Throughout Japan, favorite regional vegetables are pickled with salt, vinegar and rice bran. These pickles, or tsukemono, are like Western pickles in that they are served as a side dish. Kouhaku namasu combines lightly preserved daikon radish and carrots for a delicitous red and white dish that is a staple of New Year’s meals. It’s very easy to make and can be stored in the refrigerator for about a week. It goes nicely with a little sake as well.

Ingredients: ( 4 servings)

Daikon radish .................................  7.5 inches

Carrot ............................................  ½ (2.5 inches)

Salt ...............................................  1 tsp

Rice Vinegar .................................... 3 tbs

Sugar ............................................  1 tbs

Soy sauce ....................................... ¼ tsp

Directions

1 Peel the daikon and carrot. Make slices about 2.5 inches long.

2 Put sliced daikon and carrots in a bowl. Sprinkle salt on them. Lightly knead it and let sit for 10 minutes.

3 When daikon and carrot have become pliant, squeeze out excess moisture by hand. Mix in the rice vinegar, sugar and soy sauce, and let it sit in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes. It’s now ready to serve.