Gaijin salad
Dear SOS: I recently went to Gaijin Noodle and Sake House in San Diego, and it was so good. I enjoyed all the food I had there but loved the Gaijin salad. It had an amazing pickled ginger wasabi dressing. Would you please help get the recipe for the salad and dressing?
Olivia Tanson
Monrovia
Dear Olivia: Gaijin’s wasabi ginger salad dressing, deceptively simple to make, adds just enough zing to a colorful salad of Little Gem lettuce, sugar snap peas, red onions, enoki mushrooms and crunchy wasabi peas. The recipe makes extra dressing, perfect also for use as a dipping sauce or sandwich spread.
Wasabi ginger salad dressing
In the bowl of a blender, combine the vinegar, oil, garlic, shallot, pickled ginger, wasabi paste, fresh ginger, sesame oil and lemon juice. Blend until the dressing is smooth and emulsified. The flavor of the dressing can vary depending on the brand of pickled ginger and wasabi paste, as well as the freshness of the other ingredients; taste and adjust the flavorings and seasonings as desired. This makes 1 cup dressing, more than is needed for the remainder of the recipe; the dressing will keep, covered and refrigerated, up to 1 week.
In a large bowl, combine the chopped lettuce, sugar snap peas, red onion, mushrooms, wasabi peas and enough dressing to coat. Gently toss the salad, then divide it among four chilled plates and garnish with the wasabi peas. Serve immediately.
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