Best Japanese Style Salad Recipes

FAMOUS JAPANESE RESTAURANT-STYLE SALAD DRESSING

Steps:

• In a blender, combine the minced onion, peanut oil, rice vinegar, water, ginger, celery, ketchup, soy sauce, sugar, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper . Blend on high speed for about 30 seconds or until all of the ingredients are well-pureed.

JAPANESE STYLE CUCUMBER AND RADISH SALAD

Steps:

• Combine onion, radishes and cucumber in a medium bowl.
• Combine vinegar and next 4 ingredients in a small bowl; stir until well blended.
• Drizzle vinegar mixture over cucumber mixture, tossing to coat.
• Cover and chill 15 minutes.
• Sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving.

MAKOTO-STYLE JAPANESE SALAD DRESSING

Steps:

• Combine ingredients in a blender and process until fairly smooth.
• Store in the refrigerator.

JAPANESE-STYLE CABBAGE SALAD

Steps:

• Whisk together sesame oil, vinegar, garlic, ginger, sugar, salt, and pepper in a small bowl until the sugar has dissolved. Toss the cabbage, green onions, almonds, and sesame seeds in a large bowl with the dressing until well coated.

JAPANESE-STYLE MISO SALAD DRESSING

Steps:

• Shake together first 4 ingredients in a small jar.
• Drizzle over prepared salad/vegetables.
• Sprinkle over sesame seeds.

JAPANESE-STYLE TUNA NOODLE SALAD

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high, and set the wakame in a small bowl. Once the water comes to a boil, ladle or pour enough over the wakame to cover it by 2 inches; let the wakame soak for 10 minutes. Transfer the wakame to a colander to drain and cool; set aside.
• While the wakame soaks, cook the noodles according to the package instructions.
• Meanwhile, prepare the dressing: In a measuring cup or bowl, whisk to combine the sesame oil, canola oil, rice wine vinegar, mirin, soy sauce and miso; set aside.
• In a small skillet, lightly toast the sesame seeds, if using, over medium-low heat until fragrant; set aside.
• Drain the cooked noodles in the colander, then transfer to a wide, shallow serving bowl. Add the wakame and about 3/4 of the dressing, and toss to coat. Divide the noodles among 4 bowls. Top each portion with tuna, drizzle with the remaining dressing, then sprinkle with the scallions and furikake or sesame seeds. Serve hot, cold or anywhere in between.

JAPANESE-STYLE CUCUMBER SALAD WITH SESAME DRESSING

Steps:

• Cut the cucumbers in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon.
• Cut up the cucumber into bite sized pieces. Bash them up a bit with the side of your kitchen knife - this allows the dressing to sink into them.
• Toast the sesame seeds in a dry frying pan, shaking occasionally, until a few seeds pop. Immediately transfer the seeds to a plate (if you leave them in the pan they may get burned).
• Mix the lemon juice, vinegar, soy sauce, dashi stock granules and sugar together until the sugar has dissolved. Taste, and add a pinch of salt if you think it needs it. Add the sesame oil (or you can just drizzle on the sesame oil when you assemble the salad).
• Combine the cucumbers with the dressing and the sesame seeds. Serve right away or leave to marinate in the refrigerator for a stronger flavor.
• Note: If you're using small Japanese cucumbers any other small, immature cucumber, you don't need to de-seed them. Just cut them up and bash a bit. (This bashing thing, is a real cooking method in Japanese cooking. It helps the flavors to penetrate the bashed up vegetable better.).
• If you use white balsamic vinegar instead of the rice or white wine vinegar, you can decrease or even omit the sugar.
• This sesame dressing is very versatile. Try it with any number of vegetables. It's great on a leafy green salad. You can increase the sesame oil if you want it to have a richer sesame flavor. Add some chili pepper flakes to make it spicy, and/or some grated garlic for a more Korean-tasting twist.Add some shredded poached chicken breast to the cucumbers for a more substantial salad.

JAPANESE (STYLE) SALAD DRESSING

Steps:

• In a blender, combine the minced onion, peanut oil, rice vinegar, water, ginger, celery, ketchup, soy sauce, sugar, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper . Blend on high speed for about 30 seconds or until all of the ingredients are well-pureed.

