Horenso no Goma-ae

Horenso no Goma-ae (Spinach with Sesame Dressing)

A classic Japanese spinach side dish where blanched spinach is tossed with a savory-sweet sesame dressing. It is a standard offering in the small dish (kobachi) section of a traditional meal.

Prep

10 min

Cook

5 min

Total

15 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •300 g (10½ oz) fresh spinach (horenso), stems trimmed, well washed
• •1 l (4 cups) water, for blanching
• •1 tsp salt, for the blanching water
• •40 g (⅓ cup) roasted white sesame seeds, hikiyamani; do not substitute raw sesame
• •2 tbsp soy sauce (shoyu), Japanese-style, such as koikuchi
• •1 tbsp granulated sugar
• •1 tsp mirin, optional, for a rounder sweetness
• •1 tsp dashi, optional; use kombu dashi for vegetarian

Steps

1. 1 Bring 1 L (4 cups) of water to a rolling boil in a large pot and add the salt.
2. 2 Add the spinach stems first and blanch for 20 seconds, then push the leaves into the water and blanch for 30 seconds more, until just wilted and bright green but still crisp. Do not overcook.
3. 3 Drain the spinach in a colander and rinse briefly under cold running water to stop the cooking and set the color.
4. 4 Gather the spinach into a tight ball and squeeze firmly but gently to press out excess water. A home kitchen replaces the traditional tsukibako press here.
5. 5 Cut the squeezed spinach into 4 cm (about 1½ inch) lengths and set aside.
6. 6 Grind the roasted sesame seeds in a suribachi (mortar and pestle), or in a small food processor, until about half crushed with a sandy, slightly oily texture. Do not grind to a paste.
7. 7 In a small bowl, stir together the ground sesame, soy sauce, sugar, mirin, and dashi if using until the sugar is fully dissolved.
8. 8 Add the chopped spinach to the bowl and toss gently with chopsticks until every piece is coated with the dressing.
9. 9 Pile onto a small plate or into a kobachi bowl, shaping it neatly with chopsticks. Serve at room temperature as part of a Japanese meal.