Hot and sticky summer is here. I usually keep Japanese pickled veggies in my fridge all year, but this time of year, in addition to the pickles, there are usually several containers of salads – American, potato, pasta, layered, congealed, vegetable and of course, always a Japanese salad. This cabbage salad is a favorite and super easy. the miso adds a tasty variation on the flavor and is good for you too! This salad sounds a lot like cole slaw and indeed, some shredded carrots are good added to this for color, flavor, and nutrition. Of course, you can make a smaller version. It keeps well and I like it better the second day. This was given to me by a friend in my past and is from the Hakone area. Good with meats, as part of an all salad meal, or I like as a lunch with steamed rice. NOTE: I use chopsticks to toss and mix food items to keep vegetables from bruising.
There was a yakinuku (grilled meats) restaurant near where I was staying at the time in Japan. I ate there with regularity. With great courtesy, this recipe was shared with me by one of the chefs shortly before I returned to the US. I think he was charmed by my Southern American accent!
どうぞめしあがれ (douzo meshiagare y’all!) Eat well said by the cook to the eaters…
Cabbage Salad
1 tbs. white or yellow miso paste
2 tbs. soy sauce
Juice and zest of 1 lime
2 tesp. Rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 c. safflower or other neutral vegetable oil
6 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
3 thinly sliced green onions
Toasted sesame seeds
In large non-reactive bowl, whisk together miso paste, soy sauce, lime zest and juice, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil and vegetable oil. Toss cabbage in ingredients and let chill for about 1 hours, tossing several times. Garnish with sesame seeds when serving. OPTIONAL: Can add thinly sliced fresh snow peas, red cabbage, shredded carrots
kanzen sakura 
Jun 02, 2014 @ 17:17:30
Kanzen, I am having folks over for a cookout on Thursday, and I wanted to do that Vidalia Onion thing you wrote about last week, any chance you can dig that up and resend to me. Thanks Bill — yea yea yea, I know I am lazy and don’t want to look for it myself LOL
Jun 02, 2014 @ 17:18:12
No problem-o. happy to do for you!
Jun 02, 2014 @ 17:19:59
Here ya go. you can also do thick slices, drizzle on ingredients, wrap in foil…..
medium onion per person
several pats of butter (save some to spread on top of onion)
1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Optional: few drops of red wine
Optional: 1/4 – 1/2 tsp. of boullion granules or crushed boullion cube, beef or chicken flavor
Optional: sprinkle of paprika to add some color
Peel onion, removing top and making flat surface. Keep bottom (part that looks like little hairy roots) intact. Place onion on square of heavy duty foil for wrapping. Using either an apple corer or very sharp paring knife, remove center of onion to depth of halfway through onion, making a square hole. Put butter in hole and pour in Worcestershire sauce. spread some butter on top of onion, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Carefully pull foil up to cover and wrap onion. keep upright. Place on grill over medium heat and bake 30 – 45 minutes until tender or, place in baking dish in preheated oven 375 F. – for same amount of time. When cooking on the grill, I VERY carefully will use a long bamboo skewer to test. I hold the onion with tongs and poke through the foil with the skewer to test
Jun 02, 2014 @ 17:18:17
I love all kinds of salads in summer. Must surprise the kids with this new one. 🙂
Sounds delish.
Jun 02, 2014 @ 17:20:44
It’s good! simple. One of those things I live off. Sometimes I use a sesame ginger dredssing but like the miso better.
Jun 02, 2014 @ 23:31:55
I’ll try this recipe first and then decide, Like a new slant on a recipe. 🙂
Jun 03, 2014 @ 00:03:55
I do too.
Jun 03, 2014 @ 08:56:30
😀
Jun 02, 2014 @ 17:22:30
Yummmm! 🙂 ~Karen~
Jun 02, 2014 @ 19:07:05
Yummy indeed~ Date: Mon, 2 Jun 2014 21:22:32 +0000 To: thspencer51@hotmail.com
Jun 02, 2014 @ 23:47:41
This sounds terrific and I just ate a huge dinner! Yum.
Jun 03, 2014 @ 00:03:31
It is a yum!
Jun 03, 2014 @ 00:42:59
Do you use a mandolin/e ? I recently bought one, and it’s a ripper. Dying to use it ! But there are ingredients that I don’t have – miso paste and rice wine vinegar. The question is, would I use ’em for other things ? Sighh ..
Jun 03, 2014 @ 09:33:56
I use miso quite a bit and have gotten several others into keeping it on hand. I buy the white miso in a tube which you can squeeze out what you need and keep the rest refrigerated. I have posted an excellent recipe for a miso baked chicken and one for miso soup. Miso soup is a weekly thing with me – simple, easy, nourishing – you can cook a potato or some thinly sliced carrots, cabbage, onion, noodles, rice in some chicken broth and then add some miso to the broth for a tasty and good for you soup. You don’t want to boil the miso because it does have nutritive value and is good for your tummy. So, depending, a tube of miso may be a good small investment for you.
