The Dressing That Made Me Eat Salad
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I am not a green salad person. I do not like green salad. But put this dressing on it and I'll eat an entire bowl anytime.
This recipe is a classic salad dressing that's super popular in Japan, and for good reason. You can put it on a piece of cardboard and it'll be delicious. In Japan, often times it's served simply on shredded cabbage. A pile of cabbage. Yep, that's how good it is.
A Kewpie Copycat Recipe
This is my attempt to recreate the popular Kewpie brand "Deep Roasted Sesame Dressing." My Japanese friend recommended it, and we got hooked after the first try, and I wanted to recreate it as it's not easy to find here in Vancouver.
My version is very close to the real thing taste-wise, the only noticeable difference is mine is a bit less viscous since I don't add the xanthan gum that's in the original. I also add black pepper which I prefer.
More Than a Salad Dressing
In Japan this dressing is also used as a dipping sauce for their hot pot (shabu shabu). As I said, it's good on anything! If you want to try making a hot pot, check out my classic hot pot recipe and simply use this dressing instead of (or in addition to) the Thai style dipping sauce.
Important Notes for Success
- Actually DEEP toast your sesame seeds. Get them darker than you think you should to get that roasted smoky flavour. Get them even darker than what I showed in the video. Admittedly I was nervous to push them further because I didn't want to burn them on camera!
- Use Kewpie mayo. You might be tempted to use regular Western style mayo, but trust me, they do not taste the same. If you want the awesome flavours I'm raving about, you need the Kewpie mayo. Also be aware that there are "knock-off" brands of Japanese mayo that comes in VERY similar containers, but they are NOT the Kewpie brand and they don't taste the same. Look for the kewpie doll on the bottle!
- Use neutral oil. For salads you may think you want to use healthy oils like olive oil or coconut oil. Don't! Those have flavours that will mess with the awesomeness of this dressing. If health is a concern avocado oil is what you want to go with - healthy and neutral and it's what I use. Otherwise canola or another vegetable oil works too.
- If using mirin, look for one with no sugar or syrup. Even though it is optional, if you're going to buy mirin, know that most brands out there are loaded with sugar or corn syrup, but traditionally made mirin should be made by fermenting rice. I like Eden Brand, which is the only one I've seen at a "normal" grocery store that doesn't contain added sweeteners.
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All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video below to ensure success - and if you enjoy the show, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel. Thank you!
Japanese Deep Roasted Sesame Dressing
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons white sesame seeds, (see note)
- 3 tablespoons Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise , (see note)
- 3 tablespoons neutral flavoured oil, (see note)
- 1 ½ tablespoons Japanese soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons mirin , (optional, see note)
- 2-3 teaspoons honey or brown sugar, or sub a sweetener of your choice
- ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
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Notes
- (I use avocado oil cuz it's healthy and neutral. If you really want to you can probably use olive oil, but not the extra virgin one cuz that has a strong flavour. You can always try though!)
- Even if you buy your sesame seeds pre-roasted, you can roast them again to refresh them and get them a little bit darker.
- Look for the Kewpie brand for the most "authentic" flavour.
- When choosing Mirin look for a brand that has no corn syrup or sugar added (if possible), such as Eden brand.
FULL VIDEO TUTORIAL
All my recipes come with step-by-step video tutorials with extra tips not mentioned in the blog post, so make sure you watch the video to ensure success. If you enjoy them, consider subscribing to the YouTube Channel to not miss an episode. Thank you!
Subscribe to my YouTube ChannelInstructions
- In a dry saute pan, add the sesame seeds and toast them over medium high heat, stirring constantly. Once they turn golden, turn the heat down to medium and continue toasted until they have a deep, dark brown colour. Once the desired colour is reached, immediately pour onto a plate to cool and stop the toasting.
- Grind the sesame seeds in a mortar and pestle using a swirling motion until most of the seeds are broken up into a fine meal but you can still see some whole seeds. Note: You can also grind sesame seeds in a coffee grinder, but be careful not to over-grind. I would do little pulses.
