Japanese Restaurant-Style Garden Salad with Carrot-Ginger Dressing
A crisp salad of shredded iceberg and cabbage, julienned carrot, cucumber rounds, and tomato wedges served with the creamy carrot-ginger dressing that has been a fixture of Japanese-American steakhouses — most famously Benihana — since the 1960s. The dressing itself, made by blending raw carrot with ginger, rice vinegar, miso, and oil, became so beloved it transcended the restaurant and became a home kitchen staple across the United States and Japan. The contrast between the barely-dressed crisp greens and the bold, almost sauce-like dressing is the whole point.
Ingredients (serves 4)
| Ingredient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Iceberg lettuce, shredded | ½ head |
| Green cabbage, finely shredded | 100 g |
| Carrot, julienned or grated | 1 large |
| Japanese or Persian cucumber, sliced | 1 |
| Cherry tomatoes, halved | 150 g |
| Scallions, thinly sliced | 2 stalks |
| For carrot-ginger dressing | |
| Carrots, roughly chopped | 2 medium (about 150 g) |
| Fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped | 30 g |
| Shallot, roughly chopped | 1 small |
| White miso | 1 tbsp |
| Rice vinegar | 3 tbsp |
| Soy sauce | 1 tbsp |
| Toasted sesame oil | 1 tsp |
| Neutral oil | 4 tbsp |
| Honey | 1 tsp |
| Water | 2–3 tbsp (to thin) |
| Salt | to taste |
Method
- Make the dressing: combine carrot, ginger, shallot, miso, rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and honey in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. With the motor running, drizzle in neutral oil. Add water 1 tbsp at a time to reach a pourable, lightly creamy consistency. Season with salt. Taste — it should be bright, sweet-sharp, and gingery. Refrigerate until service. The dressing keeps 5 days.
- Combine shredded iceberg and cabbage in a large bowl. Toss with just a small splash of the dressing — the greens should be barely coated, not dressed heavily.
- Mound greens on individual chilled plates or a large platter. Arrange carrot, cucumber, and cherry tomatoes over and around.
- Spoon dressing generously over the salad at the table.
- Scatter sliced scallion to finish.
Notes
- The key to the classic version is blending the carrot raw — this gives it the creamy body without cream.
- For a thicker, creamier version, add 2 tbsp of mayonnaise to the blender.
- This dressing is superb on shredded chicken salads and as a dipping sauce for gyoza.
- Benihana’s version uses onion in place of shallot and no miso; this is a slightly more nuanced interpretation.
Dressing: Carrot-Ginger-Dressing