- sesame oil- this is what brings the flavah to this dressing. I don't have access to toasted sesame oil, which I hear is more assertive in flavor. If you are using toasted sesame oil, start with 1 teaspoon, taste, and add more if you'd like.
- honey (or maple syrup)- a little sweetness is needed to tame the tanginess. Honey and maple syrup are easily interchangeable in most vinaigrettes at the same ratio. Brown sugar also works in a pinch!
- soy sauce- brings a savory twist to this vinaigrette. I always use reduced sodium soy sauce
- garlic- optional, but also brings another flavor dimension to this dressing.
The ratio
Traditional vinaigrette recipes use a 1:3 ratio of vinegar:oil. It comes down to taste preference, and I welcome you to play around with this ratio to get a tangier vinaigrette.
I prefer a 1:1 ratio for maximum flavor on my salad, and recommend starting with this ratio and adding more oil if you find this too tangy.
How to Make Asian Dressing
- Place all ingredients into a jar and tightly close the lid.
- Vigorously shake the jar for 30 seconds to mix well.
- Serve over a salad immediately or store in the refrigerator up to two weeks. If the jar has been sitting long, you will need to shake it again before pouring for the perfect consistency.
Asian Salad Dressing Recipe Variations
Consider this to be a base recipe with endless possibilities. Here are some ways to level up your dressing:
- peanut butter- make a creamy and thicker version by adding peanut butter or another nut butter. Start with 1-2 tablespoons and add water as needed if it is too thick.
- ginger- add fresh or powdered ginger for added flavor. Start with ½ teaspoon powdered and 1 teaspoon freshly grated.
- lime- add a squeeze of fresh lime juice to give this a citrussy twist
- sriracha- up the spice level with ½ to 1 teaspoon of sriracha
- vegan- use maple syrup in place of honey
- paleo- swap the soy sauce for coconut aminos
Storing Sesame Dressing
Homemade vinaigrettes are easy to prep ahead. You can shake this Asian salad dressing up ahead of time and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
If you plan to add any fresh garlic or fresh herbs, you will want to use within 7 days.
Vinaigrette should be stored in the fridge, and will separate over time. Give it a quick shake up before serving and you are good to go!
How to Use This Asian Dressing Recipe
You can use Asian salad dressing on any salad. Here are my favorites:
- soba noodle salad- we have a variation of this vinaigrette used for this Asian Chicken Soba Noodle Salad recipe
- pasta salad- this meal prep sesame chicken pasta salad is a great prep ahead option
- slaw- this Asian slaw recipe with sesame vinaigrette is a great side salad option
- kale salad- massage kale for 5 minutes before tossing in this dressing and serving with sesame seeds and spring onions
Asian Slaw Recipe with Sesame Vinaigrette
Looking for more dressing or vinaigrette recipes?
- Check out this Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing
- This Easy Homemade Red Wine Vinaigrette
- This White Wine Vinaigrette (my FAVORITE all purpose vinaigrette)
- This 4 Ingredient Balsamic Vinaigrette
- This Fresh Rasbperry Basil Vinaigrette
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
Asian Dressing Recipe
Ingredients
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup seasoned rice vinegar *see note
- 1 ½ tablespoons honey (or maple syrup)
- 3 tablespoons sesame oil **see note
- 1 ½ teaspoons soy sauce (I use reduced sodium)
- pinch salt
- 1 -2 cloves garlic minced (optional)
Instructions
- Shake together all ingredients.
- Keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Tips:
- 1:2- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar + 6 tablespoons of olive oil (less tangy)
- 1:3- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar + 6 tablespoons olive oil (way less tangy)
- peanut butter- make a creamy and thicker version by adding peanut butter or another nut butter. Start with 1-2 tablespoons and add water as needed if it is too thick.
- ginger- add fresh or powdered ginger for added flavor. Start with ½ teaspoon powdered and 1 teaspoon freshly grated.
