Toasted Sesame and Furikake Cabbage Salad

Author Notes

I recently wrote a piece describing how to get to snowy, paper-thin sliced cabbage with just a knife. And though it goes great with katsu or on a sandwich: this is my absolute go to recipe to make once I've plowed through a whole head.

It is my adaptation of a the bari salad from a Japanese restaurant in my neighborhood called Ozakaya. Its made up of cabbage, “assorted seaweed”, and shiso leaf.

But it’s the dressing—a supremely nutty and creamy roasted sesame mixture—that really takes the dish to the next level. You can put it on anything, from crudites to skirt steak. After a bit of research, I discovered that this style of mayo-based sesame dressing is super common in Japan, and brands like Kikkoman and Kewpie make incredible bottled versions. But it’s also *super* easy to make it at home with ingredients you very well may have in your pantry.

I simplified the salad itself by swapping out the seaweeds and shiso for furikake. I love furikake and probably go overboard with how much I put in here, but it just adds such a necessary bit of crunch as well as a little oceanic, brine-y taste that really goes nicely with the sesame. Plus, it makes this salad even easier to whip up once you have it in your pantry. —Justin Sullivan