Carrot Ginger Dressing
If you’ve ever wondered how to make carrot ginger dressing like the kind you’d get at a Japanese restaurant, this recipe is for you.
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
- 2 inches fresh ginger
- 1 small shallot, cut into chunks
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- In a high-speed blender, combine the carrots, ginger, shallot, vinegar, honey, toasted sesame oil, olive oil, water, and salt. Secure the lid and blend until smooth.
- Once the dressing is smooth, adjust the flavoring to taste. Add more honey for a sweeter dressing, or an extra splash of vinegar for a tangier flavor. It's ready to serve right away over your favorite salad greens.
In fact, every time I have a batch of this in the fridge, I find myself making salads more often than usual, just so I can use it again.
The key to its flavor is using fresh carrots and ginger, so make sure you have both before you start. I’ve kept the oil to a minimum, so it feels like a light, refreshing option, but the ginger also adds warmth, so it’s a nice “transition dressing” between seasons.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Featured Review “I love this dressing even more than the dressings at the restaurant!” – Kayla
- Carrots. I use 2 medium-sized carrots, but if you have slightly more or less, it is easy to adjust as you go. Baby carrots don’t taste as delicious as full-size ones, so I don’t recommend using those.
- Fresh Ginger. This is key; don’t use powdered. If you have a powerful blender that can easily pulverize veggies, you don’t even have to peel it.
- Oil. I use olive oil as the base of the dressing, plus a touch of toasted sesame seed oil for flavor. Sesame oil has a potent flavor, so a little goes a long way.
- Vinegar. I use apple cider vinegar, but rice vinegar is probably more authentic. Either one will work for this!
- Honey. This balances the dressing’s acidity and the spicy ginger flavor, making it craveable. If you need a vegan recipe, you can use maple syrup instead. (You might need a little more in that case.)
- Shallot. I love using shallot in salad dressing for a mild onion flavor. A small one is perfect here, but you can also use 1/4 of a small white onion.
- Salt. This is key for boosting the overall flavor. If your dressing tastes bland, you might not have added enough salt.
How to Make Carrot Ginger Dressing (Step by Step)
- Peel 2 medium carrots and cut them into chunks. Then peel a small shallot and 2 inches of fresh ginger. You don’t need to chop these finely, since they will be going into a blender next.
- Add the carrot, shallot, and ginger to a personal-sized blender along with 1/3 cup olive oil, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 2 tablespoons of honey, 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1/4 cup water.
- Secure the lid on the blender and blend until very smooth, for at least 60 seconds. Stop and scrape down the blender, then mix again if you see any pieces were missed.
- Serve the dressing over your favorite greens. It will have a slightly fibrous texture, so it sticks to your veggies better than an oily dressing does.
personal-sized blender or a larger one with a narrow base, like
this Vitamix model. If you have a blender with a wider base, you might want to double the recipe for easier blending.
