Japanese cuisine · Salads & Mezze

Ika Sansai

Tender squid strips with pickled mountain vegetables, soy sauce and sesame oil – a cold izakaya appetizer.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 400 g squid tubes
• 250 g pickled mountain vegetables (sansai, from a jar)
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 piece ginger (3 cm)
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds
• 1 pinch salt

Instructions

1. Clean the squid tubes inside, pat dry and cut into narrow rings or strips about 5 mm wide.
2. Bring plenty of water with a pinch of salt to a boil and blanch the strips for exactly 60 sec. until opaque white and lightly curled.
3. Immediately plunge into ice water – this is what keeps them tender – then drain well on paper towels.
4. Drain the pickled mountain vegetables, rinse briefly under cold water, squeeze out and cut into 4 cm pieces.
5. Whisk soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, sugar and the finely grated ginger into a dressing until the sugar has dissolved.
6. Toss squid and mountain vegetables in the dressing, let marinate chilled for 20 min. and serve in small bowls sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds.