When I think of a summer slaw to go with the barbeque, I want something light, tangy, cold and crunchy. Traditional coleslaw just  doesn’t do it – its heavy mayonnaise dressing really weighs down the vegetables. Instead of a mayo-based dressing, my Asian slaw is made with a bright, citrusy ponzu sauce – one of the most versatile Asian sauces that I own.

Ponzu is a Japanese “sauce” however I refer to it as both a dressing and sauce. It’s much lighter than soy sauce, with a distinctive tangy lemon/orange flavor combined with a savory note. It’s a perfect balance of salty, sweet and sour! You can use it as a dipping sauce for potstickers, a light sauce for steamed vegetables and combined with some crushed garlic, make the best marinade ever.

I’m working with Mitsukan (pronounced mit-soo-kon) to develop several recipes using popular Japanese sauces and vinegars. This Asian slaw that I’ve made is incredibly simple: thinly sliced cabbage, carrots, snow peas and fennel with a 4-ingredient dressing: ponzu, sesame oil, sesame seeds and salt. 10-minutes to make and you’re done!

How to make Asian Slaw with Ponzu Dressing

Slice the snow peas on the diagonal into thin matchstick-sized pieces.

For carrots, you can purchase matchstick carrots, or slice them yourself — but only do this if you have a very sharp chef’s knife. Skinny, round hard carrots are difficult to slice with a dull knife.

I cut the cabbage into four wedges – we’ll only use 1 wedge. Then, I shred the cabbage as thinly as possible. To do this, use a vegetable peeler and go along the corner. You can also use a box grater with large holes or…..

use a sharp knife to shred by hand, which I prefer.

For the fennel, cut the white bulb from the green top, reserve the green fronds for another recipe (like Bouillabaisse) – you can use them just as you would fresh herbs.  Cut the bulb into quarters and slice one of the quarters as thin as possible using a knife, vegetable peeler or mandoline (save the rest for another recipe).

The dressing ingredients are simple: ponzu, toasted sesame oil, sesame seeds and salt.

Add 1/4 cup of ponzu to a bowl.

The sesame oil and seeds are added.

Season with a big pinch of salt.

Whisk with fork.

Pour the  dressing over the snow peas, carrots, cabbage and fennel.

Toss to combine and taste. You can add more ponzu and salt if needed.

Serve immediately.

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This has been one of my very favorite nagaimo recipes! Unfortunately, this is also the last in the series of nagaimo recipes that we developed for Aomori Nagaimo, the home of the very best nagaimo. A big thanks to Fuji Mama who helped me on this project!

The main ingredients are cabbage, nagaimo, carrot and green onions.

Shred the cabbage (we just hand-cut with knife)

You can cut the carrots into very thin matchsticks with your knife, shred with the large holes of box grater or just buy carrots pre-cut.

Cut the green onions into very thin slices on the diagonal.

Then peel and cut the nagaimo into very thin slices as well.

Mix all together in large bowl.

Combine the dressing ingredients (we used a jar and shook to combine)

Then pour over the vegetables.

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Nagaimo is a Japanese yam and is perfect to use as a substitute for potato in clam chowder! I recently developed a few nagaimo recipes for Aomori Nagaimo, the home of the very best nagaimo.

Nagaimo Clam Chowder
recipe from Jaden Hair, Steamy Kitchen

For clam chowder, I like to use both canned clams and fresh clams. The canned clams are easy to use and will be the “body” of the soup. The fresh clams add a nice garnish and special touch to the soup.

16 Little Neck clams, scrubbed
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 slices bacon, diced
2 tablespoons butter
>1/2 cup onion, minced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 tablespoon flour
6 ounces nagaimo, peeled and cut into large dice
1 can clams (6 1/2 ounces)
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup heavy cream
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1. Heat a pot over high heat with the wine. When simmering, add the clams and cover the pot. Cook until most of the clams have opened, about 5-7 minutes. Discard any clams that have not opened. Pour out and reserve the cooking wine into a medium bowl. Open the can of canned clams and drain the clam juice into the same bowl as the cooking wine.

2. Wipe the pot clean. and return pot to stove over medium heat and add the bacon and the butter. Saute the bacon until browned. Add in the onion, celery and carrot. Saute until very fragrant and the onion has turned translucent. Stir in the flour and cook for another 2 minutes until the flour turns into a nutty aroma.

3. Pour in the reserved clam juice/cooking wine and the water and bring to a boil. Add the nagaimo and cook for 10 minutes until the nagaimo is tender. Add in the canned clam meat, fresh clams and the heavy cream, season with salt, pepper and fresh parsley.

Grease a loaf pan, then dust it with granulated sugar.

Whisk flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together in a large bowl.

Wash and peel the nagaimo

Grate the nagaimo

Mix together the rest of the ingredients.

Add in the nagaimo.

Add the flour mixture to the nagaimo mixture and whisk together.

Mix well.

Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan and bake it.

Let the bread cool completely.

This recipe is similar to zucchini or carrot bread – but it’s made with nagaimo instead!

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One of my favorite Japanese vegetables is nagaimo. In the United States, unless you live near a large Asian population, you might not have heard of nagaimo before. It’s a yam that’s crunchy, fresh-tasting and can be eaten raw.

I recently developed some recipes for nagiamo grown in the Aomori prefecture located in northern Japan. There are four recipes: sweet, savory, cooked and raw that will showcase nagaimo’s versatility.

For this recipe, you can use any type of noodles that you wish, including Italian pasta. This is a noodle dish that can be eaten hot, warm or even cold like a pasta salad.

The asparagus should be cut in sharp diagonal first. Cut each asparagus into thirds.

Then slice each in half lengthwise.

Peel the nagaimo and then slice.

And cut into thick sticks.

Zest the orange.

And the ginger.

Then juice the orange and mix it with all of the other ingredients for the sauce.

Stir fry the asparagus and nagaimo.

Add in the sauce.

Stir in the cooked pasta or noodles.

Nagaimo and Asparagus Warm Pasta with Orange Ginger Sauce
Recipe by Jaden Hair Steamy Kitchen

Serves 4

Ingredients:

8 ounces thin spaghetti pasta (or other pasta of your choice)

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1 teaspoon orange zest

juice from ½ orange

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1 tablespoon cooking oil

8 ounces nagaimo

4 ounces asparagus