Spinach with Sesame Dressing

You will be surprised that spinach can be transformed into such a tasty salad. This everyday Japanese recipe is popular among vege lovers. Serve with meat or fish mains as a side vegetable.  Green leaf vegetables are good source for iron.

Ingredients

1/2 bag of spinach ( 200g )
salt

For sesame dressing:
2 tablespoons sesame seeds (white or black)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon water

Method

1. Wash spinach thoroughly. Boil plenty of water in a large pot.( as if you are cooking some spaghetti )
2. When the water boils add a teaspoonful of salt. Put spinach in. Make sure all spinach is submerged in the hot water. Leave on the high heat. As soon as the water starts to boil again remove from the heat.
3. Rinse spinach under cold  running water, then squeeze firmly to remove excess water.
4. Cut spinach into 3cm in length.
5. To make sesame dressing, first toast sesame seeds in a dry frying  pan over medium heat, shaking the pan constantly to prevent burning. When the seeds start to give out aroma and  pop transfer to a dry mortar with pestle. Reserve about  1 teaspoon of seeds as garnish and grind the rest. When they become smooth, mix soy sauce and water.
6. Just before serving, mix spinach with sesame dressing and sprinkle with reserved sesame seeds.

Tip:   If you don’t have a mortar and pestle you can put roasted sesame seeds on a tea towel and chop them with sharp knife. This dressing goes well with green beans too.