Salad salad (a noodle-based salad). The sauce used to flavor a salad is commonly called a salad dressing; most salad dressings are based on either a mixture of oil and vinegar or a fermented milk product like kefir. Salads may be served at any point during a meal: The word "salad" comes from the French "salade" of the same meaning, from the Latin "salata" (salty), from "sal" (salt). In English, the word first appears as "salad" or "sallet" in the 14th century. Salt is associated with salad because vegetables were seasoned with brine or salty oil-and-vinegar dressings during Roman times. The
Rice vinegar dishes"), "tsukemono" (漬物, "pickles"), "nimono" (煮物, "simmered dishes"), as well as in marinades to mitigate the stronger odours of certain fishes and meats. Seasoned rice vinegar (合わせ酢 "awasezu") is made by adding sake, salt and sugar. Additionally, mirin is also sometimes used (but only rarely). Although it can be made at home, prepared awasezu can also be readily bought at supermarkets. Seasoned rice vinegar is added to cooked rice to be used in making sushi. It is also used in salad dressing varieties popular in the west, such as ginger or sesame dressing. A somewhat lighter form of black vinegar