Sunomono - An Easy Japanese Vinegar Salad

From the kitchen of One Perfect...We had another unexpectedly warm day and the gift of cucumbers from a friend gave me an excuse to make a much simpler supper than I had planned. These were the first yellow cucumbers I've had and I was really curious about their taste. As it turns out, the flesh is identical in flavor to that of the green variety, but the skin is unpleasantly bitter. Sunomono is a vinegared salad that is made with cucumbers or other fresh vegetables. Small pieces of seafood, such as crab, octopus or shrimp can also be added to make the salad more substantial. This is a very easy dish to make and it is elegant in its simplicity. The word sunomono means vinegared things, so you'll find there are many versions of this dish. I've added far more shrimp than are normally used in its preparation because I wanted to use it as a main course salad for the two of us. I usually make the salad with the near seedless English or Japanese cucumber. For those of you who have never seen the Japanese variety, they look like English cucumbers with warts. I do hope you'll give this simple recipe a try. Here's how to make this light and refreshing salad.

Three Cup Chicken

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is but one of many versions of a Taiwanese dish called Three Cup Chicken. It gets its name from the ratio of the three main ingredients used to make it. The chicken is always made with equal portions of soy sauce, rice wine and sesame oil. I have several recipes for the dish in my files, but I rely on this one because it is so fast and easy to prepare. While it lacks the gorgeous color of the more classic braises, it delivers a wonderfully flavorful and unpretentious meal with a fragrance that draws people to the table. Cooking lore tells us the dish was first cooked for an official before his execution. It was made by a prison warden who had limited resources and he made the sauce for that dish using three wine cups, intended for worship, to measure the ingredients. Today, recipes use various measures of the basic three ingredients, but they must always be equal to each other for the dish to be called three-cup. I relied heavily on this dish when I was working and it would appear on my table once or twice a month. While it is best made with thigh meat, the breast can also be used if you cut back on the cooking time. I always serve this dish with steamed rice and just-wilted spinach. My family enjoys this dish and I think yours will too. Here is how Three Cup Chicken is made.

Three Cup Chicken...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Ching-He Huang

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
One 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into thin coins
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 6), cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup light soy
1/4 cup Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry
1/4 cup toasted sesame oil (see Cook's Note)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 small handful Thai basil leaves, or Italian basil, plus extra for garnish

Directions:
1) Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat. When it is hot add vegetable oil and cook until oil smokes. Add garlic and ginger and stir-fry quickly for a few seconds. Quickly add chicken and let it sit in pan for 30 seconds before stir-frying until it browns, about 2 to 3 minutes.
2) Add soy sauce, rice wine and toasted sesame oil, Reduce heat to medium and cook for 6 minutes. Stir well and add brown sugar. Bring to a boil, then turn down heat to medium-low and simmer until sauce is reduced to a thick, sticky consistency and the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Turn off heat, stir in basil leaves and allow them to wilt slightly. Serve immediately. Yield: 2 to 4 servings.

Cook's Note: It's important to use toasted sesame oil, which reduces as it cooks, and not pure sesame oil, which will continue to cook and not reduce or thicken. The final dish should be slightly sticky.

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Asian-Style Carrot Salad

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Most of us have a recipe for the ubiquitous carrot-raisin slaw tucked somewhere in our kitchen files. I haven't used my copy of the salad in over thirty years. I was never especially fond of it and, as we began to travel, I found other recipes that I thought were far more satisfying. This Asian-style carrot salad is one of my current favorites. There is a tartness to it that plays nicely against sweet barbecued meats and it is a wonderful, easy addition to an Asian-style meal. We had a salad that was quite similar to this while we were in Thailand. This salad, developed by Laurent Tourondel for Food and Wine magazine, is zen-like in its simplicity. Its only ingredients are carrots and cilantro. The dressing, however, takes the salad to another plane. Carrot and ginger juice are teamed with vinegar and a mixture of oils to produce a vibrant dressing that is unique and plays nicely with the sweet and crunchy carrots it is used to dress. I do have a few cautions should you choose to make it. If you can't resist the temptation to use pre-shredded carrots, test to make sure you can get a forkful that doesn't resemble porcupine quills into your mouth. That is a lesson learned from bitter and embarrassing experience of the "we grow too soon old and too late smart" variety. You should also know that the dressing will slightly dull the vibrant color of the carrots. The carrot juice can't quite overcome the mayonnaise in the dressing and the carrots will take on a slightly milky hue. Lastly, don't add the final measure of cilantro until you are ready to serve the salad. Its brilliant green is gorgeous against the orange of the carrots, but if it sits too long it will blacken and add nothing to the finished salad. If I haven't scared you away, here's the recipe for a unique salad that I think you'll enjoy.

Asian-Style Carrot Salad...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Laurent Tourondel

Ingredients:
1 pound carrots, peeled and shredded
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
1/2 cup canola oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup carrot juice
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1-1/2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
3/4 teaspoon fresh ginger juice, squeezed from 2 teaspoons finely minced ginger

Directions:
1) Combine carrots, garlic, vinegar, 1/2 cup cilantro and 1/4 cup canola oil in a medium bowl. Toss well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Let carrots stand for 15 minutes. Drain well.
2) Boil carrot juice in a small saucepan set over medium heat until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Cool slightly. Add mayonnaise, sesame oil, ginger juice and reserved 1/4 cup canola oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3) Add dressing and remaining 1/2 cup cilantro to carrots and toss well. Transfer to serving bowl. Serve immediately. Yield: 6 servings.

You might also enjoy these recipes:

Asian Bean Sprout Salad - One Perfect Bite
Thai Cucumber Salad - One Perfect Bite
Khmer Green Papaya Salad - One Perfect Bite