Fermented Friday: Asian Slaw

Fermented Friday: recipes featuring yeast, wine, beer or some form of fermentation

This recipe is a bit of a stretch for Fermented Friday, but technically it qualifies since soy sauce and rice vinegar are fermented products.  Soy sauce is made by fermenting soybeans with roasted wheat or barley.  Vinegar is produced when bacteria convert a fermented product into acetic acid.  The word itself comes from the French term for "sour wine" vin aigre.  Rice vinegar is made from, you guessed it, fermented rice.  See, we're still using fermentation.

Actually, I've just been craving this crunchy slaw for the past few weeks and needed an excuse to make it.  Okay, that and I put in enough hours at work this week that I didn't quite find time to finish the beer-cheese recipe I'm working on.

Though the fermentation aspect is minute, this salad still works with Friday and the letter F.  I've sorely neglected the farmer's market this summer in lieu of lounging around and sipping coffee.  But, I did make it the past two weekends and found some delicious produce, including the cabbage used in this salad.  I guess we could deem it Fresh Farmer's Market Finds Friday.

I'm also considering Forgotten then Found in the Fridge or Freezer Friday. (In which case, we hope it's not fermented.)  The edamame had been in the freezer since last March when I first made a similar version of this salad.   I almost tossed in some red onion and an apple that needed to be put to use, but I stopped while I was ahead for once.

I changed a few things this time around based on what I had on hand, but that's the nice part about salad.  It's versatile and forgiving, not to mention delicious.  I've had fresh chives growing in the garden all summer and only used them a few times.  Green onions would work better here, but the chives jumped in instead.  The red bell pepper adds color, crunch and sweetness, but green or yellow bell peppers will do the trick as well.

 This sassy slaw is crunchy yet juicy as the dressing draws out natural juices from a rainbow of veggies.  Freshly grated ginger and Sriracha give this bright dressing a kick while peanut butter and sesame oil add nutty undertones. A tangy burst from the rice vinegar is balanced with sweet honey and orange juice.  Deep purple cabbage, sunny orange carrots and bright red bell pepper add a flair of color to the various shades of green found in the cabbage, edamamae and broccoli.  

Asian Slaw
inspired by Once Upon a Chef

Ingredients:

Dressing:
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
2 Tbsp orange juice
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp Sriracha
1 clove garlic, grated
1-inch piece fresh ginger, grated

Salad:
4 cups shredded green cabbage
1 cup shredded red cabbage
1 red bell pepper, julienned
2 large carrots, shredded
1 cup small broccoli florets
1/2 cup shelled edamame
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

Instructions:
* In a small bowl combine rice vinegar, orange juice, soy sauce, honey, peanut butter, sesame oil, Sriracha, garlic and ginger. Whisk until smooth; set aside.
* In a large bowl combine green and red cabbage, red pepper, carrots, broccoli, edamame and chives. Toss to combine.  Pour dressing over top of vegetables and toss until evenly coated. Let stand 10 minutes, allowing vegetables to absorb flavors in the dressing.

Food for Thought: "Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important things is to not stop questioning." -Albert Einstein