Japanese Spinach Salad with Sesame Dressing
Blanched spinach dressed in a savory nutty sesame sauce, this Japanese Spinach Salad with Sesame Dressing (Gomaae) is a healthy veggie side dish that goes well with everything.
One of the mainstays of Japanese vegetable side dishes is the “Goma-ae (胡麻和え)”. Various vegetables are blanched and dressed in a fresh-made sesame sauce. The most popular one is spinach gomaae or Horenso no Gomaae (ほうれん草の胡麻和え).
The technique of blanching preserves the nutrients and vibrant color of the greens while enriching it with an aromatic nutty flavor. Not only does the dish taste good, but it’s also a simple way to include vegetables in your diet.
What is Gomaae?
Goma (胡麻) means sesame seeds in Japanese, and dishes dressed with sesame sauce are called goma-ae (胡麻和え). The word ae (和え) comes from the verb aeru (和える) which means to dress food with sauce.
Gomaae can be made with various vegetables in addition to spinach, such as green beans, broccoli, broccolini, chrysanthemum leaves, and more. It is a versatile dish that elevates everyday vegetables into something truly tasty.
Gomaae is quick to make and complements well with both Japanese and Asian meals. It can also add color and nutrition to bento lunches.
How to Make Japanese Spinach Salad
The Ingredients You’ll Need:
- Spinach
- Toasted white sesame seeds
- Soy sauce
- Sugar
The Cooking Steps:
- Make the sesame dressing by toasting the sesame seeds and grinding them using a mortar and pestle. Add soy sauce and sugar to the ground sesame seeds and mix together.
- Prepare the spinach by blanching it in salted boiling water, then transfer to iced water. Squeeze out the excess moisture and cut into pieces.
- Toss the spinach with the sesame dressing.
- Toasting the sesame seeds brings out their nutty flavor. Leave some seeds whole for added texture.
- Adding salt to the boiling water preserves the bright green color of the spinach.
- Start blanching from the stem ends of the spinach as they take longer to cook.
- Plunge the blanched spinach into iced water to stop the cooking process.
- Squeeze out the excess moisture from the spinach to prevent diluting the sesame dressing.
Cooking Tips for Spinach Gomaae
Variations
Gomaae can be made with different vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, bok choy, carrots, lotus root, green beans, tomatoes, and more. Simply cook the vegetables and coat them with the sesame dressing.
Helpful Tools to Make This Recipe
Japanese households usually use a ceramic mortar and wooden pestle to grind sesame seeds. A larger-size suribachi bowl can be used as both a grinding bowl and a serving dish.
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Source: Japanese Spinach Salad with Sesame Dressing (Gomaae) (Video) 胡麻和え
