Creamy Soy-Sesame-Lime Vinaigrette

that my friend Maddie recreated after we ate a $32 wedge of charred cabbage at a fancy restaurant

When I did a reading in Connecticut last fall, Maddie and I were taken out by beautiful old friends of mine to a beautiful restaurant where Maddie ordered a $32 cabbage entree that we became mildly obsessed with. Like every other thing we ate that night, including something called “Bread and Butter” (which was bread and butter), it was good in that kind of otherworldly way, where each bite triggers Hallelujah! by a chorus of caroling angels. I know, because I was very present in Maddie’s experience of eating it insofar as I was leaning towards her fork with my open baby-bird mouth every other second.

Here it was on the menu. Probably the cabbage itself was braised in cream? But cream in the vinaigrette is a revelation.

Thus commenced Our Season of the Holy Recreation of the Expensive Cabbage Dish.

I was not there for this particular iteration, but it was apparently very good.

This experimentation culminated in a meal we had at Maddie’s house where she completely nailed the dressing. And then she texted me the fragments of the recipe and then, just this past weekend, I served it back to her and (excuse my characteristic lack of humbleness) it was amazing.

I neither wedged the cabbage nor charred it, but I did cut it up and roast it with olive oil, as per this recipe. Also I made brown rice and this tofu, so the vibe was more bowls than fancy expensive cabbage. But WOW was it good. Because the vinaigrette.

I don’t think I’d ever put half and half in a vinaigrette before? It seemed weird—like the lime juice would curdle it. But it didn’t. Instead it made this rich, almost fluffy dressing that is an absolute dream: tangy and savory and with not quite enough lime or sesame or ginger that you would identify the dressing as tasting like one of those things—but enough that it tastes hauntingly like all of them.

I wish this photograph captured the bright umami brilliance of it.

Creamy Soy-Sesame-Lime Vinaigrette
There are so many ways you could adapt this. For example, you could add some tahini and water (or raw cashews and water) and skip the half and half, I’m sure. Or you could add miso or skip the garlic or the ginger or add something spicy, which I almost did out of habit but then didn’t. I made this on Saturday night and then I made it again yesterday. It is great on a green salad or on cabbage or brown brice. I bet it would be great on pasta or roasted squash or on any other thing. I made a weird salad last night that was chopped cabbage, sliced celery, broccoli sprouts (obsessed), and rotisserie chicken, and this was perfect on it. It’s the kind of dressing where you lick the spoon before putting it in the sink.

The juice and finely grated zest of 1 lime
1 (1/3-inch) slice of fresh ginger, peeled and smashed
1 small garlic clove, smashed and peeled
2 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
1 or 2 tablespoons honey
1 or 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup half and half (or cream)

Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend until creamy and smooth. Taste for balance: it should be perfectly tangy-salty-sweet-creamy. If it needs more of anything (lime zest or juice, tamari, honey, sesame, ginger, cream) add it and then taste again. It might take a bit of tinkering so try not to be in a rush during this part because you also want it to be nice and creamy, so if it’s too runny then you’ll probably want to add more cream or oil. This makes about 3/4 cup, but you could easily double it. Leftovers should keep well in the fridge for about 3 or 4 days—just stir or shake it up well since it has a slight inclination to separate.

Yay, bitey plants!