SQUID SALAD OR OCTOPUS SALAD - JAPANESE STYLE

Steps:

• Wash, pat dry and cut salad leaves into bite-size pieces, then arrange the salad leaves into serving dish. Set aside.
• For the squid/octopus cut the body and legs into 1.5 cm thick then season with salt and pepper.
• Heat the olive oil in a frying pan, add the garlic and fry until you can smell its aroma.
• Add the squid/octopus into the pan with the garlic and cook until done. Squid/octopus' colour will change and it will no longer be transparent, Please NOTE do not overcook as it will becomes tough.
• Remove from heat and place on top of the prepared salad leaves in serving dish.
• Return frying pan to the heat, add the soy sauce, ginger, sugar and mix well with any remaining cooking juices from the squid/octopus, making sure that all the sugar dissolves.
• Pour dressing on top of squid/octopus then sprinkle some chilli powder or shichimi togarashi.
• If there is a lot of dressing you could serve it separately and dinners could help themselves if they wish for more dressing.
• Enjoy.

ASPARAGUS SALAD, JAPANESE-STYLE

Steps:

• Cut off the woodsy bottoms of the asparagus spears; discard. Cut off the flower ends and set aside.
• Use a vegetable peeler to remove the dark green outer skin of each spear; you should get three or four ribbons from each one. Set aside. Cut the remaining stalks crosswise into 1/4-inch rounds. Combine ribbons, sliced rounds and tips in a bowl.
• Toast the sesame seeds in a small dry skillet over medium-heat, shaking occasionally until they color and begin to pop, but remove from heat before they burn. Combine the seeds with sesame oil, rice vinegar, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Taste and adjust as necessary. Spoon over the asparagus and toss gently.

JAPANESE-STYLE POTATO SALAD WITH DAIKON AND CUCUMBER

Steps:

• For dressing:
• Whisk first 6 ingredients in small bowl. Mix in celery and onion. Season with salt. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill.)
• For salad:
• Steam potatoes until tender, about 12 minutes. Transfer potatoes to large bowl; mash coarsely. Steam daikon and carrot until tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl. Mix 1 1/2 cups dressing into mashed potatoes. Cool to barely lukewarm.
• Gently mix daikon, carrot, and remaining vegetables into potatoes. Season with salt and pepper.
• *Available at some supermarkets and at Asian markets.

JAPANESE-STYLE MARINATED MUSHROOM SALAD

Steps:

• Make marinated mushrooms: Place soy, mirin, peanut oil, sesame oil, garlic and ginger in a glass or ceramic bowl, and stir until well-combined. Add mushrooms and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours.
• Place Asian greens, cucumber, capsicum and marinated mushrooms in a large bowl. Toss to combine.
• Serve as an accompaniment to lamb, beef or chicken.

GOMAE - JAPANESE STYLE SPINACH SALAD

Steps:

• Toast sesame seeds until slightly brown, you will smell the scent of the sesame seeds when it's ready.
• Reserve small amount of the sesame seed for the garnish.
• Place the rest on a plate and crush (you could do this in a processor as well), then place in a bowl.
• Add water, soy, sugar into the bowl with the sesame seed. (If you are using the food processor then add these ingredients into the processor). Set aside until Spinach is ready.
• To cook the spinach: Add a pinch of salt into a pot of boiling hot water. Mix then add spinach for one minute (ONLY ONE MINUTE or the recipe is ruined).
• Pour the spinach and water into a colander and run cold tap water to cool down the spinach, this will stop it from cooking more.
• Squish the spinach with your hands, until all the moister is out of the spinach (you are only left with a small hand full of spinach).
• Cut spinach into strips (You could skip this part).
• Place spinach onto serving bowls and drizzle the dressing onto the spinach, then add reserved sesame seed as garnish.
• Enjoy Chef floWers Gomae - Japanese Style Spinach Salad.
• www dot recipezaar dot com.

JAPANESE STYLE CUCUMBER SALAD

Steps:

• Wash cucumber very well, or peel it.
• Cut cucumber in half crosswise and then in half lengthwise. Remove seeds.
• Thinly slice cucumber and place in a glass bowl.
• Thickness depends on how crisp you want the cucumbers to be when finished. Thicker = Crisper, but Thinner = Yummier!
• Place remaining ingredients into a magic bullet jar or a small food processor bowl. Process for about 30 seconds or until the mint looks like small specks.
• Pour marinade over sliced cucumbers, mix well and refrigerate for at least an hour.
• To serve, I usually place in individual shallow white prep bowls or little japanese ceramic serving dishes, spooning a little bit of the marinade over the top.

