Edamame Salad with Miso Dressing

For the last two weeks, we've been trying to survive an intense heatwave here in New York. As in, temperatures ranging from 90 to 100 degrees F every single day. I've been trying to keep cool by working next to my wonky AC, though unfortunately I can't glue myself to it.

Walking around outside any time before 7pm can be quite brutal. As is waiting for the subway any time of the day. When you look forward to the sun setting so the temps can cool down to 91 degrees, that's a bad sign.

Evidence from New York Magazine: "How hot is it in New York right now? This Hot."

So other than the days I teach, I've been doing very little cooking the past couple of weeks. And when I do, the result has mainly been salads.

Like this edamame salad with miso dressing from Izakaya: Japanese Bar Food. It's supposed to be an appetizer, but I've been eating double or triple the portions as a full-on meal. The amount of time in front of the stove is minimal. And the salad is so crisp and refreshing that I don't even mind having to cook part of it.

It's a great salad to know about for the summer, but I have a feeling I'll still make it even after I get back into regular cooking mode.

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Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tablespoons white miso1 teaspoon Japanese rice vinegar1 teaspoon mirin1/2 teaspoon sugar1/4 teaspoon Japanese mustard8 ounces frozen shelled edamame4 ounces mizuna or arugula leaves

Instructions

In a small bowl, combine the white miso, rice vinegar, mirin, sugar, and Japanese mustard with 2 tablespoons of warm water. Stir until the miso and sugar and dissolved. Set aside for 1 hour for the flavors to develop.Bring a medium pot of water to boil. Add the edamame and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, until tender. Drain into a fine mesh strainer and run under cold water. Shake out the excess water.In a large bowl, toss the edamame and salad leaves with the dressing, then serve.

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Garlic Edamame with Sichuan Pepper

For years I made edamame, one of my favorite snacks, by just boiling the frozen pods and then sprinkling sea salt on top. It was easy, and if you’re using good salt, one of the tastiest things to snack on.

Then one night, while having drinks at my friend Barb‘s apartment, she whipped up a batch of edamame that was hands-down the best I had ever tasted.

Instead of boiling or steaming the edamame, she sautés the pods in a skillet with crushed garlic cloves. The edamame is cooked over a medium flame for 6 to 7 minutes, so the outsides develop a crisp garlicky flavor while the insides get cooked through.  Genius, right?

I adapted Barb’s recipe (from her blog Wishful Chef) by adding ground Sichuan pepper, which gives the edamame a nice smokiness. Either way, with or without the Sichuan pepper flourish, this garlic edamame will be an addictive snack or appetizer you’ll make again and again.

Garlic Edamame with Sichuan Pepper Author: Appetite for China (appetiteforchina.com)3 cups frozen edamame2 large garlic cloves, crushed1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil½ teaspoon sea salt¼ teaspoon ground Sichuan pepper¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepperThaw the frozen edamame pods by running them under hot tap water in a colander for 2 to 3 minutes. Drain and dry thoroughly with kitchen towels.Heat the oil over medium heat in a medium skillet and swirl to coat the bottom.Add the crushed garlic and cook for 30 to 40 seconds, just until fragrant. Add the edamame, salt, Sichuan pepper, and black pepper. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring often, until the edamame is crispy on the outside and cooked through. Transfer to a dish and serve.Adapted from Wishful Chef. http://www.wishfulchef.com/2011/11/garlic-edamame/

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Edamame Fried Rice

Remember my last post, when I talked about fried eggs with oyster sauce over rice, the best umami-laden breakfast that takes almost no time to make? Well, I forgot to mention an even quicker one – a fried egg topped with furikake. Or for that matter, plain rice topped with furikake.

Furikake, if you’re not familiar with it, is an amazing Japanese seasoning that’s made up of dried seaweed flakes, sesame seeds, sugar, and salt. Sometimes there’s also bonito flakes, chili flakes, dried salmon, miso powder, or egg powder, depending on the brand and its varieties. It’s like having all the flavors of the sea (and then some) in one convenient little glass jar.

So it goes without saying that furikake is also great over fried rice. Yesterday, to take a break from all the recipes I’ve been fine-tuning for my cookbook, I made a variation of my standard fried rice with edamame instead of green peas. Doing so made me wonder why I don’t always make fried rice with edamame. Don’t get me wrong. Regular ol’ peas are great, but edamame somehow felt more substantial, and I didn’t feel the need to add anything else for flavoring except scallions, eggs, and salt and pepper.

The finished rice was great on its own, but then I saw the furikake on my shelf and thought, why not? Oh, heaven. If you secretly love the smell of sushi restaurants,  repeatedly order seaweed salad appetizers, or snack on nori chips like there’s no tomorrow, you’ll probably want to give this a try.

Also, remember that a little bit of furikake goes a long way, taste-wise. Sprinkle a little on first, then add more if needed (or use the serving suggestions below).

Enjoy!

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Edamame Fried Rice

2 cups shelled frozen edamame (or 4 cups frozen edamame in pods)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil2 eggs, whisked
3 scallions, white and green parts finely chopped
3 cups leftover white rice (straight from the fridge is best)
Salt and pepper to taste
2 to 3 tablespoons furikake  Bring a medium pot of water to boil. Cook the edamame according to package instructions. Drain, rinse under cool water, and drain again. If you’re not using already-shelled edamame, remove the edamame from their pods. Set aside.Break up the cold cooked rice into smaller clumps as much as possible.Heat a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat until a bead of water sizzles and evaporates on contact. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and swirl to coat the base and sides. Add the egg, spread it as thinly as possible, and cook undisturbed for 2 minutes, until cooked through. Transfer to a cutting board and chop into bite-sized pieces.Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of the oil and swirl to coat the base and sides. Add the scallions and stir-fry briefly until aromatic, about 20 seconds. Stir in the rice, breaking apart any remaining clumps with a spatula. Add the edamame and chopped egg. Stir-fry for another 1 to 2 minutes, until the rice starts to turn golden and the edamame and eggs have heated through. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to a plate and serve.

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More fried rice recipes:

Tagged as: Chinese, Japanese, Recipes, Rice, Vegetarian

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