This Sesame Miso Vinaigrette and Marinade is a full-flavoured salad dressing made with sesame oil, rice vinegar, white miso and honey or maple syrup. It adds amazing flavour to salads. It's great on grilled meats and vegetables, too. A quick 5-minute creamy miso dressing!
Five minutes, a quick whisk and you'll have a sensational miso dressing ready for salads and more!
When I was creating my Asparagus Salad with Smoked Salmon recipe I knew the Sesame Miso Vinaigrette I made for it was going to become a favourite. In fact, I liked it so much that I decided it deserved a post of its own.
It's a full-flavoured dressing that will enhance any salad. Mellow sesame, salty miso and sweet honey combine with rice vinegar to make a perfectly balanced vinaigrette.
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❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
- It raises simple coleslaw to new heights in this recipe for Cabbage Coleslaw with Sesame Miso Dressing!
- Broccoli salad gets a major facelift in this Broccoli Quinoa Salad with Sesame Miso Dressing.
- This sesame miso vinaigrette works as a marinade, too. It makes grilled mushrooms something to write home about.
- Drizzle it on roasted sweet potatoes, smashed sweet potatoes, grilled asparagus, or zucchini noodles. Recently I used it to make Sesame Miso Air Fryer Asparagus!
- It's delicious with any Asian salad recipe. Try it on this Asian Pear and Cranberry Chopped Salad, or substitute it for the peanut dressing in this Asian Broccoli Salad.
Can you tell I'm obsessed?
🛒Ingredients
Here are a few notes about the ingredients you'll need to make this amazing sesame miso dressing. You'll find a complete list with quantities in the recipe card below.
- sesame seeds: white
- white miso paste: sometimes called sweet miso or mellow miso, it has a milder flavour than other types of miso. It is fermented for a shorter time and is lower in salt. It's ideal in this dressing.
- sesame oil: You can use 2 tablespoons of sesame oil or 1 tablespoon of sesame oil plus 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil. Toasted sesame oil has a more complex flavour than regular sesame oil, making it the perfect choice for this dressing. However, if you don't have it, you can certainly leave it out.
- rice wine vinegar: has a subtle flavour and is less acidic than distilled vinegar.
- honey: adds a mellow sweetness. Feel free to substitute maple syrup to make a vegan miso dressing.
- olive oil: extra virgin
- salt: I use sea salt in all my recipes, but you can use your favourite salt. Always start with a very small amount, as you can always add more if you need to. Miso is naturally salty, so you won't need to add much salt.
🔪Step-by-Step Instructions
This Sesame Miso Dressing and Marinade is a 5-minute wonder!
- Toss some sesame seeds in a small skillet and toast just until they start to brown.
- Whisk the white miso paste, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, olive oil, honey and sea salt.
- Add the toasted seeds and make an everyday salad something to remember!
Do you like making your own vinaigrettes instead of using store-bought dressings? For a complete guide to making your own healthy salad dressings and seven more delicious homemade salad dressing and vinaigrette recipes, check How to Make Homemade Salad Dressing.
❓What is miso?
Miso is a fermented soybean paste. It has been used in Japanese cooking for hundreds of years. It gives food an earthy, salty flavour that is sometimes even described as funky.
If you're familiar with umami flavours, (those brothy, meaty savoury tastes) miso is one of those! It's difficult to describe, but it adds rich flavour to recipes, especially to this miso dressing.
This dressing recipe uses white miso. It is not usually white but can range from white to beige or light brown. White miso is made by fermenting soybeans with rice. It's best used in recipes for condiments, dressings or dips.
Red miso has a much stronger flavour and colour because it has been fermented with barley or other grains. It's best used in soups or stews. You can learn more about the different types of miso in this article, What's the Difference between White, Yellow and Red Miso?
🔁 Possible variations
Like a thicker, creamier dressing or dip? Feel free to whisk in a few tablespoons of mayonnaise. Serve this miso dip with fresh veggies, raw asparagus spears or raw kohlrabi sticks. Try it with Air Fryer Shishito Peppers!
🍽 So many ways to use sesame miso dressing!