- Add all remaining ingredients to the mortar (serves as a handy mixing bowl!) and whisk to mix well and make sure the honey is completely dissolved.
- Taste and adjust seasoning to your taste. You can also increase the mayo if you want something thicker and richer. If it's the first time you're making it I recommend tasting it with some actual salad leaves rather than tasting it straight up to get a more accurate idea of where you're at.
- Store in the fridge and mix well before using. This should keep for at least a few weeks.
Ann G says
Made this several times. I cannot do any seed oils but I loved the original kewpie dressing so I decided to try to find a recipe and make my own with clean ingredients. I couldn’t use the kewpie mayo due to ingredients but instead used an avocado based mayo, left out the mirin and it was perfect!
We used it on poke bowls. I did notice the flavor got better after standing in the fridge overnight. And it’s so close to the original and I feel better using ingredients that are approved for my diet.
Thank you for the recipe!
Julie says
Hello! Excited to try this. Instead of the seeds, could I use the Chinese sesame paste that’s made from roasted sesame seeds?
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Hmm, in theory you can, but I don't know how much of it you'd need and I'd be careful not to use too much of it, so add little by little. The texture of your dressing will be smoother, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.
Jeremy says
I've just made this and it's epic. I thought about calling it a day and then proceeded to make the Papaya salad. If you haven't tried this, DO so. Massive thanks Pai
Emily says
Yes! I've made this a few times, tripling the recipe to fill a mason jar. It's less authentic, but I think it works great with any mayo (I try to avoid gums and flavorings). You can always give it a dash of msg, hehe. Also, I use vermouth instead of mirin cuz I have it already for cooking, and again, very yummy! Thanks Pailin!
Suzanne Noble says
Hello Pai, Suzie from SSCst Qld Aust. Having tried the Kewpie DRstd Sesame Dsg in NZ I was in love 😻 with it. Couldn’t bring Mayo into Aust, although it’s a supermarket product over there. 1 litre bottle $15. Label said for export only.
Also it’s ‘Made in Japan unlike many copies from Thailand.
Can I add Xantham gum as I have some for Keto recipes?
Many have Soy bean oil. My thyroid reacts badly to soy tho a small amount of soy sauce is fine. The authentic Japanese has veg oil.
Many thanks for your lovely video.
Can’t wait to try it.
Kindest regards Suzanne.
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Hi Suzanne, the mayo is an important part of this, however you can make your own kewpie mayo using whatever oil works for you. There are many recipes on the internet. Thank you!
minnie says
this exceeded my expectations!!! I was worried it wouldn’t hit the same spot as the classic store-bought version but it’s BETTER! thank u! 💚🤍🖤❤️
Carol B. says
wow, I came here to find an easy recipe so I would not be tempted to go out and buy dressing at the Japenese restaurant her for .85 cents a tablespoon..........but I do not keep most of these things here in my huge already full kitchen......wow, it seems that it would be hard to mix these 9 ingredients spending lots of time and making a big mess and expenditure to have dressing for 5-7 days........wow, wish it was not this very hard.......so sorry
Maddi says
If you cook asian meals frequently you will have almost all of these ingredients in your cupboard. Totally exceeded my expectations for a quick and easy dressing, way better than the store version - and in the long run a lot cheaper too!
Thanks so much for sharing 💖
Joachim P-A says
For those who live in sweden and cant find Eden Mirin you can buy Clearspring Mirin..
That is also no added sugar or e-numbers
Cheryl says
Hihi I just came across your recipe & just wondering if I could sub the veg oil with sesame oil instead? Appreciate your response :))
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Hi! if you're referring to the toasted sesame oil (dark brown version) I think it will be too overpowering. If you're referring to untoasted sesame oil that is light in colour, then that should be fine. You want something relatively neutral in flavour.
Bernadette says
badethsp@gmail.com
Thank you I've been addicted to this roasted sesame kewpie that's why I really looked for it and I made it .. thank you big time 💕
C J says
Hey Pai, do you think Chinese Shiaoxing Cooking Wine would be a good substitute for Mirin in this dressing?
