This one tastes the most like the dressing in many of the Japanese steak houses I've visited. I have used regular vegetable oil in place of the peanut oil, if I don't have any on hand.

BENIHANA GINGER SALAD DRESSING

1/2 cup minced onion
1/2 cup peanut oil
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 Tbs. water
2 Tbs. minced fresh ginger
2 Tbs. minced celery
2 Tbs. ketchup
4 tsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Combine all ingredients in a blender. Blend on high speed for about 1 minute or until all of the ingredients are well pureed.
(Source: Linda in Tennessee  2001)

Thanks! I can't wait to try it.

The dressing I love at a local Japanese restaurant is made with miso. I found a bottled version at Whole Foods (in the produce section) that tastes really close.

BTW, I tried a seaweed salad at Legal Seafood in Boston recently. Do you happen to have a recipe?

I wonder Ruthanna if that dressing could be similar to one we get in one of the local Chinese restaurants which my girlfriends and I frequent. We've been trying to figure out what's in the dressing - it's light and has a very slight sweet tangy taste. I love this restaurant especially for this salad and my friends do as well. So much so that they do regular takeouts of that alone.

It contains mainly iceberg lettuce, bean sprouts, slivers of carrot and ham all coated by the dressing. Any hints of the recipe would be welcome - but you may have a near hit with your recipe Ruthanna.

SharonCb

That looks delicious, Sharon. The one I posted is sort of thick because of all the pureed vegetables. A few years ago, I requested recipes for a ginger salad dressing here and tried about 6 or 7 of them but the one that Linda posted was exactly what I had been looking for.

Don't remember where but I have seen some recipes for oriental salad that contain a little bit of Hoisin sauce, which might be the flavor in the one on your salad.

I think the next time we go there I'll just ask them if they'll tell me how they make it. They can only say no, lol.

I'm not sure if I know the flavour of Hoisin sauce though. I've probably tasted it but not known the name.

SharonCb