Toasted Millet And Confetti Vegetable Salad With Sesame And Soy Food

TOASTED MILLET SALAD WITH CUCUMBER, AVOCADO AND LEMON

Steps:

• To a small pot set over medium heat, add the millet and toast, swirling the pan constantly until the grains begin to crackle, become fragrant and deepen in color to a deep tan, about 10 minutes.
• Turn heat to low and carefully add 1 1/4 cups water, season with salt, bring to a simmer and cook, partly covered, until the millet is softened, about 15 minutes. Remove the millet from the heat, and stir in 1 tablespoon olive oil and let sit covered for at least 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork, and allow to cool to room temperature. You can do this step ahead and store the cooked millet in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. (If using other grains, toast first, then cook according to package directions.)
• While the millet cooks, make the vinaigrette: Combine the lemon zest, juice and honey in a small bowl and whisk to incorporate. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of olive oil and whisk until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.
• Toss the cooled millet with cucumbers, mint, almonds (if using) and half of the lemon vinaigrette; divide among bowls. Top each bowl with an avocado quarter and dress with spoonfuls of vinaigrette.

ASIAN SESAME NOODLE SALAD WITH PEANUT DRESSING (VEGETARIAN)

Steps:

• Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender; drain and rinse well under COLD water, then toss with 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, transfer to a large bowl, then add in the red bell pepper and green onions.
• Using a blender puree all the dressing ingredients until smooth (about 2 minutes).
• Just before serving pour the dressing over the cooked pasta and veggies, then add in the toasted sesame seeds; toss well to combine.
• Sprinkle with chopped green onions if desired and serve.

JAPANESE-STYLE CUCUMBER SALAD WITH SESAME DRESSING

Steps:

• Cut the cucumbers in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon.
• Cut up the cucumber into bite sized pieces. Bash them up a bit with the side of your kitchen knife - this allows the dressing to sink into them.
• Toast the sesame seeds in a dry frying pan, shaking occasionally, until a few seeds pop. Immediately transfer the seeds to a plate (if you leave them in the pan they may get burned).
• Mix the lemon juice, vinegar, soy sauce, dashi stock granules and sugar together until the sugar has dissolved. Taste, and add a pinch of salt if you think it needs it. Add the sesame oil (or you can just drizzle on the sesame oil when you assemble the salad).
• Combine the cucumbers with the dressing and the sesame seeds. Serve right away or leave to marinate in the refrigerator for a stronger flavor.
• Note: If you're using small Japanese cucumbers any other small, immature cucumber, you don't need to de-seed them. Just cut them up and bash a bit. (This bashing thing, is a real cooking method in Japanese cooking. It helps the flavors to penetrate the bashed up vegetable better.).
• If you use white balsamic vinegar instead of the rice or white wine vinegar, you can decrease or even omit the sugar.
• This sesame dressing is very versatile. Try it with any number of vegetables. It's great on a leafy green salad. You can increase the sesame oil if you want it to have a richer sesame flavor. Add some chili pepper flakes to make it spicy, and/or some grated garlic for a more Korean-tasting twist.Add some shredded poached chicken breast to the cucumbers for a more substantial salad.

VEGETABLE NOODLE SALAD WITH SESAME VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Bring a pot of water to a boil, and season generously with salt.
• In a small bowl, combine soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, ginger and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, and mix well.
• Once the water boils, cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 3/4 cup pasta cooking water, then drain. Transfer pasta to a large bowl. Add half the dressing and 1/4 cup pasta water, season with salt and pepper and toss to evenly coat.
• Meanwhile, in a large deep-sided saucepan, heat safflower oil over medium. Add onion and bell peppers, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until deep golden and tender, about 10 minutes. Add snap peas and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp-tender, 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, 1/4 cup pasta water and the remaining dressing. Stir to deglaze the pan and lift the browned bits on the bottom of the skillet, then add vegetable mixture (with sauce) and scallions to pasta and toss until well combined (add more pasta water if thinner sauce is desired). Season with salt and pepper.
• Serve warm or at room temperature. Garnish with scallions and sesame seeds, if using.

TOASTED MILLET

Steps:

• Rinse the millet quickly to wash off any dust, then drain, shaking off as much moisture as possible.
• Toast it in a large skillet over medium heat until the grains are dry, separate, and smell good.
• Bring 3 cups water to a boil in a 2 or 3 quart saucepan, and add 1/2 teaspoons salt. Stir in millet.
• Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes. Turn the millet iinto a bowl, season with pepper, and stir in butter to taste.

TOASTED MILLET SALAD

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, bring 2 1/2 cups water to a boil. Meanwhile, coat bottom of a large saute pan with 1 teaspoons of the olive oil. Add millet and cook, stirring, over medium low heat until it gives off a toasted aroma, about 10 minutes. Add boiling hot water. Cover and cook over medium low heat until water is absorbed and millet is tender, about 25 minutes. Uncover and cool.
• Meanwhile, coat salmon with 1 teaspoons of the soy sauce. Heat a large skillet over high heat. When hot, add fillets, reduce heat to medium and cook until browned, about 3 minutes. Turn over and cook until the salmon is cooked through, 3-5 minutes longer. Remove from heat. Cool in pan. Break into 1" pieces.
• Heat a small saucepan of water to a boil. Add snow peas and cook 1 minute. Drain, rinse, and blot dry.
• In a large bowl, whisk vinegar, 2 tbsp water, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, salt, and remaining olive oil and soy sauce. Reserve 1 tbsp of the mixture. Toss millet with the dressing. In a small bowl, toss scallions, pepper, snow peas, and reserved dressing. Add half the vegetables and the salmon to the millet.
• Spoon millet salad onto a platter. Top with remaining vegetables. Serve and enjoy!