August 08, 2008

Wakame? Wakayou.


In the past few weeks I've done embarrassingly little in the way of food preparation. Suffice it to say that I write this post while waiting for our chinese takeout to arrive. The wedding may be over but we're drowning in Crate & Barrel packaging and the back-to-work blues over here!

One meal I managed to scrape together a week or so ago was a Wakame Sea Slaw and Asian Style Tofu Burgers. The burgers were the same as any 'burgers' I have tried out of How to Cook Everything Vegetarian – just ok. They're painfully difficult to flip and I never know when they are done. These were a blend of tofu, scallions, whole wheat panko and asian seasonings. On the whole, unremarkable.

But the slaw was fantastic. The best part is that it includes a sea vegetable called wakame in a way I'd never thought to use it before. Like a salad green! Easy and tasty. Wakame, like all sea vegetables, is super full of nutrients and a healthy addition to any meal. But if you are like me, it's hard to know how and when to use the stuff.

Wakame Sea Slaw
adapted from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian
This recipe didn't make too much so I'd double it to have a good amount of leftovers next time.

1/4 cup mayo or Vegannaise
2 Tbl. rice vinegar
1 Tbl. tamari
1 tsp. agave nectar
1/2 cup peanuts (i used raw)
1/4 cup wakame
2 cups chopped Napa cabbage
1 medium cucumber, peeled and sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
S+P

Whisk the mayo, vinegar, tamari, agave and peanuts in a large bowl. Add the wakame, cabbage, cukes, and pepper. Toss to coat in dressing. It is the liquid from the dressing that will rehydrate the wakame. Mix in cilantro, S+P and serve.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Nice salad Michelle. I'm not a regular seaweed eater, although I'd like to be. Having just had some success with arame, I might move on to wakame next and try out your coleslaw.