Sushi is one of my favourite options when we go out to eat. I enjoy choosing restaurants or entrees that are exotic or difficult to make at home. Sushi is one of those things! To make it at home requires a fair bit of preparation and specialized tools or ingredients. That being said, I love the flavours of a Japanese meal- the sesame, ginger, seaweed and saltiness. So delicious!
I decided to use these ingredient concepts in a vegan sushi salad! So incredibly easy to put together, but it packs some major flavour punch. You may have to check out a larger grocery or specialty store to get your hands on the pickled ginger, but that’s really the most exotic ingredient included in this salad.
Ingredients:
1 large sweet potato, scrubbed clean and cubed
2 cups fresh baby spinach, lightly packed
1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced
1 avocado, thinly sliced
1.5 cups frozen & shelled edamame, thawed
1 sheet nori, sliced into thin strips with scissors
2 brown rice cakes, broken into small pieces for croutons
2 tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
For the dressing:
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp low-sodium tamari (or soy sauce)
1 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 clove garlic, grated or minced
1/2 tsp sriracha or wasabi paste, to taste
Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 425F. Place cubed sweet potato onto a lined baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and season with a bit of salt and black pepper. Toss with your hands until well coated. Roast for 30-35 minutes or until soft and slightly browned at edges. Set aside to cool.
2) Meanwhile, prepare salad ingredients and place into a large bowl (i.e. spinach through toasted sesame seeds). Toss gently to combine (I like to use clean hands!).
3) Prepare the dressing. Place all dressing ingredients into a small bowl or mason jar and whisk/ shake to emulsify.
4) Once sweet potato has cooled, add it along with the dressing to the remaining ingredients. Toss to combine.
*Note: If planning to reserve some of the salad for leftovers, keep nori strips, rice cake croutons and dressing separate. Add avocado just before serving.
