I grew up eating this dish, and every time I have it I feel a great connection to my Japanese heritage. Of course it doesn't hurt that it's easy to make, healthy, and delicious. I've trimmed down the usual number of ingredients, relying on the spices to provide much of the flavor. And if you can't find burdock I've included some other ideas below; it's a great way to save vegetable stems from the compost.

Kinpira Gobo

Author
Christian Leue
Servings
4 to 6
Category
Salad

Ingredients

  • 2 burdock roots, aka gobo (the cultivated ones are usually about 3 feet long and 3/4" thick)
  • 1 large carrot
  • 1 Tbsp neutral oil (I like high heat sunflower oil for this)
  • 1 tsp roasted sesame oil
  • 3 Tbsp mirin (sweet rice wine)
  • 2 Tbsp shoyu (soy sauce)
  • Autre Shichimi or Yagenbori

Directions

  1. Fill a large bowl with cold water.
  2. Peel the burdock, then cut thin, 3"-long, slices on a steep bias. Place the resulting oval slices into the bowl of cold water as you cut them (this will keep them from discoloring).
  3. Peel the carrot and slice in the same way. You should end up with about twice the amount of chopped burdock as you have carrot. If you prefer more of one or the other you can always vary it to your tastes.
  4. You can leave the carrots and burdock as is, or slice the ovals into thin matchsticks for a more refined dish. Up to you! If you do, remember to put the chopped burdock back in cold water so it does not brown. Just make sure the pieces of carrot and burdock are around the same size.
  5. In a large skillet or wok heat the oil over high heat. Rinse the burdock, drain in a colander, and add to the hot oil just as the oil begins to smoke. Stir fry for about 3 minutes, then add the carrot slices and stir fry for 2-3 minutes more.
  6. Add the mirin and shoyu and mix well, then drop the heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the liquid mostly evaporates and the carrots and burdock are both tender-crisp. Add spices to your tastes, mix well, and remove to a serving dish.
  7. Remove to a serving dish and top with additional spice.

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