Killer Asian Dressing

Homemade dressing is so simple, and infinitely tastier than even the best store-bought varieties, that once you start making your own you’ll never go back.  Here’s a family favorite to get you started.  All amounts are approximate; I generally just eyeball it.  Feel free to add more or less as your palate dictates; throw in additional herbs, spices, veggies or whatever you like.

• 1/2 cup vinegar (we use Bragg’s apple cider, rice wine would be good too)
• 1/4 cup toasted sesame oil (this is crucial, and my favorite part!)
• 1/4 water or apple juice
• 2 TBSP soy sauce (or Bragg’s amino acids)
• 1 tsp sweetener (brown sugar, maple syrup etc.)
• Knob of ginger (about 2″ is what we use)
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 green onions, diced

We make our dressing in our Vitamix because it emulsifies it so nicely.  Put all the ingredients in except the onions and let it run for a minute or so, then add the chopped onions and let it whirl a few times to mix them in and chop them a bit smaller if you like.  We keep the dressing in our fridge and it seems to last for ages, but we eat it up so quickly that I really can’t say how long it will last!

This dressing is great on a green salad.  Try adding some chopped cabbage, cilantro, sliced apples, or sunflower seeds.  A little grilled chicken would also be fantastic.  Enjoy!

PS The dressing bottle I use (that you see in the picture above) has half a dozen recipes printed along the outside with markings for where to pour ingredients to.  It makes creating your own dressing practically as easy as opening a bottle of the store-bought stuff.  Many don’t require a blender, you just shake it up.  I often use the recipes on the side as loose guidelines and then improvise freely.