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[ID: First photo shows a mixed seaweed salad topped with toasted sesame seeds; in the background are bowls of pickled daikon and kake udon. Second photo is a close-up showing light shining through the seaweed. End ID]

わかめと昆布サラダ / Wakame to konbu sarada (Seaweed and kelp salad)

A wide variety of seaweed-based salads are made by Japanese home cooks. They may contain only a mix of seaweeds and a dressing, but may also feature vegetables including cucumber, carrots, lotus root (レンコン / はす), daikon (だいこん), corn, edamame (枝豆), or onion. Dressings are as varied as cooks, and may be based around sesame oil (ごま油), rice vinegar (米酢), miso paste (みそ / 味噌), ponzu sauce (ポン酢), or mayonnaise (マヨ).

This recipe is a good way to use up reconstituted kombu and wakame that were steeped to make soup stock. It includes instructions for two dressings: one based on rice vinegar and sesame oil, and another with a sesame-mayo base.

"わかめ" or "ワカメ" ("wakame") is likely from "若" ("waka," "young") +‎ "海布" ("me," "seaweed"); it is a particular species of edible seaweed (Undaria pinnatifida) that is farmed in Japan, Korea, and China. It is sometimes called "sea mustard" in English. Without further specification, "wakame" in a culinary context is taken to mean the leaves of the seaweed; these are the same leaves that are eaten in miso soup (みそ汁).

The etymology of "昆布" ("kombu" or "konbu") is unknown. It may be a phonetic Japanese reading of the Middle Chinese "昆布" (Mandarin: "kūnbù") (itself from "綸布" "*krūn pās," "green ribbon" + "cloth"), used to refer to various types of kelp and seaweed. In Japanese, the term refers to any of a few species of edible kelp from the Laminariaceae family.

Dried kombu is steeped to make one type of dashi ("出汁" / "だし"), a stock that is used in various soups and sauces. Once reconstituted, it may be steeped again to make 二番だし ("niban dashi," "second dashi"), sliced and simmered as one ingredient in a 煮物 ("nimono," simmered dish), or roasted and combined with other seaweeds and spices to make 振り掛け ("furikake").

"サラダ" ("sarada") is probably derived from the English "salad."

Note that the "seaweed salad" served at Japanese restaurants in the U.S. is not commonly eaten in Japan. It is shipped out to restaurants and stores pre-packaged, and is made with colored オゴノリ ("ogonori"; "agar" on ingredients lists), きくらげ ("kikurage"; "wood ear mushroom" or "fungus" on ingredients lists), and byproducts of wakame including 茎わかめ ("kukiwakame," wakame stem) and メカブ ("mekabu," wakame sprouts; both listed as "wakame" or "seaweed" on ingredients lists). You may be able to find this salad in the freezer section of your local Asian grocery store. If you want to approximate the texture of this salad at home, try buying some mixture of ogonori, kikurage, kukiwakame, mekabu, モズク ("mokuzu"), and/or ひじき ("hijiki"). Instructions for the dressing are below.

Recipe under the cut!

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Ingredients:

For the salad:

2 cups total reconstituted kombu, wakame, hijiki, or other kelp or seaweed

Vegetable additions to seaweed salads are possible and common. Try adding some cucumber, julienned carrots, sliced lotus root, sliked daikon radish, corn, edamame, or sliced onion that's been soaked in plum vinegar for 15 minutes.

If you're including cucumbers, slice them, salt them, allow them to drain in a colander for about 10 minutes, then gently squeeze them of excess liquid, to avoid making your salad watery.

For dressing 1:

1 Tbsp unseasoned rice vinegar (米酢)

1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil (煎りごま油)

1/2 kosher salt

1/2 tsp vegetarian granulated sugar

1/2 tsp Japanese soy sauce (しょうゆ / 醤油) (such as Kikkoman's)

2 tsp toasted sesame seeds (いりごま)

To make U.S. restuarant-style seaweed salad, omit the soy sauce; replace the sugar with high fructose corn syrup; and add a pinch of cayenne pepper, 1/4 tsp of onion powder or yeast extract, and a pinch of MSG.

For dressing 2:

2 Tbsp vegan mayonnaise

1/2 tsp unseasoned rice vinegar (米酢)

1/4 tsp dried ground shiitake mushroom, or vegetarian dashi powder

1/4 tsp vegetarian granulated sugar

Drop of djion mustard

Pinch kosher salt

1 tsp Japanese soy sauce (しょうゆ / 醤油) (such as Kikkoman's)

Drizzle of mirin (みりん)

2 tsp toasted sesame seeds, ground in a mortar and pestle or spice mill

If you eat eggs, you can replace the first five ingredients with 2 Tbsp Kewpie mayo (キューピーマヨ).

For a halal version, replace the mirin with an extra pinch of sugar.

Instructions:

For the salad:

1. Slice kombu into very thin strips. Slice wakame into thin strips, or leave as-is, as desired. Slice other flat dried seaweed into thin strips or bite-sized pieces.

For dressing 1:

1. Whisk all ingredients except sesame seeds together in a small bowl. Toss with seaweed. Top with sesame seeds and serve cold.

For dressing 2:

1. Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl. Toss with seaweed. Serve cold.

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