Avocado

Nobu meets childĀ salad

October 22, 2014
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0 Ratings
  • Serves Makes around 3 cups of dressing. Keeps in the fridge for a week
Author Notes

Everyone knows it is hard to get kids to eat salad. Many kids pick around lettuce to get to the stuff they will eat plain, like cucumbers or carrots. I like to put a salad on the dinner table that everyone can eat, mixed properly with dressing, and like many parents, I don't like my kids picking stuff out of it and leaving the rest to look sad and pathetic on the plate. Many years ago, before I had children, I didn't know it, but I met my kid's favorite salad dressing. It just so happens, it became an adult favorite too. The recipe was published in the New York Times in an article about Nobu Matsuhisa. It was probably in the late 90's, when it was impossible to get a reservation at Nobu, and the man was just starting to be known throughout the world, revealing to many Americans that using miso in marinades is a no brainer, and that there's a citrus out there called yuzu that makes soy sauce better than ever. Well, turns out the salad dressing recipe published in that article is something that made my own children not only into salad eaters, but salad lovers. They call it "weekday salad" because we have it every night. It's great because it grows with your children. As toddlers, my kids ate a version that was only lettuce and cucumbers. Now, we can add lots of vegetables and it is still adored. So, if you are looking for a way to get your kids to eat their salad while you can enjoy it too, here it is. The vegetables listed below are just a combination we happen to like but you can use your imagination and run with what you are in the mood for, or what your kids like. The dressing is good on pretty much everything. Thanks to Nobu Matsuhisa for making my kids into salad eaters! —navahfrost

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1 cup lemon juice
  • 1 1/4 cups grapeseed oil
  • 3 cloves of garlic, crushed with knife handle
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 pinch cayenne
  • 1 pinch white pepper
  • 2 cups salad greens of your choice
  • 2 small persian cucumbers, sliced
  • 1 handful blanched, chopped green beans
  • 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 1 hard cooked egg, chopped
  • 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
Directions
  1. For the dressing: measure the soy sauce, lemon juice, and garlic into the container of a blender or in a container that you can use with an immersion blender. Blend thoroughly. Add the grapeseed oil in a slow stream as you continue to blend to create an emulsion. Add the salt, cayenne, and white pepper and stir. This will keep in the refrigerator for a week.
  2. Assemble your salad according to your taste: gently tear the greens of your choice into the salad bowl. Top with beans, cucumbers, egg and avocado. Toss with about 1/4 cup of dressing, and taste to see if you need more. Garnish with cilantro and red onion and serve.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • navahfrost
    navahfrost
  • LeBec Fin
    LeBec Fin

2 Reviews

navahfrost April 17, 2015
I always get worried that the garlic starts to make taste off after about a week, or that the flavor isn't quite as fresh. But you are right, it won't spoil for a long time. Thanks for mentioning!
 
LeBec F. April 17, 2015
this looks terrific and i will def make it! One question- why do you say it has a (refrigerated) shelf life of one week. Personally, with all the salt in the soy sauce, I would give it at least a month! Thx again.