I know whenever I go visit my family back in my hometown, there will usually be two events I can count on….first we will at some point eat my childhood comfort food of packaged ramen and we go to a Japanese Teppanyaki steakhouse with the whole gang and watch the cook/entertainer make volcanoes out of onions and throw shrimp in our mouths to catch like zoo animals. If you have ever been to one of these types of joints, you may have encountered the ginger dressing they serve on usually plain old iceberg. I love the stuff! So when I noticed Food 52 was doing your best recipe with noodles, I entered all my favs….and thought about this recipe I have today. Thanks to David Chang dried ramen has taken on a image of “cool”, honestly, if the guy can make MSG seem like a practical addition to food anything can be done. So I figured why not take two things I already love, ramen and teppanyaki salad and put them together? I’m guessing that tri-colored rotini pasta salad from the 90’s at the potluck will be my pasta salads “wing man”. This recipe is easy, affordable, and looks a lot more impressive than it should which is a win, win in my book.
You will need:
Dressing:
1/2 cup canola or other mild tasting oil.
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar (also called sushi vinegar)
1 1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled chopped.
2 carrots, peeled, diced.
6 green onions, chopped, use both green and white parts.
In a blender or processor, blend all the dressing ingredients until creamy. Makes two cups of dressing, you will have some leftover, keeps well for up to two weeks in fridge.
Noodles:
3 bricks of dried ramen (top ramen style, nothing fancy)
1 Tbsp sesame seeds
Cracked black pepper
2 cups spring mix or lettuce of choice, iceberg is even great.
Cook noodles in boiling water for 2-3 minutes, drain. Put noodles in a large bowl and pour in half the dressing, add lettuce, combine gently. Top with sesame seeds and pepper.
Enjoy!
This salad is fast and easy and you will have leftover dressing to use later! This is also a great entree, just grill a fillet, tofu, or some chicken and top with a bit more dressing to make a full meal! I noticed the flavors are even better when the salad is chilled so this might be a great one to make the night before!
Eat, Drink, and be local! A unconventional food blog!