Besides tossing it with your favourite green salad or cucumber salad, this creamy miso dressing is absolutely delicious on Buddha bowls, grain bowls, power bowls or with all of the following recipes.
- Asparagus Salad with Smoked Salmon
- Cabbage Coleslaw with Sesame Miso Dressing
- Broccoli Quinoa Salad with Sesame Miso Vinaigrette
How to store miso dressing
Store leftover dressing in a jar or covered container in the fridge. It will last for several days. Just give it a shake or whisk it together when it separates.
When you make this miso dressing, please leave a comment and a rating below. I'd love to hear how you used it. Thanks in advance!
🗒 More recipes for salads and dressings
- Thai-Style Coleslaw with Sesame Ginger Dressing
- Blackberry Spinach Salad with Blackberry Balsamic Dressing
- Roasted Sweet Potato Kale Salad with Nutritional Yeast Dressing
- Winter Persimmon Kale Salad
This recipe was originally published in 2016. It has been updated with new photos and extra information. I retested the recipe and tweaked it to make it more mellow.
📖 Recipe
Sensational Sesame Miso Vinaigrette and Marinade
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons white miso
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil, or 1 tablespoon sesame oil plus 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- ⅓ cup rice vinegar
- 6 tablespoons olive oil, extra virgin
- 1 tablespoon honey, or rice syrup or maple syrup for vegan diet
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Toast sesame seeds in a small skillet over medium heat, shaking the pan frequently to prevent burning. When they just begin to darken and become fragrant, remove from heat immediately and transfer to a small plate to cool.
- In a small jar, whisk the remaining ingredients until well combined.
- Add the toasted sesame seeds and serve with your favourite salad or vegetable dish.
walter lee
The recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of toasted sesame oil?? Sesame oil is very potent for a lack of a better word:) Is 2 tablespoons correct ?
Can I use to make kale salad?
Elaine
You're right--toasted sesame oil is strongly flavoured and this is a highly flavourful marinade and vinaigrette. Regular sesame oil is more mellow. Try it with one tablespoon of regular sesame oil and 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil. I think it will be delicious on kale salad! Thanks for your question. I'll make a note about that in the recipe.
Londa
Hi Elaine, looking forward to making this! Can you tell me which brand of white miso you use? Thanks!
Elaine
Hi Londa, I use Shiro Miso. Hope you love this vinaigrette!
Carol
Miso is new to me. I bought some for a new recipe and then looked for other recipes. So glad I found yours … it’s delicious and healthy!
Elaine
Thanks Carol! Happy to hear you like this recipe. It's such a versatile vinaigrette that's delicious on salads, meats, and sides!
Gary Bastoky
Best miso vinaigrette dressing recipe! Added some thinly sliced green onions to it, but in general, it was perfect.
Elaine
Thanks Gary! I like your idea of adding green onions. Thanks for sharing that.
Cheryl Ronay
Is the vinegar supposed to be seasoned or non seasoned?
Elaine
Hi Cheryl, I use natural rice vinegar--unseasoned. Hope you love this vinaigrette!
Anna
I made it this morning for my salad, delicious!
Flavour & Savour
Thanks Anna! So glad you liked it as much as I do!
Kathi
I made this yesterday and it is fabulous! I was looking for a recipe to rival our favorite from a local sushi place we love. I added a couple tablespoons of light mayo to cream it up and it is delish! Our new fave dressing! Thanks for the great recipe Elaine!
Flavour & Savour
What a great idea to make it into a creamy dressing! Must try that!
Kathryn @ Family Food on the Table
Gorgeous dressing and I absolutely agree that it needed a post of its own! Sounds like such a delicious combination of flavors and I know I'm going to want to drizzle it on ALL the foods 🙂 Pinned!
Flavour & Savour
Thanks Kathryn!
Nancy | Plus Ate Six
I'm a huge fan of miso anything and miso and honey dressing sounds just delicious. I bet it would be pretty good over soba noodles too.
Flavour & Savour
Hi Nancy,
Great idea! And that makes me think it would also be great on zucchini noodles!