One of Japanese iconic dishes of Spinach is ‘Ohitashi’, marinated in dashi-base sauce. I particularly like Wasabi flavoured ‘Ohitashi’. If you don’t like Wasabi, forget this dish. My daughter enjoys most of the food on this planet, but Wasabi is one of the few things that she doesn’t enjoy.

I usually stock a bottle of ‘Mentsuyu’ (a dipping sauce for Japanese noodles), that can be made quite easily. ‘Mentsuyu’ can be used as a seasoning sauce. Using ‘Mentsuyu’, this dish can be made very quickly. Just mix it with Wasabi and marinate Spinach & Wakame. If you don’t have it, it is still simple to make.

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Makes

4 Servings

Ingredients

Spinach 1 bunch *250 to 300g
Dried Wakame 5g OR 2 tablespoons
‘Mentsuyu’ 4 tablespoons *OR Dashi Stock 2 tablespoons & Soy Sauce 2 tablespoons
Wasabi Paste 1 to 2 teaspoons

Method

1. Soak Dry Wakame in cold water until soft, drain well. Cut into smaller pieces if large.
2. Wash Spinach well and boil in boiling water until tender. Dip in cold water to stop cooking further, drain well and squeeze to remove excess water. Cut into 5cm length.
3. Place ‘Mentsuyu’ (OR Dashi and Soy Sauce) and Wasabi in a bowl, mix well, then add prepared Spinach and Wakame, mix to combine.
4. Serve with extra Wasabi on top.