JAPANESE-STYLE CUCUMBER SALAD

Steps:

• 1. Cut the cucumbers in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon. Cut up the cucumbers into bite-sized pieces.
• 2. Toast the sesame seeds in a dry frying pan, shaking occasionally, until a few seeds pop. Immediately transfer the seeds to a plate.
• 3. Mix the lemon juice, vinegar, soy sauce, dashi stock granules and sugar together until the sugar has dissolved. Taste, and add a pinch of salt if you think it needs it. Add the sesame oil.
• 4. Combine the cucumbers with the dressing and the sesame seeds. Serve right away or leave to marinate in the refrigerator for a stronger flavor.

POTATO SALAD JAPANESE STYLE

Steps:

• Wash the potatoes and carrots but do not peel. (This makes the vegetable fresh and gives them good texture).
• Place in a hot steamer and cook for about 25 minutes over a medium heat, taking care to top up the water from time to time as needed. Prick the vegetables with a toothpick or skewer to see if cooked and remove when done.
• Peel the potatoes and carrots while hot and then transfer the potatoes to a bowl and roughly break up. Mix in the chicken stock powder and leave to cool.
• Chop the carrots in half length ways and slice into 5 mm thick semi-circular pieces. You can make quarter -button shapes by chopping the halves carrot again length ways before slicing.
• Cut the cucumber in half lengthways and use a spoon, remove the seeds. Cut each half again lengthways and then slice into 5 mm thick pieces. In a separate bowl, sprinkle salt over the cucumber and leave for about 2-3 minutes to soften, then squeeze to remove excess liquid. Cut the onion in half, slice and soak in water to remove any bitterness, then drain and pat dry.
• When the potato is cool, add the carrots, cucumber and onions and lightly mix. Stir in the mayonnaise, salt and pepper and serve.
• Variations: You can make this salad look even more interesting by serving it in individual portions (about the size of an egg) and add a slice of hard-boiled egg.

JAPANESE-STYLE RICE SALAD

Steps:

• Cook rice in abundant salted water, as you would pasta, until it's just done; white rice will take 10 to 15 minutes, brown 30 or a little longer. Drain, rinse in cold water, drain again, then combine with vegetables and tofu in a large bowl.
• Put black pepper, miso, water or sake, sugar, mirin or honey, and vinegar in a small bowl, and whisk together. Taste, and add more vinegar and a pinch of salt, if needed.
• Combine rice mixture with miso dressing with 2 big forks, fluffing rice and tossing gently to separate grains.
• Crumble nori over salad and sprinkle with sesame seeds, taste, and adjust seasoning or moisten with a little more dressing. Serve at room temperature, or refrigerate for up to a day, bringing salad back to room temperature before serving.

CUCUMBER SALAD - JAPANESE STYLE

Steps:

• Peel skin from cucumbers and slice off ends. Slice crosswise in very thin slices. Marinate in mixture of remaining ingredients. Chill in the marinade an hour or longer (even overnight). Serves 4-6. (A Ziplock bag works very well for marinating in refrigerator, just turn bag over every few hours.)

JAPANESE-STYLE RICE SALAD

Steps:

• Cook rice in abundant salted water, as you would pasta, until it's just done; white will take 10-15 minutes, brown 30 minutes or more. Drain, rinse in cold water, drain again, then combine with vegetables and tofu in a large bowl.
• Put black pepper, miso, water or sake, sugar, mirin or honey, and vinegar in a small bowl and whisk together. Taste and add more vinegar and a pinch of salt if needed.
• Combine rice mixture with miso dressing with 2 big forks, fluffing rice and tossing gently to separate grains.
• Crumble nor over salad and sprinkle with sesame seeds, taste, and adjust seasoning or moisten with a little more dressing. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate up to a day, bringing salad back to room temperature before serving.

JAPANESE-STYLE SALAD

Steps:

• Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and cook until soft and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Allow to cool slightly.
• Place shredded radish in a large salad bowl. Layer lettuce on top. Arrange mushrooms and wakame on top of lettuce. Sprinkle bonito flakes on wakame. Drizzle with tamari just before serving, making the bonito flakes "dance."