Zesty and bold, our chilli soy dressing combines the umami richness of soy sauce with a hint of heat from chilli flakes. Ready in minutes, it's a salad dressing recipe that uses simple ingredients with a big impact!
For this salad dressing with soy sauce, make it before you start your salad. You need to let the garlic do its work and allow it time to infuse with the rest of the ingredients.
Crush one garlic clove to release its pungent aromas.
Add the crushed garlic in the mixing bowl. Add rice wine vinegar, lime juice, fish sauce and soy sauce.
Then add the chilli flakes and mix until well combined.
Leave it for a minimum of 30 minutes. You can always make this ahead of time and leave it overnight.
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Notes
If you're not a fan of lime or it's not in season, so it's not affordable, lemon or even orange would work well.
f you don't have rice wine vinegar, substitute with white wine vinegar or even a touch of apple cider vinegar. The flavour profile might differ slightly, but it will still be delicious.
Adding ginger to a soy sauce salad dressing is a marriage made in heaven as it infuses a warm, aromatic flavour. Just grate a small knob into the dressing. Try our ginger soy dressing recipe.
This quick soy sauce dressing is oil free however it would work well with a teaspoon of sesame oil. This just enhances the nutty flavour profile.
For a gluten-free salad dressing, substitute soy sauce with tamari.
For a vegan salad dressing version, replace fish sauce with a splash of coconut aminos or vegan Worcestershire sauce. Achieves a similar umami flavour without animal products.
To elevate the recipe with vibrant green flavours, try adding Asian-friendly herbs such as cilantro, Thai basil, or mint.
This recipe would work with fresh bird's eye chilli. Remove the seeds to tame the spice levels. Otherwise, just chop them up and add them to the dressing. Let it sit for 10 minutes for the heat to infuse into the liquid. Alternatively, some Asian hot sauce such as sriracha, sambal oelek and Lao Gan Ma chilli oil would set this recipe on fire too!
Use fresh ingredients for a great recipe. Use fresh garlic and lime for the best flavour. Garlic powder won't infuse the dressing with its pungent flavours, while freshly squeezed lime juice will provide a brighter, more vibrant flavour compared to bottled juice. High quality soy sauce and fish sauce also make a difference and are well worth the investment. You can use these sauces for a myriad of cooking adventures.
Crush the garlic so that it releases its oils. Allow the garlic to marinate in the dressing for at least 30 minutes as it helps infuse the flavours and mellows out the sharpness of the garlic.
If you have opted to use fresh chilli, allow it to infuse into the dressing too.
For the best flavour, refrigerate the dressing for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavours to meld together.