Osaka Ginger Dressing

Once a year my boss takes the staff and volunteers out to lunch as a thank you for the hard work.  One of these lunches took us to a place called The Mustard Seed where I was first exposed to Osaka Ginger Dressing.  Oh, baby!  That stuff is so good.  It is thick and creamy and gingery and wonderful.  I've been to eat at that restaurant (now reconfigured as the very similar Noodle Express: A Mustard Seed Company) three or four times now and that is what I get each time--Tofu Osaka--delight in a bowl.

However, I do not eat out much at all.  It is overpriced and I am frugal and a good cook.  Also, I can't control the type or quality of ingredients used.  Thus, I knew I wasn't going to get this detectible sauce very often unless I figured out how to recreate it in my own kitchen.  After a bit of research on the internet (where I learned this was a quest for lots of other people as well) I came up with the following recipe.  Its not quite the same, but it is close enough for me.

Osaka Ginger Dressing
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 Tablespoons ginger root, peeled and grated
1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon celery seed

1/2 teaspoon ketchup

1/4 cup onion, chopped
1/4 C sesame seed (toasted or not)
1/3 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup white vinegar

pinch of white pepper
tiny splash of sesame oil (optional)

Using a blender combine all the ingredients except the soy sauce and vinegar.  Blend for about 30 seconds.  Add soy sauce and vinegar and blend for another 30 second or so.  It should be sort of frothy or creamy when you are done.  Use the dressing as a marinade and/or as a stir-fry sauce.  

If you have a Vitamix or other high-powered blender don't bother peeling and grating the fresh ginger.  Toss in a hefty knob and let the machine do the work.

I bet you can store it in the fridge for a good while, but I'll be honest and say that when I've made it at home it hasn't lasted long enough for me to find out.

Update April 2018:  I now make a variation of this to use as a salad dressing, too.