Homemade Potato and Wasabi Chips

By Adrian J.S. Hale as featured on The Oregonian

Frying the wasabi together with potatoes gives these chips a subtle and pungent heat that is addictive and hard to place. For a cheater's version, buy good quality potato chips and only fry the wasabi. Toss them together before serving. You can make these in the morning and they'll stay crisp all day.
 

INGREDIENTS

4 large russet potatoes, scrubbed
2 fresh wasabi roots, peeled
Vegetable oil, for frying
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Using a mandoline or a sharp knife, cut the potatoes and wasabi into 1/8 -inch thick disks. Fill a heavy-bottomed pot with 3 inches of oil and place over medium-high heat.

When a deep-fry thermometer registers 375 degrees, add a handful of potatoes and wasabi. Fry until golden, turning and flipping regularly to encourage even cooking. Using a slotted spoon or spider, transfer the chips to a brown paper bag to drain. Sprinkle with a generous handful of salt, and pepper if desired.

Fresh Wasabi Stems with Miso Dipping Sauce

By Chef David Padberg

In Japan, they love raw vegetables with dipping sauces, much like we love crudité platters, chips and salsa, and bagna cauda. Wasabi stems will end up on such platters. If the stem is too tough for your liking, it can be lightly blanched in boiling water to soften it a little. Here is a nice miso dipping sauce:

Walnuts 4 tbsp
White Miso 1 tbsp
Dark Miso 1 tsp
Dashi (or water) 3 tbsp
Rice Vinegar
2 tsp

Puree all the ingredients together in a food processor until smooth. You can adjust the thickness of the dipping sauce to meet your needs.

Oysters on the Half Shell with Wasabi Lime Granita

INGREDIENTS

By Chef Chris Padberg

Oysters 1 dozen
Dashi 1 pint
Sugar ½ cup
Lime Juice ¼ cup
Wasabi Rhizome 12 grams

In a stainless steel saucepot, bring the dashi to a simmer and dissolve the sugar in it. While it cools, juice the lime and grate the fresh wasabi paste. Mix the juice and wasabi together and stir into the cool dashi mixture and place in a flat piece of plasticware and store it in the freezer. Once the mixture is frozen, use a fork to scrape the ice into flakes of granita. Shuck the oysters and arrange them on a platter covered with ice cubes or rock salt and garnish with the granita. The sharp yet cool granita blends into the briny, bright oyster. For an extra element of color and texture, garnish with trout roe as well.

Photo courtesy.