total time:20 min
Serving:4 (8 cups)
Then, when he asked about my current eating habits, I realized that I had inadvertently volunteered. I was happy, really. I passively suggested that I could do something I was actively thinking of doing. But I was a little nervous about how to propose.
I am not vegetarian. I’ve written about it before. But just as a matter of health, convenience, and conscience, we’re adding more and more meatless dishes to our repertoire. I enjoy it as a challenge. Like many people, I didn’t tend to like most vegetables. When I make something plant-based that I really enjoy, I tend to get a fee out of it. “Meatballs” with mushrooms and walnuts. Sweet, spicy and chewy Korean tofu. When spicy sesame chili noodles It’s all on repeat in my rotation.plus all beansof course.
So my desire to keep this column from going dormant in Joe’s absence was kind of selfish. Now I can do the research, testing and sampling necessary to make it happen.
The dish I mentioned to Joe at lunch is a salad I’ve been making for several years that has become my replacement for most of the pandemic: cabbage salad. hated childhood cabbage. Based on the famous Wolfgang’s Puck creation, Chinois Chicken Salad. I’ve had it in various packed restaurants over the years. I realized that I like salads when I slice cabbage thinly, but I don’t like it when I cut it into chunks. It was always chunky. Didn’t you hate it as much as how to cut cabbage?
I don’t know, but no cabbage goes through the kitchen without being shipped off to a slim, sturdy ribbon.
After all, I looked up Mr. Pak’s recipe on the internet and made it. It’s great. But over the years, I’ve simplified it and made it more to my liking. I changed mango to orange. Red cabbage with radicchio. I added red onion.
I never used as much chicken as he requested.Sometime in the last few years, I stopped including chicken completely. For me, this salad is about the weight of the cabbage, the coolness of the lettuce, the crunchiness of the cashews and wonton chips, the citrus sparkle, and the umami-based notes of the sesame soy sauce dressing.
That’s my diet these days. It’s not supposed to contain animal protein, but it’s an afterthought, something you can put together quickly with minimal cooking and even less thought. I would like to introduce one or two of
Joe Yonnan will return in May.
Orange and cashew cabbage salad with sesame dressing
Green cabbage works well as a base for this salad. Chinese cabbage and savoy cabbage are slightly softer than regular cabbage, so choose whichever you prefer. Alternative options are almost endless. The original recipe by chef Wolfgang Puck used chicken, radicchio instead of red cabbage, and mango instead of orange.
Storage Notes: Dressing can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.
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- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons mustard, preferably Chinese or Dijon
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon sesame paste (can be substituted with tahini)
- 2 teaspoons grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon chili oil, or better to taste
- 1/2 cup peanut oil, or another neutral oil
- coarse salt (optional)
- freshly ground black pepper (optional)
- 8 ounces (1/4 medium head) (4 cups) finely chopped green cabbage
- 2 ounces (1/8 small head) red cabbage, finely chopped (1 cup)
- 1 romaine lettuce, roughly torn
- 1/2 red onion (2 ounces total), thinly sliced
- 1 medium carrot, scrubbed and coarsely grated
- 1/2 cup crispy wonton strips (divided) (can be substituted with crispy chow mein)
- 1 medium-sized seedless orange, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces.
- 1/2 cup roasted unsalted cashew nuts
- white or black sesame seeds for optional garnish
Make the dressing: In a food processor bowl or blender, combine soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, mustard, honey, sesame paste or tahini, ginger, and chili oil. Pulse a few times to mix, then slowly add the peanut oil while the motor is running and process until the dressing is emulsified. Season with salt, pepper, and/or additional chili oil, if desired. You should get about 1 cup.
Make the salad: In a large bowl, mix together green and red cabbage, lettuce, onions, carrots and wonton halves. Add half of the dressing and toss until well coated. Add half of the orange and half of the cashews and mix gently.
Divide salad among 4 plates and garnish each portion with remaining wonton strips, oranges and cashews, and sesame seeds (if using). Serve with leftover dressing on the side, if desired.
Calories: 369; Total Fat: 29 g; Saturated Fat: 4 g; Cholesterol: 0 mg;
This analysis is an estimate based on available ingredients and this formulation. It is not a substitute for the advice of a nutritionist or nutritionist.
By staff writer Jim Webster, inspired by recipes from Wolfgang Puck.
Tested by Jim Webster.email a question to voraciously@washpost.com.
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