Dried daikon is a white radish that is sliced into strips and sun dried. It is a great source of fiber, potassium and vitamin C. It has been used for centuries in Asia as a powerful cleansing food to help dissolve and detoxify the body of old fats that are stored deep within. It is also a diuretic and helps to cleanse the liver, gallbladder and kidneys. You can find kosher dried daikon from Eden Foods. This salad has a few more steps in preparation than the other salads, but I think the health and beauty benefits that will ensue make the extra prep time worth it.
Sweet Daikon Salad with Sesame Citrus Dressing
Servings
4 Servings
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried daikon soaked for 15 minutes in 2 cups cool water
- 1 head romaine lettuce sliced into 1 inch strips
- 4 handfuls arugula
- 1 bunch red radishes sliced into wedges
- 1 yellow summer squash sliced into half-moons
- large leaves red cabbage sliced into 1 inch strips and then finely sliced
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- ¾ cup apple juice
- Juice from ½ juicing orange
- 2 cups toasted sesame seeds
- 1½ cups juice from juicing oranges
- ½ cup apple juice
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- Pinch of sea salt
Instructions
- 1 While the dried daikon is soaking, mix the romaine lettuce and arugula together and place at the bottom of each bowl.
- 2 Fill a large pot with 1 inch of water and place it on the stove on high heat. Place a metal steamer basket into the pot.
- 3 Bring the water in the pot to a boil and place the yellow summer squash into the steamer. Cover the pot with a lid and turn the heat to low and let the water simmer.
- 4 Cook the squash for 2 minutes and then remove it from the pot and place the squash on a plate.
- 5 Repeat this steaming process with the radishes. (You do not want to steam the vegetables together because the pink color from the radish will bleed onto the squash.)
- 6 Arrange the squash, radish and cabbage in sections around the bowl.
- 7 Drain and squeeze the soaked dried daikon to get rid of any excess liquid. Slice the daikon into 1 inch pieces.
- 8 Heat the toasted sesame oil in a skillet on medium heat, toss in the daikon and sauté the daikon for 1 minute.
- 9 Add the soy sauce, apple juice and orange juice and turn the stove to medium-high to bring the liquid to a boil.
- 10 Once the liquid is boiling, turn the heat to low, cover the pan with a lid and let it simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off the heat and set aside.
- 11 To make the dressing, put toasted sesame seeds, orange juice, apple juice, soy sauce, sesame oil and sea salt into a food processor. Blend until smooth.
- 12 Place the cooked dried daikon in the center of each bowl. Drizzle the salad with the dressing.
- As seen in Joy of Kosher with Jamie Geller Magazine – (Bitayavon Summer 2012) – Subscribe Now.
Hi Pamela,
Macrobiotically speaking, dried daikon has similar fat dissolving properties to fresh daikon, except that dried daikon’s fat dissolving effects go deep within the body to dissolve old fats. Fresh daikon is used more for digesting new fats that are eaten more recently. Dried daikon has excellent cleansing properties for anyone who wants to detoxify from eating too many fats and too much animal protein in the past.
What are the benefits of buying dried daikon and soaking it when you can buy it fresh and just slice it? Thank you for the info.