Sesame-soy pickled radishes

October 27-29, 2011

We rarely eat radishes. In fact, for years at a time I kind of forget that radishes exist. Vege boxes and well-tagged delicious accounts make veges like this one much more fun to deal with! A cute little radish bouquet, in three or four different shades of pink and purple, was delivered to our door recently and I was pleasantly surprised to find that I had tagged, tucked away then forgotten no less than three radish recipes.

This one was posted on Nourish Me more than three years ago. It's very easy and very, very tasty. It involves pickling radishes for just half an hour (though I left mine overnight), then dressing them in soy sauce, sweetener, a dash of sesame oil and a sprinkle of chilli powder. They're sweet, salty and earthy, with just the teensiest bit of bite to them. Lucy has some lovely serving suggestions; I imagine eating them with braised tofu, steamed greens and rice, though I'd happily eat a substantial mound of these pickles on their own. They're radishes I'll remember.

Sesame-soy pickled radishes
(adapted slightly from a recipe at Nourish Me,
which is itself adapted slightly from Kylie Kwong's Simple Chinese Cooking)

pickling
1 bunch radishes (I had about 10 of varying sizes)
3 tablespoons sugar
3 teaspoons sea salt

dressing
1 1/2 tablespoons tamari
1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar, agave nectar or maple syrup (I used the latter)
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
generous pinch chilli powder

Wash the radishes and slice them into the thinnest rounds you can. Place them in a small-medium bowl with the sugar and salt, mixing it all together. Let the radishes pickle for half an hour, or refrigerate them for longer (I left mine overnight). 

Whisk together the dressing ingredients in another bowl. When the radishes are ready drain them, gently squeezing out some of the pickling juice, and transfer them into the dressing. Gently toss them through the dressing and serve or store for later.