12.Jun.2012 Japanese recipe: bean sprout salad
A quick side dish
Not every Japanese recipe has to be a fussy one and today’s offering is a great example. It uses basic ingredients and there’s virtually no cooking involved but it’s still a winner in terms of flavour and texture. The sweet, salty and nutty dressing gives this Japanese recipe its special edge and the crunchy texture makes it perfect to have with a nice piece of chicken, beef or fish. Easy to transport in containers too, I often make this if we have a Japanese themed picnic and can’t bring hot dishes that need to be eaten straight away.
Using ingredients that are easy to find at your local supermarket and store cupboard condiments, this is a Japanese recipe everyone should have up their sleeve when cooking needs to be quick, tasty and stress free.
Image by orchidgalore, Flickr.
Japanese recipe: bean sprout salad
Ingredients
- 500g bean sprouts
- 2 sticks celery – chopped
- 1 cup – julienned carrots
Dressing
You may want to tweak the quantities depending on how salty or sweet you like the dressing.
- 2 ½ tbsp. soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar or mirin
- ¾ tbsp. caster sugar
- 2 tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
- Pinch of salt
Method
Blanch the bean shoots in boiling water for 1 minute, quickly drain and combine with celery and carrots in a bowl. Smash the sesame seeds in a mortar and pestle to create a sticky paste and to this add the remaining dressing ingredients. Toss through salad and serve straight away or cover with cling film and serve cold.
Simple though it is, when it comes to quick Japanese recipes this is a winner. I especially love cold with a bit of chicken karaage or fried fish.
