Koji × Olive oil
Three Small Plates with Koji and Olive Oil
Pear carpaccio with shio koji, a spiced red cabbage salad with Iberico ham, and diced cheese marinated with capers — three quick small plates that show how a spoonful of koji seasoning brings out a fruity extra virgin olive oil.
- Serves
- Serves 2 as a starter (each plate)
- Time
- About 25 minutes
Ingredients
Pear and shio koji carpaccio
- Pear (ripe)1/4
- Shio koji1/2 tsp
- Flat-leaf parsley, finely choppeda little
- Extra virgin olive oil2–3 tsp
- Coarsely ground black peppera pinch
Red cabbage, Iberico ham and spices
- Red cabbage, very finely shredded100 g
- Onion koji (or shio koji)1 tsp
- Iberico ham (or other cured ham), cut into strips20–25 g
- Flat-leaf parsley, chopped1 sprig
- Panch phoron (Bengali five-spice, whole seeds)1/3–1/2 tsp
- Extra virgin olive oil1 tbsp
- Black peppera pinch
Diced cheese with capers
- Semi-hard cheese (Gouda, Comté), 1 cm cubes40 g
- Capers, drained1 tsp
- Extra virgin olive oil2 tsp or more
- Black peppera pinch
Method
Pear and shio koji carpaccio
- Core the pear and slice it about 5 mm thick, skin on.
- Lay the slices on a plate and spread the shio koji thinly over them.
- Scatter with parsley and black pepper, drizzle with olive oil and leave for 5 minutes before serving.
Red cabbage, Iberico ham and spices
- Gently massage the cabbage with the onion koji and leave for 10 minutes to soften.
- Toast the panch phoron in a small dry pan over low heat for 30–60 seconds, until it pops and smells fragrant.
- Toss the cabbage with the ham, parsley and toasted spices. Finish with olive oil and black pepper.
Diced cheese with capers
- Put the cheese and capers in a small container, add olive oil and black pepper and toss gently.
- Leave for 10 minutes so the oil soaks in, then serve.
Tips
- Shio koji is a Japanese seasoning made from rice koji, salt and water. It tastes salty with a soft, rounded umami. Look for it at Japanese grocery stores or online — or make your own.
- Onion koji is shio koji made with onion. It is hard to find outside Japan; shio koji works well in its place.
- Use only a little koji on the pear (about 1/2 tsp for a quarter pear). Too much hides the fruit.
- Make the pear just before serving, as it darkens over time. The cabbage keeps for 2 days and the cheese for 3 days in the fridge.
Three plates, one bottle of olive oil. Chie used Picolimón, a Spanish extra virgin olive oil from El Labrador with a fresh, lemon-peel aroma. Matching a different koji to each ingredient is what lets the oil's fruitiness come through.
Chie Ando develops recipes for Medifar, the Japanese importer of El Labrador olive oil. These recipes also appear on Medifar's Instagram.
