Carrot Salad
にんじんサラダ · Ninjin Salad
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
This is one of the simplest side dishes on our preschool lunch menu: thin strips of carrot and bean sprouts, briefly boiled, then tossed in a light sweet-and-sour soy dressing with sesame. Heating the dressing first takes the sharp edge off the vinegar, so even toddlers who usually shy away from anything tangy happily eat it. The vegetables are cut short so they are easy to pick up with a small spoon or fork, and the gentle sweetness of the carrot keeps everyone coming back for more.
Wheat-free, but uses soy sauce (made with wheat). Japanese school-lunch allergy menus usually allow it, so check with your doctor. How to read the labels
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 30 gcarrot
- 30 gbean sprouts
Seasonings
- 2.6 gvegetable oil
- 2.1 gvinegar
- 0.2 gsugar
- 1.7 gsoy sauce
- 1.5 gwhite sesame seeds
Directions
- 1
Cut the carrot into short, thin strips and the bean sprouts into 2 cm lengths, then boil each separately. Rinse under running water to cool.
- 2
Combine the dressing ingredients and heat them to cook off the sharpness of the vinegar.
- 3
Toast the white sesame seeds (optional).
- 4
Squeeze the vegetables from step 1 to drain off the water, then toss with the dressing from step 2 and the sesame seeds from step 3.
Toasting the sesame seeds brings out a nutty aroma that makes the vegetables easier for children to eat. If you are short on time, it is fine to skip this step.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 48 kcal | 96 kcal | 48 kcal |
| Protein | 1.2 g | 2.4 g | 1.2 g |
| Fat | 3.3 g | 6.6 g | 3.3 g |
| Carbohydrates | 4.2 g | 8.4 g | 4.2 g |
| Fiber | 1.5 g | 3 g | 1.5 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.3 g | 0.6 g | 0.3 g |
| Calcium | 30 mg | 60 mg | 30 mg |
| Iron | 0.2 mg | 0.3 mg | 0.2 mg |
| Potassium | 126 mg | 252 mg | 126 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 48 kcal | 1.2 g | 3.3 g | 4.2 g | 1.5 g | 0.3 g | 30 mg | 0.2 mg | 126 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 96 kcal | 2.4 g | 6.6 g | 8.4 g | 3 g | 0.6 g | 60 mg | 0.3 mg | 252 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
