Kinpira Gobo (Burdock and Carrot Salad)
I first had this dish at my favourite conveyor belt sushi restaurant in London - Kulu Kulu in Covent Garden and I have wanted to recreate it ever since. Tracking down burdock root (or Gobo) is not the easiest thing in the world, and actually is quite fiddly to peel and cut up. Much better to buy them pre-cut into matchstick-sized pieces (I lucked out in the frozen section of the Japan Centre, London).
Heat a 1 tbs of vegetable oil in a frying pan and briefly stir fry 1 1/2 cups burdock root and 1/2 cup carrots cut into matchsticks. Add 1 1/2 tbs mirin, 2 tbs soy sauce, 1 1/2 tbs sake, 1 tbs sugar, and a pinch of Nanami Togarashi (a Japanese chili mix) or substitute plain chili flakes. It should still be crunchy.
Serve with a drizzle of sesame oil and sprinkled with sesame seeds.
