Pictured on the right (my son Christopher
Shiveley Welch to the left) Rick Honda is the son of Kazushige Honda who
founded the first Japanese Restaurant, Restaurant Otani, In Mayfield
Village, Ohio, featuring a full sushi bar. Later he established
Restaurant Otani in Columbus, Ohio where it became an icon.
Growing up in the Midwest in the 80s, food was a big part of Rick’s connection to his Japanese heritage and remains an important part of his life, but Japanese cuisine is by no means his only culinary interest. In this series of recipes he will lay out some basic Japanese dishes as well as other recipes he would like to share. Get those forks and chop sticks ready.
So hold on to your seats and enjoy the ride. In this issue, Rick is bringing you Japanese cuisine made easy. Who needs take out?
Growing up in the Midwest in the 80s, food was a big part of Rick’s connection to his Japanese heritage and remains an important part of his life, but Japanese cuisine is by no means his only culinary interest. In this series of recipes he will lay out some basic Japanese dishes as well as other recipes he would like to share. Get those forks and chop sticks ready.
So hold on to your seats and enjoy the ride. In this issue, Rick is bringing you Japanese cuisine made easy. Who needs take out?
Cabbage Pari Pari Salad
1 head of cabbage
1 Tbl. sesame oil
1 Tbl. sesame seeds
salt.
1 head of cabbage
1 Tbl. sesame oil
1 Tbl. sesame seeds
salt.
Cut cabbage in half and remove the core. Cut one half into no smaller
than 1 inch wide slices, cut those slices similarly and separate the
layers. Wash, rinse and dry the cabbage pieces. If you want to go all
out you can now chill the dry pieces but you don’t have to.
In a large bowl, pour a tablespoon of sesame oil. You can use more if you want of course but depending upon the size of the cabbage, you will need at least a tablespoon or two or more; cabbage can vary a bit in size and you may have used more or less than a half of a cabbage. Add Sesame seeds, about tablespoon or you can eyeball it and more or less to your liking. You can add salt here but I prefer to wait to do it during tossing the cabbage pieces with the oil and sesame seed mixture which is next.
Put the cabbage pieces in the large salad mixing bowl where you combined the sesame oil and sesame seeds and toss to combine. Once you toss it a few times so that the oil and seeds are roughly on the cabbage pieces, sprinkle some of that nice salt, only a robust pinch will do for now. I wait to add the salt to this point because now the salt has the oil on most of the pieces to stick to; if you add it to the oil and sesame seeds in step 3 you must mix the mixture very well before adding the cabbage because that method may produce salt clumps which you don’t want. Keep tossing and add salt to your taste.
In my method I serve it in a small bowl and I don’t pack it in. You can eat as much as you like, but in a meal I keep the portions small because the sesame oil flavor is robust, and although I use as little salt as possible and you don’t want it too salty, you may add a little more salt to have a fuller experience. If you plan to eat a lot of Cabbage Pari Pari Salad try using less salt; if you have a small portion, adding salt won’t increase your salt intake as much; you be the judge.
In a large bowl, pour a tablespoon of sesame oil. You can use more if you want of course but depending upon the size of the cabbage, you will need at least a tablespoon or two or more; cabbage can vary a bit in size and you may have used more or less than a half of a cabbage. Add Sesame seeds, about tablespoon or you can eyeball it and more or less to your liking. You can add salt here but I prefer to wait to do it during tossing the cabbage pieces with the oil and sesame seed mixture which is next.
Put the cabbage pieces in the large salad mixing bowl where you combined the sesame oil and sesame seeds and toss to combine. Once you toss it a few times so that the oil and seeds are roughly on the cabbage pieces, sprinkle some of that nice salt, only a robust pinch will do for now. I wait to add the salt to this point because now the salt has the oil on most of the pieces to stick to; if you add it to the oil and sesame seeds in step 3 you must mix the mixture very well before adding the cabbage because that method may produce salt clumps which you don’t want. Keep tossing and add salt to your taste.
In my method I serve it in a small bowl and I don’t pack it in. You can eat as much as you like, but in a meal I keep the portions small because the sesame oil flavor is robust, and although I use as little salt as possible and you don’t want it too salty, you may add a little more salt to have a fuller experience. If you plan to eat a lot of Cabbage Pari Pari Salad try using less salt; if you have a small portion, adding salt won’t increase your salt intake as much; you be the judge.
Serve and enjoy
