Warm Sesame Cabbage Slaw
This is the easiest recipe ever and acts as perfect side to any Asian meal, especially one with a heavy protein. You can slip it easily into your dinner prep between other tasks.
It requires few ingredients, all of which are pantry staples/last forever in the fridge. The finished dish itself lasts a long time in the fridge and packs well in a lunchbox.
Warm Sesame Cabbage Slaw
Combine and leave for at 30min to 1hr:
600g cabbage, shredded not too finely
100g carrots, shredded
2 tsp salt
When vegetables are wilty and liquid has been extracted, squeeze tightly to remove most of the liquid and transfer to another bowl.
Place on top of the vegetables:
4 green onions, sliced
4 serranos or other mild chilies, thinly sliced
1 tsp black or white sesame seeds (optional)
Heat in a small saucepan until the vinegar is boiling:
3 Tbsp brown rice vinegar
3 Tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp sugar
Pour the hot liquid over the cabbage mixture, preferably over the green onion and chilies, and quickly mix together.
Serve immediately or let chill in the fridge.
Notes:
I like a cabbage combination of savoy and red, but these are hard times and anything will work well.
I’m sure white rice vinegar is fine too; the brown vinegar I have is a lot milder and smoother, and I still added sugar to the original to cut the sharpness. Maybe you’ll have to add more if you use white rice vinegar.
I never use sesame seeds because to me, they never add much except extra calories until you add way too many and then it’s really too many calories.
I enjoy it served immediately as a room temperature salad, but after a few days in the fridge, it turns into more of a pickle. I suggest making extra and getting 2 different dishes out of one.
Super high reward for minimal effort. Slice some veg, salt them, and pour a liquid on top, done. 10 minutes of active prep at most.
Eaten here cold the next day, during ramen week last month.
Adapted slightly from Japan: The Cookbook. We bought this book so long ago I forgot when, where, or why. It’s kind of encyclopedic in its format and is divided by technique. I just started flipping through it. So far it’s very approachable but might be too ingredient driven and therefore hard to source for.