Beautiful Life Magazine

Conventional wisdom says that arugula salad should be dressed with vinaigrette, which, by definition, balance an acid with a fat. Turns out you can break that rule by dropping the acid entirely. In this arugula salad, we make a “vinaigrette” with shoyu-dashi—soy sauce mixed with dashi—for an easy, deeply flavorful dish.

• YIELD: Serves 4 as a first course
• ACTIVE TIME: 10 minutes
• TOTAL TIME: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound (500g) sweet potatoes in jackets, poked all over with a fork
• 1 cup walnut halves (3 ounces; 90g), crumbled
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 2 cups (475ml) cold water
• 1/4 ounce dried kombu (8g; about one 5- by 2-inch piece)
• 1/4 ounce dried bonito flakes (8g; 1 loosely packed cup)
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) soy sauce
• 4 cups arugula (2 1/2 ounces; 70g)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Microwave sweet potatoes until tender and easily pierced with a fork, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly. If desired, peel and discard jackets. Cut into medium cubes and allow to cool to room temperature.
2. Meanwhile, on a microwave-safe plate, drizzle walnuts with just enough olive oil to lightly coat, toss well, and arrange in a single even layer. Microwave in 1-minute intervals at high power, tossing walnuts between intervals, until toasted and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Let cool.
3. In a medium saucepan, combine water with kombu and cook over medium heat until just shy of a simmer. Remove and discard kombu using tongs. Remove from heat, add bonito flakes, and let steep for 10 minutes. Strain dashi into a heatproof container through a fine-mesh strainer. Discard bonito flakes. (See note above.)
4. In a small bowl, whisk 1/4 cup dashi together with soy sauce (this is now shoyu-dashi). Reserve remaining dashi for another use. (It’s good just as a warming broth.
5. In a clean small bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons shoyu-dashi with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Reserve remaining shoyu-dashi for another use. (It’s delicious as a broth for poached eggs, steamed fish, or simple steamed vegetables.)
6. In a salad bowl, combine sweet potato, walnuts, and arugula. Dress with shoyu-dashi/oil mixture, tossing well to coat. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Print Recipe

Arugula, Sweet Potato, and Walnut Salad

Course

Lunch, Starter

Servings

servings

Ingredients

• 1 pound sweet potatoes in jackets poked all over with a fork
• 1 cup walnut halves crumbled
• 2 tbsps extra-virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
• 2 cups cold water
• 1/4 ounce dried kombu about one 5- by 2-inch piece
• 1/4 ounce dried bonito flakes 1 loosely packed cup
• 2 tbps soy sauce
• 4 cups arugula
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Course Lunch, Starter Servings servings Ingredients 1 pound sweet potatoes in jackets poked all over with a fork 1 cup walnut halves crumbled 2 tbsps extra-virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling 2 cups cold water 1/4 ounce dried kombu about one 5- by 2-inch piece 1/4 ounce dried bonito flakes 1 loosely packed cup 2 tbps soy sauce 4 cups arugula Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Microwave sweet potatoes until tender and easily pierced with a fork, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly. If desired, peel and discard jackets. Cut into medium cubes and allow to cool to room temperature.
2. Meanwhile, on a microwave-safe plate, drizzle walnuts with just enough olive oil to lightly coat, toss well, and arrange in a single even layer. Microwave in 1-minute intervals at high power, tossing walnuts between intervals, until toasted and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Let cool.
3. In a medium saucepan, combine water with kombu and cook over medium heat until just shy of a simmer. Remove and discard kombu using tongs. Remove from heat, add bonito flakes, and let steep for 10 minutes. Strain dashi into a heatproof container through a fine-mesh strainer. Discard bonito flakes. (See note above.)
4. In a small bowl, whisk 1/4 cup dashi together with soy sauce (this is now shoyu-dashi). Reserve remaining dashi for another use. (It's good just as a warming broth.
5. In a clean small bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons shoyu-dashi with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Reserve remaining shoyu-dashi for another use. (It's delicious as a broth for poached eggs, steamed fish, or simple steamed vegetables.)
6. In a salad bowl, combine sweet potato, walnuts, and arugula. Dress with shoyu-dashi/oil mixture, tossing well to coat. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

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