Chinese Spinach Salad with Ginger Dressing

Note: This recipe was originally published in April 2017. The revised version includes minor recipe alteration and process photos.

If you’re familiar with Chinese cuisine, particularly the home cooking style, you’d know how much leafy greens are appreciated. Spinach, among many others, is one of the most-loved options. You can find it in salads, stir-fries, soups, and even colored dumpling dough.

Today’s recipe, spinach salad with ginger dressing (Jiāng Zhī Bō Cài/姜汁菠菜), is a popular cold dish commonly seen on restaurant menus. It takes just a few ingredients and a little effort to make, and the taste is so rewarding! It’s a great addition to my summer recipe collection.

 

Love leafy greens? Check out these recipes on the blog: Garlic Bok Choy, Water Spinach Stir-Fry, Gai Lan Two Ways, Oyster Sauce Lettuce.

Ingredients

About the spinach

The type of spinach used in Chinese cuisine is called savoy spinach, a variety that has dark green, wrinkled leaves, unlike regular spinach which has flat and rather smooth leaves.

I prefer savoy spinach for its stronger “spinach” taste: earthy and nutty with a sweet undertone. Although it’s safe to eat savoy spinach raw, it’s best to give it a quick blanch to bring out its best flavor.

🌟 TIP: You may use regular flat-leafed spinach as a substitute. In this case, shorten the blanching time to just a few seconds. 

For the dressing 

To season this spinach salad, you’ll need the following:

• Ginger
• Light soy sauce
• Black rice vinegar
• Salt and sugar
• Sesame oil
• Toasted sesame seeds, for garnishing

🌟 TIP: You can replace ginger with garlic for a different, yet equally delicious, taste. Alternatively, use a mix of both.

Cooking process

Step 1: blanch the spinach

I like blanching the spinach whole without separating the leaves. Also, I always keep the pinkish root part as I enjoy its earthy sweetness which is less pronounced in the leaves.

Bring a pot of water to a full boil then add some salt. Put in the spinach and press it down to fully immerse in the water.

Once it starts to wilt, drain and promptly rinse it under cold water to prevent further cooking.

Once it cools down, use your hands to squeeze the spinach to remove any excess water.

Step 2: prepare the dressing

I usually use a fine grater (e.g. Microplane) to grate the ginger into a juicy paste. Compared to mincing it with a knife, this method maximizes the ginger taste and improves the mouthfeel of the dressing. A pestle and mortar does the job too.

In a small bowl, mix the ginger paste with black rice vinegar, light soy sauce, sesame oil, and sugar.

Step 3: Assemble the dish

Inspired by the restaurant version of this dish, I cut the spinach into sections, about 2 inches/5 cm long, and then stack them up neatly on a serving plate.

Give the dressing another stir then pour it all over the spinach pile. Finish by sprinkling some toasted sesame seeds over.

Other tasty salads

Looking for more refreshing cold dishes? Have a look at these popular ones:

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