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Japanese Wafu Salad Dressing
Japanese wafu salad dressing is light, savoury, and beautifully balanced, with soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and a touch of sweetness creating a bright, punchy flavour. It comes together in just a few minutes and is brilliant drizzled over crisp salads, cold noodles, steamed vegetables, or grilled meats. Fresh, tangy, and full of umami, it’s an easy homemade dressing that adds loads of flavour without feeling heavy.
Japanese Wafu Salad Dressing
This Japanese wafu salad dressing is one of my absolute staples. Made with soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and a touch of sweetness, it’s salty, tangy, and full of umami. I drizzle it over crisp salads, steamed veg, cold noodles – even grilled meat. It’s quick to shake up, keeps well in the fridge, and adds instant flavour to just about anything. If you’re after an easy, everyday Japanese-style dressing, this one’s a total game changer.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp brown rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp peanut oil
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 eschallot, finely diced
- 1 tbsp minced ginger
- 1/2 tsp sugar
Instructions
- Add the soy sauce, brown rice wine vinegar, peanut oil, sesame oil, eschalot, ginger and sugar to a clean jar.
- Secure the lid tightly and shake vigorously for about 20 seconds, or until the sugar has dissolved and the dressing is well combined.
- Serve immediately, or refrigerate until required.
Notes
- Wafu dressing is a Japanese-style vinaigrette with a savoury, tangy flavour that works beautifully with simple green salads, cabbage, cucumber or avocado.
- Finely dice the eschalot so it distributes evenly throughout the dressing rather than leaving large pieces at the bottom of the jar.
- Sesame oil has a strong flavour, so the smaller quantity is enough to give the dressing its characteristic nutty aroma without overpowering the soy and vinegar.
- The peanut oil provides a more neutral base and helps soften the acidity of the vinegar.
- Shake the dressing vigorously before serving, as the oils and vinegar will naturally separate while standing.
- Give the dressing a minute or two after shaking to allow the eschalot and ginger flavours to mingle with the soy and vinegar.
- If your soy sauce is particularly salty, you can use a reduced-salt version without otherwise changing the recipe.
- The small amount of sugar balances the acidity and saltiness rather than making the dressing noticeably sweet.
- Store in a tightly sealed jar in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Bring the dressing back towards room temperature for a few minutes before serving if the oils have thickened in the fridge, then shake well.
- This dressing isn't suitable for freezing.
What I Cook With
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
10Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 25Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 264mgCarbohydrates: 1gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 0g
Please note, this nutrition information is to be used as a guide only. Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.
Serve this with
- Drizzle over a green salad with avocado, shredded carrot and cucumber. Your own Wafu recipe calls this out as a favourite way to use it, with the creamy avocado balancing the tangy sesame-soy dressing.
- Spoon over hot-smoked salmon and crisp salad greens for an easy lunch. The salty, tangy dressing cuts through the rich salmon beautifully without overpowering it.
- Use as a quick marinade for chicken or salmon, then serve with my Cucumber, Sesame and Chilli Salad. The sesame and rice-vinegar flavours tie the two together really naturally.
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A Tangy Trip Down Memory Lane
Japanese Wafu Salad Dressing is my secret weapon in the kitchen when I want to infuse my salads with a touch of Japanese flair. This isn’t just another dressing – it’s the dressing that always gets people asking what’s in it. The kind of dressing you throw together in a jar, give a good shake, and then act like it took you forever to make. I first fell in love with it after picking up a salad from a Japanese takeaway in Brisbane about nine years ago. It was one of those accidental food moments that sticks with you, and ever since, this dressing has held a firm place in my recipe rotation.
Back in the day, before Cooking with Bry existed, I had another blog that was mostly for friends and family. No fancy photos, just over 100 recipes and a lot of love (and a lot of questionable lighting). When I went rifling through those digital pages for inspiration recently, this Wafu salad dressing recipe practically leapt off the screen. It’s still just as good as I remembered. And while I served it up today on a green and red salad (which paired beautifully with avocado), it’s equally brilliant drizzled over hot smoked salmon or used as a quick marinade. This is one of those recipes that feels like a cheat code – effortless to make, but packed with bold, punchy flavour.
