Yield: 6 Servings
Measure | Ingredient |
---|---|
1 pounds | String beans |
\N \N | Salt |
1 cup | Niban dashi |
1 tablespoon | Sugar |
\N \N | Soy sauce |
2 teaspoons | Sake |
¼ teaspoon | All purpose soy sauce |
½ cup | White sesame seeds, warmed & ground into a paste |
3 tablespoons | Sake |
2 teaspoons | Sugar |
2 tablespoons | All purpose soy sauce |
DRESSING
Snip off & discard the ends of the green beans & cut them into ½" lengths. Drop the beans into 2 c of lightly salted boiling water, reduce the heat to moderate & cook briskly, uncovered, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the beans are tender but still slightly resistant to the bite. Drain & run them under cold water. In the same pan, combine the dashi, sugar, ¼ ts salt, a sprinkle of soy sauce, sake. Bring to a boil over moderate heat, add the string beans & return to the boil. Remove the pan from the heat & cool to room temperature. DRESSING: Over high heat, heat 3 tb sake to lukewarm. Removepan from heat & ignite the sake with a kitchen match, shaking the pan gently until the flame dies out. Pour the sake into a small bowl & cool to room temperature. Add the sake, 2 ts sugar and 2 tbs soy sauce to the previously prepared sesame paste & mix together thoroughly.
Pour the sesame dressing into a large bowl, add the drained string beans & toss together until the vegetables are thoroughly coated. Taste for seasoning adding more salt if necessary. Serve at room temperature in small bowls, as a first course, salad or part of a Japanese meal.