Colby Gill says
In this circumstance no - generally shiaoxing cooking wine has a much stronger chinese-favoured flavour profile (suitable for Chinese dishes and stir fry). Instead I would recommend using a dry white wine (no oaked Chardonnay) I have done this in the past & it has worked quite well.
Rachael says
Oh my gosh I am SO HAPPY right now!! Our Costco no longer carries this dressing, or is out of it at the moment, I don't know. But I immediately knew there had to be a copycat somewhere. So thank you!! I made this and it's just like the Kewpie sesame dressing but even better. It's thinner than I would like but hopefully it'll thicken up a little in the fridge. It's gonna go fast and I'll have to at least double the recipe next time I make it.
Diane says
so happy to see this as I'm just finishing up my bottle of Kewpie Sesame salad dressing -- it is indeed addictive, but I *knew* I could make it myself, and seeing that YOU have a recipe for it made me trust it immediately. your recipes never let me down!
Anna Compton says
How long does this last in the fridge?
Adam from HTK says
Hi Anna and Adam here - and as she mentions above "Store in the fridge and mix well before using. This should keep for at least a few weeks." Cheers!
Amanda says
I don’t normally leave reviews for recipes, but this recipe is THE BEST. 1000x better than store bought, a little bit goes a long way!
I made mine in a 500ml mason jar, and eyeballed the mayo after seeing the measurement the oil went up to (since it separates from the soy etc). Saved time having to measure mayo in a spoon.
I also didn’t have a mortar and pestle or spice grinder. Immersion/stick blender worked perfectly!
Thanks for the recipe!
Pailin Chongchitnant says
Thank you for the review! So glad to hear!
Ben Helvensteijn says
This is so doable. Made it, love it. Bets of all, since you roast the sesame seeds yourself, you can decide how deep you want that roast flavor to be. And of course, while you're at it, you can redirect the flavoring with your own additions.
Moi says
Really appreciate this. I had to make a few changes, several due to ingredient availability in UK. I added large heaped tablespoon of dijon mustard, a truck my hubby tumbled on. It adds a great layer without being a spicy hit. More vinegar, 1T grated ginger and 1 clove garlic. Then i added palm sugar to balance it (sweeter didn't really help) but in part that was bc I only had regular mayo.
I also substituted tahini because we were out of sesame seeds. Second time, having read about really roasting the seeds dark,I tried frying/ roasting the thing in a cast iron pan. Had to keep stirring and flattening the clumps and flipping them, then added 1/2c sesame seed oil. Rather stunned but it worked really well, adding great flavour and depth.
I had this with shredded/ thin strips of Chinese cabbage, cucumber, carrot, sweet peppers and glass noodles. Topped soy cashews ( whole nuts dry fried then a touch of butter, then 1/4 c soy sauce boiled until completely coating nuts.
DUENSI says
Love, love, love this salad dressing. Thank you to for sharing this recipe.
Laurie says
From grandparents to 4-year old, all 3 generations in my family are crazy about this delicious dressing. We also use it as a dipping sauce and to dress steamed vegetables. I've given it as a home-made gift and recipients were more than enthusiastic. I even caught my husband at the frig with the door open, taking a sip straight from the bottle, it's that good!
Florian Rasche says
Unfortunately, this is the very first of your recipes I really did not like at all. I don't know if I made a mistake somewhere, but I ended up throwing my salad away and cooking one of your curries which was MUCH better...
Cathy C. says
I've made this several times, but now am subbing in Swerve for sugar to make it keto. I also have to do these variations: Dry white wine + Swerve for the Mirin; Mayo + rice vinegar + Swerve for the Japanese mayo; and for the honey or brown sugar - just more Swerve. It turned out great and I LOVE this salad dressing. Just like you said Pai, it makes you want to eat salad all the time!! Great recipe, thanks!!
Janet Afia says
I wanted to try this recipe so badly but my family is predominantly vegan and although I can find the Kewpie mayo in my local Asian market, I didn’t want to buy that since it’s not vegan and it was a rather large bottle. But I also stumbled upon a small bottle of the dressing at the store. So I figured, why not buy it to taste and see if I can also get close to it with vegan Mayo. So I substituted vegan Mayo in the recipe and compared to see if I can get the taste similar/close. So I used vegan Mayo, added a bit of garlic powder (I don’t really know why haha). But it was magic!!! I actually liked it waaaay more than the kewpie brand. Every one in my house fell in love with it.
