Asian Spinach Salad with Miso Dressing

Here’s a salad to “Impress“. It’s everything a classy summer salad should be and being full of contrasting textures and flavours, this Asian salad recipe is hard not to fall in love with. Not only is it one of the tastiest salads, but it’s also super healthy in addition to being vegan and gluten-free.

The salad itself has very few ingredients – crisp golden Asian pears, baby spinach, carrots and sesame seeds. Asian Pears have the texture of a very juicy apple yet taste like a sweet, ripe pear – earning them the nickname “Apple Pears.” There are a large variety of Asian pears which include the Kosui, Nashi, Olympic and many more. Their shape is round and depending on the variety, their skin colour is pale yellow, gold or tan. The cream-coloured flesh is crisp, crunchy and naturally slow to oxidise or brown, at the same time extremely juicy which make them a perfect addition to a salad. Asian Pears are perfect for eating out of hand as a delightful snack or enjoyed with sharp cheese and slaws.

This Japanese-inspired miso and ginger dressing has a gingery flavour featuring salty and tangy notes from a combination of rice vinegar, soy or tamari sauce, miso, and sesame oil. Unlike store-bought dressings, this one is very healthy without any sugar. Making your own dressing at home guarantees that there are no additives, preservatives, or empty calories and that all ingredients are fresh. You can make this dressing in just five minutes and the leftover dressing can be kept in the fridge for up to a week.

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Ingredients for the Salad:

It is a very simple and easy to whip up salad, and the flavours are bright and fresh, making it perfect for any occasion, as a stunning side salad, and I hope you ENJOY it as much as I do!

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Helpful Tips and Tricks to make Asian Spinach Salad with Miso Dressing:

• Always use baby spinach leaves as they are more tender and have a sweeter flavour than mature spinach.
• The quantity of dressing is more than required for this salad so make sure you don’t add all the dressing when mixing. It can be kept and stored in the fridge for uptown a week for later use.
• Miso had a very salty taste so please do not add any salt to the dressing. After mixing the dressing to the salad, taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly.
• Add the dressing just before serving, else the spinach leaves will wilt.

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Serves: 4 Prep Time: 15 Minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 5.0/5

( 5 voted )

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Ingredients

• 200 grams baby spinach
• 1 carrot, thinly sliced
• 1 golden pear, very thinly sliced
• 2 tsp roasted white sesame seeds

For dressing:

• 2 tbsp groundnut oil
• 1 tbsp white miso
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp tamari sauce / soy sauce
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice 
• 2 tsp ginger, grated
• 1/2 tsp roasted sesame seed oil

method

1. Whisk in all the ingredients of the dressing together in a bowl and keep aside.
2. Wash and dry the spinach, slice the carrot and pear and toss well with the spinach in a mixing bowl.
3. Transfer to serving dish, add half of the dressing and mix well, taste and adjust the amount of dressing as required. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve and enjoy!

Did You Make This Recipe?

If you did, take a picture and tag me on Instagram at @poetryofspices!

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