Hot Weather Cold Food
Trying to make Cold Shaken Salad a thing
Sara,
Your trip to Albania looked so cool! It’s high on my list for places to visit, especially the very metal sounding, Accursed Mountains. I’m so especially in trying those foods that used cornmeal. Until then, making a date to check out the restaurant you recommend in New York!
We’re experiencing another record breaking heatwave in New York… which is really starting to feel like of the norm. I can’t bear turning on an appliance, let alone eating anything above room temperature. And sadly, we can’t quite subsist on ice cream, much to Clare (my partner’s) chagrin.
My go to cold meal is a Cold Dipping Soba but this week I wanted to mix it up. I made LahbCo’s Cold Soba Soup from last post. The broth is a few ingredients - coconut milk, miso, peanut butter, gochujang, lime - reminding me of your Peanut Butter and Gochujang post. It came out great! Will definitely use that flavor combo again.
I topped it with shredded cabbage, ribboned cucumbers, bean sprouts, jammy eggs, and a quick air-fried spicy tofu. After, I was left with a surplus of toppings. Mainly, a massive box of shredded cabbage and a heaping bag of beansprouts.
With tons of beansprouts, I have the perfect go to: Mung Beansprout Banchan, courtesy of the always amazing, Maangchi. This recipe (below) is so easy and you’re left with a funky, crunchy, umami side dish that is most importantly cold. I brought our friend, Matt, some of this and he ate it right it up as we huddled near his A/C.
With the shredded cabbage, I was inspired by two beloved recipes. First, Aylen Park’s Green Salad, which she says she’ll often just toss together in the mixed greens box. And Dommelier’s Addicting Cabbage or Yamitsuki, which he assembles and shakes up in a big Ziploc. I think a new iteration of our of beloved “Garbage Salad” has been born, which I’m going to ineloquently call the “Cold Shaken Salad.”
It’s less a recipe and more a method of doing nearly nothing and ending up with some cold but delightful food. Check it out and let me know if you try making your own!
Cold Shaken Salad
Sauce
1 tbsp Soy Sauce
1 tbsp Rice Vinegar
1 tsp Fish Sauce
1 and half tsp Sugar or Honey
1 tsp Sesame Oil
1 tsp Gochugaru, Chili Flakes, or Chili Oil
Half tsp Garlic Powder
Optional: Half tsp MSG
Crunchies
Red or Green cabbage (shredded)
Cucumbers (ribboned)
Carrots (matchsticks)
Radishes (matchsticks)
Cherry (quartered)
Optional Herbs: Scallions, Cilantro, Thai Basil
Optional Crunch: Sesame Seeds, Furikake, Fried Shallots or Garlic, Crushed Peanuts
Note: in parentheses are just suggestions for how to cut up the veggies. It works best if they’re all relatively uniform but genuinely do you.
Combine the “Sauce” ingredients in a medium sized Tupperware with a lid. Close and shake well until combined. Taste and adjust to your liking. Add the “Crunchies” to the Tupperware. Close and shake again until the ingredients are combined and coated in the sauce.
Don’t even put it on a plate, too much energy. Pop that Tuppie open and enjoy.
A running letter between long distance friends who love to eat
Do you miss your best friend? Are really hungry you right now? If the answer to either of these is yes, you know what to do.