Sashimi salad

There was probably a time when a sashimi salad would have thrown Japanese food purists into a conniption. Some are probably shaking their heads about it right now. But that doesn’t change the fact that these salads are some of the most popular items at casual and modern izakayas around the country and all over the world. The tender fish and fresh vegetables are perfectly offset by crispy shreds of wonton.

Credit: Steve Brown/ Hachette Australia

• serves

  2

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  5 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• about 2 litres oil, for deep frying
• 6 wonton wrappers
• 300 g mixed sashimi (kingfish, tuna and salmon)
• 1 small red onion, peeled and very finely sliced
• 4 cups mixed salad leaves
• 1 cup finely shredded daikon
• 1 cup snow pea shoots
• ½ cup Onion and garlic vinaigrette (see Note)

Instructions

Heat the oil to 200°C. Very thinly slice the wonton wrappers and deep-fry in batches for about 1 minute until crispy and lightly browned. Drain well.

Toss the sashimi, onion, salad leaves, daikon, snow pea shoots and about half the dressing together. Place in a mound on a plate and top with the remaining dressing and the wonton crisps.

Note

• To make Onion and garlic vinaigrette, finely grate 1 small onion (preferably white, but you can use a brown onion) and 2 cloves garlic on a Japanese grater. If you don’t have a Japanese grater, mince them very finely with a knife. Combine with 2 tbsp caster sugar, ¼ cup soy sauce, ¼ cup rice vinegar, ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper and ½ cup grapeseed oil and whisk lightly to combine and dissolve the sugar. You don’t want to emulsify this dressing as it may become too thick. Add the oil all at once and rest in the fridge for a few hours to mellow. Shake before use. This makes enough to make Sashimi salad for 4 people. 

Recipe and image from The Zen Kitchen by Adam Liaw (Hachette Australia, $49.99 hbk).

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.