Wakame-Sesame Salad with Pickled Onion Garnish

Name: Wakame-Sesame Salad with Pickled Onion Garnish
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: Ingredients Salad 1 ounce (half a package) dried wakame 2 tablespoons tamari 2 tablespoons rice vinegar 1 teaspoon sugar, honey or agave 1 teaspoon dark sesame oil 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced 1 clove garlic, minced 1 pinch red pepper flakes (to taste) 1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted Pickled Onion (optional) 1 small red onion 1/4 cup rice vinegar 2 tablespoons sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt

By:

Robin Asbell

Recipe Information

Total Time:

30 minutes, 20 active

Servings:

Enjoy this mineral-rich wakame salad as a side with a simple rice bowl or a miso soup.

Sea vegetables are loaded with nutritious minerals, and have a briny taste that takes you to the seaside. Enjoy this on the side of a simple rice bowl or a miso soup. The pickled onion garnish is non-traditional, but adds a lively sweet and sour counterpoint to the tamari-laced salad.

Ingredients

Salad

1 ounce (half a package) dried wakame
2 tablespoons tamari
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar, honey or agave
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pinch red pepper flakes (to taste)
1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted

Pickled Onion (optional)

1 small red onion
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation

If you are making the pickled onions, make them first so they have time to soften.
For the seaweed salad, soak the wakame in cool water for about 10 minutes, until softened. Drain well and spread on a kitchen towel to soak up any extra moisture. Move the wakame to a cutting board and sliver in thin strips. Transfer to a bowl.
In a small bowl, combine the tamari, rice vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes. Whisk to combine, then pour over the wakame. Serve sprinkled with sesame seeds and optional pickled onion garnish.
For pickled onions, thinly sliver the onion, and place in a bowl. Add the rice vinegar, sugar and salt and toss with your fingers, breaking up the onions into slivers and mixing to combine well. Let stand for 30 minutes, then remove onions from the brine with a fork and garnish the wakame.