Jun 03, 2014 @ 15:48:34
In which case, I shall ascertain where I can find some. I am, btw, a vegetarian – not a vegan ! – but just someone who doesn’t eat anything that used to be a living creature.
Thanks – and, also … what part of your name do I use when addressing you (in the same way that I am ‘M-R’) ?
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:20:52
Well, since the recipe has nothing that vegans would object too, I labeled it vegan so vegetarians would know it was “safe”. I frequently use vegetable broth as the basis of my miso soup, simply because I like the taste of the cabbage, carrots, celery, onion, whatever….Kanzen is fine – the name of the blog means “Perfect cherryblossom” so Perfect is spot on – LOL!
But kanzen is fine or Sakura is fine….the miso has nothing animal in it….but it is just a good tasty thing. My aunt, who is vegetarian, modifies the chicken recipe for eggplant slices. sometimes the miso paste can be found in jars…if that is available, use. If the tube is available, get. less waste and lasts good. 🙂
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:27:52
I should like to be called ‘Perfect’ ! [grin]
Okey dokey, Kanzen – and eggplant is my favourite veg of all.
I’ll go on a miso hunt in the next few days, and let you know of my success (or otherwise).
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:37:17
Please do let me know. I don’t know if you do this and since you have that fancy dancy mandolin, you can use it to make some nice slices of eggplant, all even and professional looking. I like to do a baked eggplant, brought forward from my days chef-in New Orleans. If you do a search for it, it is Ma Tante Livia’s Baked Egglpant. It is soooooo good and requires no special food. Smaller eggplants are great for it. it makes a lovely main meal, even for folk who are meat oriented. I’m not vegetarian, although I mainly live off them and with fresh produce coming in, I[‘m a happy kid. I did post a miso green bean dish that is vegetarian, so another use for the miso! You’ll find my blog is an odd mix of Japanese recipes and deep South cooking. Good luck on finding the miso! I’ve found it in the “gourmet and international” areas of some local groceries but not sure of where you are located if that would be the case. Have a good day Perfect! Date: Tue, 3 Jun 2014 20:27:56 +0000 To: thspencer51@hotmail.com
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:45:53
I think you should check to see why your Comments have suddenly started adding an email address at the bottom !!! if it is yours, you won’t want it publicised, I’m very sure !!!!
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:50:13
Oh my, I had no idea! thank you. I shall check. But I guess most folks haven’t noticed. Date: Tue, 3 Jun 2014 20:45:57 +0000 To: thspencer51@hotmail.com
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:52:57
And there it is again – every comment for the last 3 or 4. How weird WordPress can be !
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:48:47
Is that recipe for baked eggplant maybe on Facebook? – it’s not on the Web …
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:53:29
http://kanzensakura.com/2012/08/10/matant-livias-baked-eggplant Link to the eggplant on my blog. I don’t post anything on FB….if you look in the upper right hand page of my blog, there is what looks like a magnifying glass. if you click on that, you can also search my posts for stuff. if you put in eggplant, it should bring it up. Folks tell me my links I post don’t work…so there ya go. I’m off to check my settings now. I had made the option to not post email and keep it private, so I’ll have to see what is going on. Thanks again!
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:55:13
Sorry, kanzen – hadn’t realised you meant it was on your own site. I’m an idiot !
Jun 03, 2014 @ 20:13:43
No you aren’t. I wasn’t very clear.
Jun 03, 2014 @ 20:14:54
Let’s beat each other up, shall we ? [grin]
Jun 03, 2014 @ 20:27:17
Like the rock ’em sock ’em robots…..LOLOLOL
Jun 03, 2014 @ 10:15:26
The rice vinegar is great for use with salads and marinated veggies or in a marinade for meats/poultry. it is sweeter than white or cider vinegar and keeps indefinitely. I keep mine in the fridge. You can use a mandoline if you like. I am a trained chef and because of my love for pointy/sharp things (swords, knives) I do most of my work such as this by hand. I told Huntie I was frugal but knives were not included. I have my original set of chefs’ knives plus more. I use an 8 inch super sharp chef blade to shred things like cabbage. A mandoline will do beautifully because of the surgically sharp cutting blade. I normally just quarter a cabbage and then shred down. Use what is easiest and quickest for you.
Jun 03, 2014 @ 15:52:17
OK; then if rice vinegar can be used wherever one uses vinegar, that’s certainly zero problem ! Thanks, my dear ! 🙂
Jun 03, 2014 @ 16:31:24
I actually prefer it to white or cider vinegars…it has a lighter taste. Date: Tue, 3 Jun 2014 19:52:20 +0000 To: thspencer51@hotmail.com
Jun 03, 2014 @ 11:07:36
This should be great for me, I like every one of the ingredients! Thanks.
Jun 03, 2014 @ 11:23:23
Great! I hope you enjoy. If you need to, you can reduce the ingredients for a smaller batch. Date: Tue, 3 Jun 2014 15:07:39 +0000 To: thspencer51@hotmail.com