A Mediterranean treatment of an East Asian ingredient. This edamame mint salad is refreshing yet substantial, and keeps well for picnics or sack lunches. This has been one of my favorite salads this past year, and I should have shared it with all of you sooner.
Last summer I picked up the concept of this salad from a Mark Bittman video on the NY Times website. I fell in love with the pairing of mint and edamame, and have been making this on a regular basis since. I believe Mr. Bittman used lime juice and pecorino, but I have had equally-good results with lemon juice and Parm. Feel free to experiment with the acid component or the cheese. I’ll bet feta or manchego would be lovely.
Make it with fresh mint if you can, but I often throw together batches with dried mint, which is great as well. Look for frozen edamame that is already shelled. I find mine at Trader Joe’s.
edamame mint salad
2 12-oz bags shelled frozen edamame
2 tablespoons lemon juice or lime juice
lime or lemon zest (optional)
5-6 tablespoons olive oil
salt to taste
1/4 cup Pecorino Romano or Parmesan
1 Cup fresh mint leaves
method
Cook the edamame according to the package directions. This will most likely entail bringing a saucepan of salted water to a boil, then adding the edamame to cook 5 minutes.
In the meantime, combine the lime or lemon juice with the olive oil and salt in a large bowl. Whisk to make a dressing.
Wash and dry the mint leaves. Roughly chop or tear them, your choice. Add the mint to the dressing.
When the edamame is finished cooking, strain in a colander, then run cold water through the colander to bring the edamame down to room temperature. Add the edamame the bowl of dressing. Grate the cheese over and toss to combine. Adjust seasonings.
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