Korean Lettuce Salad

Korean Lettuce Salad takes your favorite Korean flavors and tosses them with chopped lettuce and veggies for a savory salad you can enjoy anytime.

This simple lettuce salad really brings the flavor thanks to the spicy Korean dressing. It can be ready in minutes and is a delicious change from mixed greens with bottled dressing many of us default to. It’s great alongside grilled meats or with rice.

Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.

Jump To:

1. What Is Korean Lettuce Salad?
2. Salad Dressing Ingredients
3. More Salad Recipes
4. Korean Lettuce Salad Recipe

What Is Korean Lettuce Salad?

Korean Lettuce Salad is an easy side dish that pairs really well with marinated and grilled meats. If you’ve been to any Korean BBQ restaurants, you’ve likely had a version of this dish. It has a spicy, tangy vinaigrette that complements rich meats and adds a ton of flavor and personality to rice. 

It can be as simple as lettuce and dressing, but cucumber, fresh herbs, and thinly sliced white onion are all common additions. I like crunchy Romaine lettuce for mine, but any crisp lettuce can be used. Red leaf lettuce is another popular choice.

Salad Dressing Ingredients

This delicious salad dressing is made with soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, Korean pepper flakes, sesame oil, and a small amount of sugar to balance it out. Then we mix in a minced clove of garlic, some green onion, and sesame seeds. 

This easy recipe gets its heat from the gochukaru, a blend of coarsely ground red peppers that’s commonly used on Korean cooking. You can find these Koran pepper flakes at Asian supermarkets or purchase gochukaru online from Amazon.

More Salad Recipes

Looking for more delicious fresh salads? Browse all our salad recipes or try one of the favorites below.

• Best Tossed Salad Recipe
• Chinese Chicken Salad
• Wilted Lettuce Salad
• Cucumber Mint Salad

Korean Lettuce Salad Recipe

Contributor: Lauren Keating

Korean Lettuce Salad takes your favorite Korean flavors and tosses them with chopped lettuce and veggies for a savory salad you can enjoy anytime.

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5 from 1 review

• Author: Lauren Keating
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 0 min
• Total Time: 10 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x
• Category: Side Dish
• Method: No-Cook
• Cuisine: Korean

Print Recipe

Ingredients

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• 2 Tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. gochukaru (Korean pepper flakes)
• 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. sesame seeds
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 green onions, white and green parts sliced
• 1 head romaine lettuce, shredded
• 1/2 seedless cucumber, chopped
• 1/4 small white onion, thinly sliced
• 2 Tbsp. cilantro

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Instructions

1. In a large salad bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, pepper flakes, sesame oil, and sugar until combined.
2. Stir in the sesame seeds, garlic, and green onions.
3. Add the lettuce, cucumber, onion, and cilantro to the bowl. Toss to coat with dressing.

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This post originally appeared in May 2019 and was revised and republished in May 2024.