I love the sunomono at our local, now-sustainable sushi place and I tried to re-create it at home. The first time I made it this summer, I used the food processor to slice the cucumber, just because I already had it out. This time, I remembered that we actually have a mandoline that was given to us last Christmas. What a joy to use! The slices are wafer thin. As an added bonus, I'm taking the salad to the house of those who gifted us with the mandoline and will happily tell show them that it is used and appreciated.
I could eat piles of this salad every day in the summer, especially when it's hot.
INGREDIENTS
3/4 to 1 Asian cucumber (or any cucumber you like)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c. mirin
1/4 c. rice vinegar
1 tsp salt
2 TBSP gomashio with seaweed (we have Eden organic) or
2 TBSP toasted sesame seeds ground in a mortar and pestle with 1-2 tsp salt or to taste
An even simpler variation for that I got from Japanese Cooking 101 is 3 parts rice vinegar to 1 part sugar with a dash of soy sauce. Follow the rest of the directions below if using those ratios.
DIRECTIONS
I could eat piles of this salad every day in the summer, especially when it's hot.
INGREDIENTS
3/4 to 1 Asian cucumber (or any cucumber you like)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c. mirin
1/4 c. rice vinegar
1 tsp salt
2 TBSP gomashio with seaweed (we have Eden organic) or
2 TBSP toasted sesame seeds ground in a mortar and pestle with 1-2 tsp salt or to taste
An even simpler variation for that I got from Japanese Cooking 101 is 3 parts rice vinegar to 1 part sugar with a dash of soy sauce. Follow the rest of the directions below if using those ratios.
DIRECTIONS
- Peel the cucumber in stripes, leaving a little of the dark green skin for contrast
- Slice the cucumber very thinly using a knife, mandoline or food processor
- Toss the sliced cucumbers with the salt in a colander and let sit for 5 minutes
- After the time is up, squeeze the cucumbers to get as much moister out as possible. This will keep your cucumbers delightfully crisp even if you make enough to last for a few days
- In a flat-bottomed bowl or dish, mix the mirin, rice vinegar and salt. Taste and adjust ratio to your preference
- Toss the sliced cucumber in the marinade until well coated (the object behind the flat-bottomed dish is that more of the slices will be in direct contact with the marinade)
- Sprinkle generously with gomashio (you could also wait and do this right before serving)
- You can serve right away, but it tastes best if left to marinade for an hour or more. The cucumber will get less crunchy, but it is still delicious that way
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