The thing I love most about this Japanese Wafu Salad Dressing is how it transforms a bowl of leaves into something that actually feels like a meal. The dressing clings to every leaf, bringing with it that beautiful tangy nuttiness. It’s perfect for days when you want something healthy but you’re also craving flavour with a capital F. Whether you’re working with iceberg, cos, or a mix of greens and herbs, this dressing gets the job done every time.
From Takeaway to Tabletop
I owe this dressing to a salad I bought on a whim while rushing through the Brisbane CBD nearly a decade ago. It was one of those sticky Queensland afternoons and I needed something light but satisfying. The salad was fairly simple – some greens, shredded carrot, a bit of cabbage, maybe some cucumber – but what made it unforgettable was the dressing. I remember finishing the salad and being more interested in the dregs of dressing left at the bottom of the container than the salad itself. I nearly drank it straight from the box. No shame.
Back then, I was still discovering my style in the kitchen. I loved experimenting, but I didn’t always get it right. So when I came across something that worked, like this Wafu dressing, I clung to it. It became my go-to when I wanted to impress but had zero energy to fuss. It’s the kind of dressing that gets passed around the table with a quiet nod of approval. The kind that earns you a raised eyebrow and a “what is this?” from even the fussiest eaters.
And it’s stayed with me through moves, heartbreaks, bad jobs, good jobs, and a whole lot of dinner parties. It’s not fancy. It doesn’t need to be. What it is, is solid. Reliable. Packed with flavour. It’s like the good bra of dressings – understated but essential, and it makes everything else look (and taste) better.
Frequently asked questions
Why does the dressing separate after sitting?
This is a vinaigrette, so the oil and vinegar will naturally separate as it stands. Nothing has gone wrong. Give the jar a vigorous shake just before serving to bring everything back together.
Can I use regular rice vinegar instead of brown rice wine vinegar?
Yes. Regular rice vinegar will work perfectly well, although brown rice wine vinegar has a slightly deeper, rounder flavour. Avoid seasoned rice vinegar unless you adjust the sugar and soy sauce, as it already contains added sugar and salt.
Why use both peanut oil and sesame oil?
Peanut oil provides the main body of the dressing without adding too much flavour, while sesame oil is much stronger and is used more like a seasoning. Using a smaller amount of sesame oil gives you its distinctive nutty aroma without overwhelming the soy sauce, vinegar, ginger and eschalot.
Ingredient breakdown
Soy sauce
Soy sauce provides the main savoury and salty element of the dressing, giving it plenty of umami without needing additional salt. Different brands vary in intensity, so a reduced-salt soy sauce can be used if you prefer a lighter level of seasoning.
Brown rice wine vinegar
Brown rice wine vinegar gives the dressing its acidity and keeps it tasting fresh rather than heavy. It has a slightly softer, more rounded character than sharper vinegars, which works particularly well with soy sauce and sesame oil.
Peanut oil
Peanut oil forms the neutral oil base of the vinaigrette, softening the acidity of the vinegar and giving the dressing a smoother mouthfeel. Its flavour is subtle enough that it doesn’t compete with the sesame oil, ginger or soy sauce.
Sesame oil
Sesame oil contributes the distinctive toasted, nutty flavour associated with this style of dressing. It’s much more assertive than peanut oil, so only a small amount is needed. Too much can easily dominate the other ingredients.
Eschalot
Finely diced eschalot adds mild onion flavour and a little texture without the stronger bite of regular onion. Cutting it very finely helps it distribute evenly throughout the dressing and allows it to soften slightly as it sits in the vinegar and soy sauce.
Minced ginger
Ginger adds freshness, warmth and a lightly spicy edge that cuts through the oil and balances the savoury soy. Finely minced ginger works best because it disperses throughout the dressing rather than leaving large pieces behind.
Sugar
Only a small amount of sugar is needed to round out the sharpness of the vinegar and the saltiness of the soy sauce. It shouldn’t make the dressing taste sweet. Shake the jar well so the sugar dissolves completely before serving.
