Tofu Salad

While my cousins were here, I served my favourite Japanese salad: Tofu salad with sesame dressing. I had been ordering it at nearly every restaurant that had it, till I discovered its made using a ready made salad dressing. First I bought the wrong dressing - it was a sesame ponze sauce not a salad dressing. I was disheartened. I then found the right dressing and Stephen was eating this salad every day. My cousins came, then Mama and again we were eating this salad everyday.

So here goes:

Tofu Salad

• Tofu - 1 portion of silken tofu, wrapped in a towel and left for 20 minutes with a weight over it. This drains the water, placed at the bottom of the dish
  
• Onions, sliced, lots of it - here I use the japanese leek. It can be substituted by spring onions or finely sliced red onions
• Green pepper, finely sliced
• Mizuno leaves, or any salad leaves available, cut into bite sized portions
• 1 small tomato (not a cherry tomato) chunked
• A few soy beans (edamame), some left over bits.

Add more green fresh vegetables, like cucumbers, bean sprouts, lettuce, cabbage. I dont use vegetables that need cooking, unless its the tofu itself.

• Pour salad dressing over the salad and mix
• Scatter corn flakes over the salad for texture.

Dig in.


Here is a recipe I found for the Sesame salad dressing called Gomadare.

Gomadare

• roasted white sesame seeds: 2 large tablespoons
• soy milk: 4 large tablespoons (optional)
• miso: 1 teaspoon
• soy sauce: a little (up to taste)
• sugar: a little
• ground white sesame: a little

Method
First ground together with a pestle the white sesame seeds, soy milk and miso until it has attained a nice smooth consistency.
If have difficulty mixing it, heat it a little.
Add soy sauce, sugar and ground white sesame to taste.
A little experimentation will work wonders.