Chuka Salad (Chinese-Style Sesame Vinegar Salad)
中華サラダ · Chuka Salad
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Chuka salad ("Chinese-style salad") is a staple side dish on Japanese school lunch menus: finely cut daikon, cucumber, carrot and bean sprouts tossed in a light dressing of vinegar, soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil. Everything is cut into short matchsticks so it fits neatly on a small spoon, and the vegetables are quickly blanched and cooled to make them soft and safe for little ones. Warming the dressing takes the sharp edge off the vinegar, so even children who shy away from sour flavors tend to clean their plates. Toasting the sesame seeds adds a nutty aroma that makes the vegetables that much more inviting.
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
Added. Open the recipe helper (bottom right) → ☰ Menu → 🛒 Shopping list to see the ingredients for your family size.
Printing uses the number of adults and children set under Ingredients, so set those first.
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
- 55.5 gdaikon radish
- 19.5 gcucumber
- 13.5 gcarrot
- 22.5 gbean sprouts
Seasonings
- 1.2 gsugar
- 3.6 gvinegar
- 3 gsoy sauce
- 3 gsesame oil
- 0.9 gwhite sesame seeds
Directions
- 1
Cut the daikon, cucumber and carrot into short matchsticks and cut the bean sprouts into 2 cm lengths. Boil each vegetable separately, then rinse under running water to cool.
- 2
Combine all the dressing ingredients and heat them to cook off the sharpness of the vinegar. Toast the white sesame seeds (this can be skipped).
- 3
Squeeze the vegetables from step 1 to drain off the excess water, then toss with the dressing from step 2.
Toasting the sesame seeds brings out a nutty aroma that makes the vegetables easier for children to eat (it's fine to skip this step to save time).
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 61.5 kcal | 123 kcal | 61.5 kcal |
| Protein | 1.5 g | 3 g | 1.5 g |
| Fat | 3.5 g | 6.9 g | 3.5 g |
| Carbohydrates | 6.5 g | 12.9 g | 6.5 g |
| Fiber | 1.8 g | 3.6 g | 1.8 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.5 g | 0.9 g | 0.5 g |
| Calcium | 36 mg | 72 mg | 36 mg |
| Iron | 0.3 mg | 0.6 mg | 0.3 mg |
| Potassium | 240 mg | 480 mg | 240 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 61.5 kcal | 1.5 g | 3.5 g | 6.5 g | 1.8 g | 0.5 g | 36 mg | 0.3 mg | 240 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 123 kcal | 3 g | 6.9 g | 12.9 g | 3.6 g | 0.9 g | 72 mg | 0.6 mg | 480 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.
