Day 48 - Page 142 - Cured Hamachi, Horseradish-Edamame Puree & Furikake; Pages 105-107 - Grilled Octopus Salad, Konbu, Bamboo Shoots & Pickled Chiles + Octo Vinaigrette

This is the last week of posts for Mi Momofuku because by Sunday I will have made almost all of the recipes in the book or at least all of the recipes that I wanted to make. I have yet to decide on my next project but I'm intrigued by Jonathan Gold's early, outrageous ambition to eat at every food establishment along Pico Boulevard in Los Angeles. For a taste of his Pulitzer Prize-winning food writing you can find him at the LA Weekly . 

I've been working on this blog for 7 months and it was just today that I finally made the trip to Japantown. I had a really good time browsing the aisles and aisles of condiments at Nijiya Market. Chang favors Kewpie Mayonnaise, I couldn't resist, and I will have the chance to use it in a mustard sauce this weekend.
It comes in a squishy plastic bottle and comes with a warning:

But I was really on the hunt for all the things I would need for the Cured Hamachi dish. Everything but the horseradish (found at Molly Stone's in Greenbrae) was there.

The cure was roughly ground Sichuan peppercorns and coriander seeds

mixed with some sugar and salt. I coated the hamachi filets and set them to cure in the fridge for about 2 hours - any more time would have made gravlax and we were going for sashimi here!

Next I made the puree. The soy beans and horseradish were a contrast in texture and color.

I chopped the horseradish and pureed it with the beans and a little water in the blender. Green is my color and the pale shade was a beautiful foil for the strong fumes and intense pungency of the radish.

I plated this to look just like the Momofuku photo with fresh pea shoots and wakame chazuke furikake (seaweed and puffed rice seasoning).

The Grilled Octopus Salad was an afterthought because at the store I came across a small package of baby octopus tentacles. The recipe called for whole octopus but this made the job a little easier because I didn't have to check the heads for cartilage. I braised the octopus until tender in a broth of water, soy, sake and vinegar.

 

I sliced a bamboo shoot and boiled it in water until just tender - I wanted to maintain a slight crunch.

I also sliced a sheet of cooked konbu into narrow ribbons and julienned a carrot. Then I made the Octo Vinaigrette, a dressing with ginger, garlic, vinegar, and soy that is served with all kinds of grilled or fried meats at Momofuku. Previously, I made it to go with the Momofuku fried chicken. 

I grilled the octopus and put it on top of the tossed salad. This was spicy, sweet/sour, and a study in textures.