Creamy Lemon-Miso Dressing

By Samin Nosrat

Updated June 30, 2025

  • Rachel Vanni for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Spencer Richards.
Media 1 of 2
Total Time
15 minutes
Prep Time
5 minutes
Cook Time
10 minutes
Rating
5(541)
Comments
Read comments

If I were a singer-songwriter, I would write a power ballad about my love for Kismet Rotisserie in Los Angeles. The shoebox-size, mostly takeout restaurant serves the kind of food I’d eat every day if I lived in the neighborhood: golden roast chicken, fluffy pita and perfectly seasoned side dishes piled high with vegetables. But what I love most are its sauces and dressings. Especially its miso-poppy seed dressing, which I set out to re-create a couple of years ago. At some point, though, my journey took a detour, landing me here with this recipe from my book, “Good Things” (Random House, 2025), at what just might be my new favorite all-purpose dressing. Tangy, sweet, creamy and rounded out with umami, it manages to hit every note you could want in a dressing without being cloying. Add some poppy seeds for classic flavor or leave them out to make the dressing more versatile for drizzling over roasted vegetables, in potato salad or anywhere else you can imagine.

Featured in: 3 Salad Dressings You Should Memorize

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

    Subscribe

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

    or to print this recipe.

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:About 2 cups

  • ¼ cup aquafaba (See Tips)

  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

  • 4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, divided, plus more as needed

  • ¾ cup sunflower oil

  • ¼ cup sugar

  • 2 packed teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

  • ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more as needed

  • 3 tablespoons white miso

  • 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

  • 1 teaspoon onion powder

  • ¼ teaspoon celery seeds

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed

  • 2 tablespoons poppy seeds (optional), lightly toasted

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving

22 grams carbs; 484 calories; 19 grams monosaturated fat; 17 grams polyunsaturated fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 44 grams fat; 2 grams fiber; 521 milligrams sodium; 4 grams protein; 15 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a liquid measuring cup or wide-mouth jar, combine the aquafaba, mustard and 1 tablespoon of the vinegar. With an immersion blender running on high speed, drizzle the oil in a thin stream to blend and make the aquafaba “mayonnaise.”

  2. Step 2

    In another wide-mouth jar, blend together the remaining 3 tablespoons vinegar and the sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, miso, garlic, onion powder, celery seeds and salt until smooth. Return the blender to the aquafaba mayonnaise, and with the blender running at high speed, drizzle in the lemon-miso mixture. Stir in the poppy seeds, if desired. Taste and adjust with salt, vinegar and lemon juice as needed.

  3. Step 3

    Cover and refrigerate remaining dressing for up to 1 week.

Tips

  • Aquafaba is the liquid left over from cooking beans and is often used for its thickening properties. The liquid from a can of chickpeas works well here.

  • To make roasted broccoli, gently massage finely grated lemon zest onto dark-roasted broccoli when you take it out of the oven, then let it cool a bit. When it’s nearly room temperature, transfer to a serving platter, drizzle generously with the dressing, garnish with finely chopped parsley or chives, and serve.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

5 out of 5
541 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

Karing

Is there a good substitute for the aquafaba?

Susie Homemaker

P.S. to my earlier comment on aquafaba: While it is used as a vegan substitute for egg whites in baking recipes, note that this is only because it functions as egg whites do in baking. Its nutritional value, however, is nowhere near that of egg whites. (Aquafaba is essentially starchy water, while egg whites are about 75% protein by weight.)

RM

2 egg whites

Si,on

Do you mean Miso paste?

Kharin Gilbert

One T sugar is more than enough! Otherwise wonderful.

JFS

Used the liquid from a can of chickpeas, roasted said chickpeas with olive oil and spices in a 400-degree F oven for 30 min (shaking the pan once), and threw on top of a huge salad with a double batch of this dressing. Five people asked me for the recipe.

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

or to save this recipe.