This is an excellent way to enjoy daikon radish. A side dish, it consists of wheels of daikon simmered in dashi stock. The radish becomes infused with the smokey flavour of the dashi. Many variations are possible but I'II just describe the basic recipe.
1. Cut the daikon into wheels or rounds about one and a half inches thick. No need to peel them as many book recommend, but it is best to bevel the edges since this stops them from breaking up during the simmering and it makes them more attractive. On one side of the wheels incise a shallow cross with a knife. This helps them cook all the way through and again adds to presentation.
2. Place the wheels cross-side down in a saucepan. Cover with water. Bring to the boil then reduce to a light simmer. Simmer for approximately 40 minutes or until translucent. Then drain.
3. Prepare a simmering sauce: about 3 cups of dashi stock, three tablespoons of soy sauce, three tablespoons of mirin, a teaspoon of rice malt, a teaspoon of sea salt.
4. Place a 4 inch piece of kombu seaweed in the bottom of another saucepan. Arrange the radish wheels on top, again cross-side down. Cover with the simmering sauce. Bring to simmer for about 30 minutes.
5. Place the wheels in a bowl, pour over the remaining simmer sauce, garnish. You can discard the kombu or retain it, according to taste.
There are no real tricks to this recipe. Ideally the radish wheels will be evenly cooked throughout and will be infused with even colour and flavour. Slow simmer. Overly vigorous simmering risks breaking up the radish.
The Japanese have several grades of dashi. Dashi #2 is best in which the bonito flakes have been simmered longer. Rich and full-flavoured. The radish has little flavour of its own after the initial simmering (step 2, above) and should soak up the flavour of the dashi in step 4. For richer flavour use a darker soy sauce. To experiment further, simmer dried shitake mushrooms along with the radish. Simple and elegant.
No comments:
Post a Comment