Springtime Salads
21 April 2009
We've recently had plenty of beautiful, temperate, extremely pleasant spring days here in Tokyo. It is such a joy to feel the fresh air in your face when you leave the house, so revitalizing! It seems to me that days for heavy soups and stews are finally over for this season, and I’ve taken to cooking lighter stuff instead, like lots of salads. Despite my on-going love affair with simple tomatoes with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and the (as I believe) unmatched salad herb mixture from Swiss supermarket chain Migros (my mother-in-law sends me regular supplies), I have recently widened my repertoire as I keep experimenting with Japanese flavours and condiments, which I really take great pleasure in.
The following is one of my favourites, and I’ve been making it fairly often lately. It’s mainly based on daikon, or Japanese radish, and contains lots of nutty-tasting black sesame seeds. I think the crab meet I often add is a wonderful fit, but it is totally fine to leave it away, too, if you’re looking to make an even simpler or lighter side dish. When I need a quick solution, I often don’t bother to squeeze fresh yuzu fruits but just replace them with yuzu ponzu sauce, which I always keep at home (in this case, I don’t add any more soy sauce). If you can't get hold of either, just try with a different citrus fruit. I'm sure it will be just as tasty and refreshing!
Yuzu-Dressed Daikon and Crab Salad
| serves 4 |
| 350g daikon |
| 200g cooked crab meat |
| juice of 2 yuzu fruits
(or just some yuzu ponzu sauce to taste) |
| about 4 teaspoons freshly grated ginger |
| Japanese rice vinegar to taste |
| soy sauce to taste |
| a few sprinkles of dark sesame oil |
| 2 tablespoons toasted black sesame seeds |
Peel the daikon and "julienne" into about 4-5cm long, very fine strips. Slightly salt the daikon and let it rest until it gets very soft and releases some water. Make sure to drain it very well before further processing!
Cut or simply tear apart the cooked crab meat length-wise, i.e. just following the structure of the meat. Combine with the daikon and add the black sesame seeds.
For the dressing, mix the yuzu juice, the sushi vinegar as well as some soy sauce to taste (be careful, as the daikon is already slightly salted), and finish with a few drops of dark sesame oil (not too much, as it should not dominate).
Add the dressing to the salad, stir well and serve!
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