Alyssa says
I didn’t have Mayo so I used tahini instead— worked great!
Claire says
OMG this salad dressing is life changing! I substituted half of the soy sauce with ponzu sauce and it was hands down the best dressing that ever came out of my kitchen! Thank you so much Pailin for this amazing recipe!
Nora says
Thank you Palin! I made this today and it was delicious! We couldn’t find mirin that wasn’t “sweet” so I skipped out in the sugar. The family loved it!
Jackie says
Made it twice already, first time I sub brown sugar with Agave & didn’t have rice vinegar so used apple cider vinegar. Second time I used the Rice Vinegar & tried it with coconut sugar, although I found that it wasn’t sweet enough so added your brown sugar. It’s so easy & yummy! Thank you for all your delicious recipes and for being descriptive about everything!
ratih says
my family live on kewpie sesame seed dressing for several years already. we just love it and so easy to find in asia. unfortunately now we live in europe and buying that dressing become so expensive. i will definitely try this. looks yummy, so thanks
Bill Woods says
Looks good!
Next step: a reverse-engineered recipe for 'Kewpie mayo'.
Jeremy Whigham says
I've just made it a second time with a bit more roasted seeds and mayo but same quantities for other ingredients and I think it tastes even better. Maybe I also roasted the seeds a bit darker than the first time. Used waitrose mayo.
Katherine Pao says
Dear Pailin,
Love your blog and tried a lot of receipes already! All so fantastic!
I happen to be a Mayonnaise hater like Karen! There another Kewpie sauce - Sesame Soja Sauce is without Mayonnaise! Actually it is made by Kewpie Thailand, for me it is even better than the original japanese version! I would LOVE you could decode it for the mayonnaise haters like us! And I promise you will love it as well! It is not so thick like the orignal version and not so heavy either. A sauce that I could eat all days!
I am not sure if you can find it in Canada, I am attaching a link to show you which product it:
https://www.orientalmarket.es/shop/aderezo-de-salsa-de-soja-y-sesamo-kewpie-210ml.html
The web is in spanish, so I list the ingredients here:
Water
Soja sauce
Sugar
Soy oil
Vinager
Sesame
Ginger
Lime juice
Sesame oil
Yeast extract
Salt
Spices
*with emulsionfier of course
Could you plesae de-code it for us as well??? We mayonnaise haters will LOVE YOU!!!!
Karen says
Katherine. You're my hero. I need to find this.
Signed, your fellow mayo-hater in arms.
Katherine says
Hi Karen!
Hope we are lucky enough that Pailin decode it for us!!! Love to know that I am not the only Mayo Hater in the world! 😂
I also found other kewpie dressing with soja sauce / vinager / sugar as the base, then adding yuzu juice or wasabi or onion or black rice vinager... etc., the options are indefinite!!! So when we got this non mayo dressing decoded, we could try with a different touch everyday and never get tired of our green salad! Isn’t it wonderful????
Alyssa says
I hate Mayo so I used tahini in it’s place and it turned out amazing— give it a try!
Pailin Chongchitnant says
I've never had this, but will be on the lookout for it next time I'm at the Japanese store 🙂
Katherine says
Sooooo looking forward to your help tp decode them! Pleaseeeee Pailin! Thank youso much!
Karen says
I have a ridiculous question. This looks great and I want to try it, but I hate (and I mean HAAAAAATE) mayonnaise with a deep, entrenched, full-body-and-soul loathing. It's been twenty years, this is 100% not going to change. Is there anything I can substitute for it?
Angela says
in my opinion, it cannot be substituted. You will not taste the mayo in this...
Edna says
The Japanese mayo tastes different - a bit of sweetness. I grew up eating veggies with this mayo.
Adam The HTK Intern says
Agreed - Japanese mayo is a very different thing as compared to the mayo we have in Canada / the US. Cheers!