Pickling lets you enjoy the aroma of green shiso seeds well beyond their season. These pickled seeds are marvelous as a topping for rice and tofu, and as an ingredient for sushi rice.

Ingredients

Green shiso seeds…4 oz (100 g) (net)*
Soy sauce…1/2 cup (100 ml)
Hon mirin…1/4 cup (50 ml)
Ginger (grated) …1 tsp

  • 4 oz is about what 4 1/2 oz (130 g) of green shiso seed heads will yield.

How to Make

1 Hold the green shiso seed heads upside down and the strip off the seeds. Wear plastic or rubber gloves for this task if you have sensitive skin.

2 Soak the seeds in a mixing bowl filled with water. Stir them around to release foreign matter. Repeat 2 or 3 times. When the seeds have been thoroughly cleaned, drain them in a sieve.

3 Add the soy sauce and mirin to a small pot. Bring the pot to a boil then turn off the heat. Let the pot cool and then add the ginger.

4 Bring a separate pot of water to a boil. Parboil the seeds and then remove them to a bowl of water. This will eliminate unwanted flavors and help the seeds retain their color. Drain the seeds in a sieve and squeeze out the excess water.

5 Put the seeds into the storage jar and add the soy-sauce-mirin-ginger mixture. Stir the jar well and then put it into a refrigerator for 2 days.

Recipe developed by Machiko Tateno

https://www.tuttlepublishing.com/other/japanese-pickled-vegetables

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