Sushi Restaurant Favorite: Seaweed Salad

I fell in love with seaweed salad this summer after trying it for the first time at a Thai restaurant. It was served in a martini glass and included flower shaped cucumbers, delicate carrot curls and neon green seaweed. Since then, I order it whenever I spot it on a restaurant menu. Months later, after justifying the $6 price tag of wakame, I figured it was about time that I recreated it at home.



Seaweed salad
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup wakame
- 2 small cucumbers, or 1 large
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds

- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp chili flakes
- Kelp granules (optional), for garnish
- Sesame seeds, for garnish

Instructions
- Whisk together dressing ingredients and set aside.
- Soak wakame in a large bowl with an ample amount of water for 5 minutes. It will more than double in size, so make sure to add enough liquid. Drain and squeeze the excess liquid. Toss in half the dressing and set aside.
- Peel cucumbers if desired (I peeled alternate strips for fun) and thinly slice. Add remaining dressing and toss to coat. Top with wakame and sprinkle with kelp and sesame seeds. Refrigerate until serving.

Serves 1-2




Don't make this expecting the vibrant green found in sushi bars. The reason those are so bright is because they're usually altered to look that way to be more aesthetically pleasing. I prefer the dark forest green of true wakame. It's deep, rich and beautifully natural.

Now, if only I could master sushi making.