Steamed chicken salad with sesame sauce
Called mushi dori no gomadare in Japanese, this is a light, refreshing summer dish, the cool crunch of cucumbers and the gingery chicken balancing the nutty, mildly spicy sesame dressing.
Finely slice the green onions diagonally, reserving the green part for use during cooking the chicken.
On a cutting board, sprinkle the cucumbers with one-fourth teaspoon salt, rubbing it into the flesh, then rinse. Hit the cucumbers with a pestle (if you don’t have a pestle, use a bottle) and break them apart with your hands, to make uneven pieces.
Pierce the chicken pieces with a skewer or toothpick, and place in a large microwave-safe bowl. Add one-fourth teaspoon salt, one-eighth teaspoon pepper, the oil and sake and then place the green part of the onion and the crushed ginger on top. Cover and microwave on medium for 4 minutes or until cooked. Leave to cool. Keep the juice from the chicken to use in the sesame sauce.
Shred the chicken with your hands and place it in a serving dish.
For the sesame sauce: In a small bowl, mix the juices from the chicken, the sesame paste, soy sauce, superfine sugar, vinegar, chile paste, sesame seeds, green onions, ginger and garlic. Pour enough to coat the chicken, then drizzle over the cucumber.
Chile paste and sesame paste are available at Japanese markets. Tahini or natural peanut butter can be substituted for the sesame paste.
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