- lime- add a squeeze of fresh lime juice to give this a citrussy twist
- sriracha- up the spice level with ½ to 1 teaspoon of sriracha
- vegan- use maple syrup in place of honey
- paleo- swap the soy sauce for coconut aminos
Nutrition Information
© Sweet Peas & Saffron - Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
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Hi, I'm Annie. With a Bachelor of Science degree, a minor in nutrition and nearly 20 year of both classical training, and self-taught experience, I've spent my career proving that home cooking can be practical, delicious and inspiring. What started in 2013 as one food blog has grown into a full-time business. Today, my husband Clayton and I run five food websites that connect with millions of home cooks every month.
When I'm not in the kitchen or behind the camera, I'm using fueling my love of travel, or chasing down new ideas that keep food fun and fresh.
Lynda says
Excelent dressing
I added grated garlic and ginger
Also added Gochujang hot pepper paste
So delicious
Nors says
I love this dressing! I was invited to a friend's book club and wanted to bring something. I made the dressing, tossed it with cut cucumbers and added some chopped nuts. Everyone there wanted the recipe! Safe to say, it's a crowd pleasure :}
Ahmed Baddour says
Amazing ! Loved it. I added fresh squeezed clementine as the citrus and the sriracha you mentioned.. It was a hit! Thanks a mil!
Iris Isa says
So good! Added lemon and made it tangy
MrSammysDad says
Excellent! I ran short of sesame oi (used about 2 tsp regular and 1 tsp hot) and grated 1 square in. Ginger. I'm going to try your suggestion of peanut butter!
HeyFlowerFace says
This elevated my shredded chicken & air fried brussels sprouts so much! Thanks for sharing this yummy flavor pop!
mmandich says
well balanced recipe; lighter than store bought, more flavorful.
Kylie says
Simply amazing!
Antionette says
I made this for dinner with salmon and it was delicious. I added ginger and garlic and a 1tbs of peanut butter and lime to my taste. When serving I put some crushed wasabi peanuts. It was delicious
Kk says
I really like how the recipe is written. The addition notes and ratio explanations were helpful. Saved a lot of the trial and error to customize a vinaigrette to your liking. Served with a chicken brocolli cabbage slaw concoction. Turned out great.
Btw... air fried chickpeas brought me here. They were great and I'll try some of the other recipes as well. Thanks for sharing.
Elizabeth Swallow says
I agree!!
Laxmi says
Thank you for sharing this plus all the variations. In my dressing I just did ginger powder and Sriracha. It was really good!
Vicky says
I made this salad dressing has written, but when I tasted it, it was way too much oil for me. I guess my version of tangy is different from everybody’s else. Lol so I use way less olive oil and increase the sesame oil and added the lime, garlic and ginger minced. It was phenomenal! For dinner, I served it over just plain spinach to go along with my tuna steak. The following day I took more spinach in a bowl and poured some of the dressing over and ate it for lunch with leftover tuna steak. That night I use the last of it on a big bowl of spinach.
So tonight I started looking for the recipe I used and found your recipe again! I will book mark it! Tonight I will have a salad of spinach and sliced cucumbers.
Sandy says
Made this tonight but did 1/2 and 1/2 of rice vinegar & mirren to make 1/4 C total. Added 2 tsp of white miso paste and juice from 1 lemon and the optional minced garlic. It was Deeelicious!!! Thank U❣️
Alicia says
I love recipes like this because it’s a great base that does well with substitutions—which I had to do for about half the ingredients! I used what I had on hand which meant apple cider vinegar, coconut aminos, and agave nectar instead of rice vinegar, soy sauce, and honey. I had juuust enough sesame oil left to make it work, but I was missing it a bit so I think the amount called for would be perfect.
I love tangy dressings and this was just what I was looking for, I’m definitely going to save the recipe for later because I feel like I could drink this dressing! Haha
Babs says
Very good! Subtle, sweet..... Tasty!!
Donna says
I did not have any sesame oil. So I looked up what I can substitute for sesame oil. This is what I found. You can substitute avocado oil. The taste might be a lighter taste. You can substitute it.
Next time I will buy sesame oil toasted. Make it your way.
Shannon says
Love the recipe! Great base. I added fresh ginger and a whole carrot and put the whole thing in my bullet blender. Turned out great. Thank you!
Janice says
I could not find dressing in the store any more, so I had to find a delicious recipe to make my own.
Debbie says
Definitely delicious and easy!
Wendy Johnson says
Very good! Thank you!