Salade de crudités updated : veggie nori-maki

Once upon a time, we’d serve the crudités on a large plate, even with the sauce mixed in with each type of vegetable. For guests, Granny would display them on huge (imitation) silver trays.

That looked like that.
Grated carrot, sliced Japanese turnip, sliced new onion, greens, edamame (they have to be boiled).

Then this became popular to make sushi… So why not rolling in the veggies ?

(Do you notice something weird on the photo ? You should… I had a problem after the shooting session. LOL)

And serving the dressing (soy sauce, black rice vinegar and chili pepper) as a dip.

Green nest sushi

That’s my ideal. Good simple food. With a twist.
Here is a new version of mehari-zushi (sushi in pickled leaf). Again ? Well, those leaves can be stored years when you buy them -or when you make them properly. But mines have to be eaten within the week…

Hatsuga genmai (germinated brown rice) and ukon (turmeric). This yellow spice is a common addition to the pickle.

Green egg shaped edamame (boiled green soy beans).

Wrapped in leaves of takana (mustard greens, pickled). So technically, they are not sushi without vinegar, but they become sour enough thanks to the leaves.

about takana-zuke (click here)

With sencha green tea. That’s all what you need.

Baba Osaka

Today’s baba is very Japanese. The biscuit is soaked in matcha green tea, and it is topped with an anko sweet bean paste.
I had a few mini-savarin left, getting stale (see recipe here).

I soaked the babas in thick sweetened matcha (green tea for ceremony). Let overnight.

I had no azuki beans in stock, so I’ve used other red beans (taisho kintoki beans), sweetened with vanilla sugar.

That’s it. I’ve sprinkled a little more matcha and sugar on top.

The baba was fully soaked, but weirdly the color didn’t pass everywhere.

Mehari sushi, thyme veggies…

My beloved mehari-zushi (pickled leaf sushi) are back…

With them, some thyme flavored veggies. I baked 2 small eggplants, then cut them. Added shishito green peppers. New onion. Olive oil. Salt. And fresh thyme. All that reheated together. Mmmm…

Today’s salad : Red cabbage, natto, spices and lemon juice.

Take a leaf of pickled takana (Japanese mustard leaves). Fill it with freshly cooked rice. That’s it.
I have hatsuga mai (polished germinated rice).
takana-zuke pickles DIY

Nice green balls. I didn’t fill them with anything. I like simple food.

Takana-zuke pickled leaves at home (failed and corrected)

高菜 takana (literally ‘tall leaves’) is a type of large mustard green very popular in Japan. There are even different types of it. Usually it is prepared in tsukemono (pickled) called 高菜漬 takana-zuke.

First weight the leaves. Then wash them under fresh water and put them to dry outside in the sun.

After 2 hours : They are dry, still soft.

Necessary ingredient : 2% of the weight of leaves of natural sea salt.
Optional for flavoring : a piece of kombu seaweed, a dry chili

Put the salt all around the leaves. I put some on the stalk and fold in 2. Put them in a freezing bag with the flavorings.
After 15 minutes, they are already softer, push out the air and close the bag. Place in the fridge.
You are supposed to press the veggies in a pickle press. I have no idea where mine is. So I squeezed the veggies very tight, then placed the bag under something heavy. And squeezed again the next day…

Then… that doesn’t work ! After 2 days, the progress was too slow. FAIL !!!!
So I have added water to cover the leaves and 3 grams of salt per cup. So that’s another recipe now. The next day :