Q: Someone gave us a jar of homemade Japanese sesame sauce for Christmas.
I've never cooked with it before. Any recipe ideas other than using it as a salad dressing?
Sent by I'Ching
Editor: I'Ching, this reminds us of this recipe for spinach crowns with sesame sauce:
• Winter Recipe: Spinach Crowns with Sesame Dressing
You could also use it with noodles; toss cooked soba or udon with quickly-cooked vegetables and the sesame dressing.
Readers, how would you use this sauce?
Related: Recipe: Cold Peanut Sesame Noodles
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In a little oil (peanut oil is good, as it gets very hot), saute onions, green beans, maybe a little baby corn, maybe some bell peppers, maybe a little tomato if you like tomato, and thinly sliced beef or chicken. Add a small amount of stock (particularly if the meat is already cooked and a good dollop or two of your sesame sauce. Mix in chow mein noodles or serve over rice.
This is one of those generic pan-Asian recipes that works with whatever exotic dark, non-curry sauce you've been left with an entire bottle of due to a moment of impulse at the Asian market.
Just use it for stir fries or noodles. It's also a common dipping sauce, along with a ponzu based sauce, for meats and vegetables if you want to set up an at home shabu shabu (Japanese hot pot).
Sesame oil can be used for variety of foods- but I use it a lot with this particular rice dish my mom used to make for me since I was a kid. It's my comfort food and so easy to make. Add a can of small tuna, a 1/2 tbsp and 1 tbsp of soy sauce, fried egg to a bowl of rice and voila! You have my childhood comfort food.