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Miso Maple Glazed Salmon

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An Asian-inspired sweet, salty, savory salmon featuring a simple marinade of miso paste, soy sauce and maple syrup that will entice even the pickiest eaters to give this healthy fish a try.

Roasted salmon on a plate with white rice and a kale salad
Miso Maple Glazed Salmon can be on the table in less than 30 minutes.
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I overloaded on salmon in the 90s and ended up totally sick of it! Salmon became something I endured, but didn’t really enjoy until my daughter Sierra came home with this recipe for Miso Maple Salmon. As an extra bonus, my ‘fish-hating’ daughter Ella also now enjoys having salmon for dinner. My husband isn’t picky and loves it no matter how it’s served!

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Japanese Cucumber Salad (Sunomono)

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A family-friendly, light and flavorful salad with thinly sliced cucumbers marinated in a simple dressing of soy sauce, rice vinegar and sugar.  Serve as a side-dish or even as a lunchbox snack.

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Japanese cucumber salad in a bowl
Family-friendly Japanese cucumber salad

Many cultures have their own version of a cucumber salad. One of our favorites is a Japanese cucumber salad that you find at sushi restaurants called Sunomono.  This word basically means “pickled dish” in Japanese, so vinegar is a key ingredient.

Japanese Cucumber Salad with Octopus

Several years ago, my youngest daughter ordered Tako Sunomono. When it showed up, I realized that “tako” meant octopus.  My initial reaction was to quickly remove the “tako,” so she would eat the salad. Before my chopsticks could swoop in and get rid of the offending item, she stuffed a piece of octopus in her mouth and proceeded to eat the entire salad.   She clearly didn’t have the same preconceived notions about eating octopus that I had…and fortunately I kept those to myself. I still think that octopus (not to be confused with fried calamari which is totally delicious) tastes like a rubber band. She still orders Tako Sunomono every time we visit a Japanese restaurant.  

Octopus on a Japanese cucumber salad.

Now, we frequently make this Japanese cucumber salad at home. Sometimes I serve it along with a meal, but often I make it as an easy snack for the kids.  Sliced vegetables can get boring and this is an easy way to mix it up. The girls have requested this in their school lunch, since Japanese cucumber salad stays fresh, while other sliced veggies and salads can become droopy after a short time outside of the refrigerator.

Use a box grater to thinly slice cucumbers

Cucumbers being sliced for a Japanese cucumber salad
Kids can use a box grater to thinly slice cucumbers.

To make this Japanese cucumber salad, thinly slice cucumbers (preferably the Japanese or Persian kind). You can even leave the skin on!  We have a box grater with a slicer on the side and found this to be a fast and easy way to get the cucumber sliced very thin.

Thinly sliced cucumbers sprinkled with salt.
Thinly sliced cucumbers sprinkled with salt.

Only 3 ingredients for Japanese cucumber salad dressing

Sprinkle the sliced cucumbers with salt and let them sit for 5 minutes.   There are only 3 ingredients necessary for the dressing:

  • 3 tablespoons of rice vinegar
  • ¼ teaspoon of soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon white sugar (or 2 teaspoons of agave)
Soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar for Japanese cucumber salad dressing.
3 simple ingredients for Japanese cucumber salad dressing.

Gently squeeze out and drain any water from the cucumbers and combine together with the dressing. You can keep this salad in your refrigerator for up to three days but after that, the cucumbers will start to get too soggy.

Japanese cucumber salad in a bowl
Serve Japanese cucumber salad as a side-dish or as a healthy lunchbox snack.
Japanese cucumber salad in a bowl
5 from 2 votes
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Japanese Cucumber Salad (Sunimono)

A family-friendly Japanese cucumber salad marinated in a dressing of soy sauce, rice vinegar and sugar or agave. Serve as a side-dish or as a healthy lunchbox snack.

Course Side Dish
Cuisine Japanese
Keyword Japanese Cucumber Salad
Prep Time 15 minutes
Servings 4
Calories 53 kcal
Author Carrie Hack

Ingredients

  • 3 Japanese or Persian cucumbers
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons agave or 1 tablespoon of white sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon soy sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon Sesame seeds

Instructions

  1. Slice cucumbers as thin as you can. A box grater with a slicer on the side works perfectly.

  2. Sprinkle salt over the sliced cucumbers and let sit for 5 minutes. Squeeze water out from cucumbers.

  3. In a small bowl, mix rice vinegar, agave, and soy sauce together.

  4. Combine dressing with sliced cucumbers and mix well.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds

Miso-Glazed Chicken Breasts

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You can easily buy a marinade for chicken, like our old standby Soy Vay, but this recipe for Miso-Glazed Chicken Breasts is super easy, more flavorful and totally homemade!

Grilled chicken breasts and a spelt salad on a plate.
Miso Glazed Chicken Breasts are grilled and served with a delicious spelt and corn salad.

Not your average, boring chicken!

To be honest, I get a little sick of chicken.  We eat it every single week.  It’s a healthy protein that’s easy to cook, so it tends to get more than its fair share of time on our weekly dinner menu.  We love Japanese foods and flavors, so I stumbled on this marinade recipe a few years ago, made some tweaks, and now it’s a family staple. Miso makes chicken just a bit more exciting!  

Miso paste is the key ingredient

You can use any cut of chicken, but I prefer boneless chicken breasts with this recipe. Miso paste is the key ingredient here.  It’s salty, earthy and has that rich umami flavor that most taste buds seem to adore.  Either red or white miso paste work well for this recipe.  If you don’t have any miso, it’s definitely worth picking up. You’ll find its one of the most versatile condiments in your refrigerator! Marinades, salad dressings, soups…the uses are endless.

miso glazed chicken ingredients including miso paste, sesame oil, ginger and garlic.
Only 5 ingredients to make a delicious miso-glaze.

For this Miso-Glazed Chicken recipe, just scoop out 2 tablespoons of miso paste and mix in 1 tablespoon of soy sauce (or water), 2 teaspoons of sesame oil, 1 teaspoon of grated ginger or ginger paste, and 1 clove of minced garlic. The consistency should be smooth, like a creamy paste.  Cover 4 chicken breasts with the marinade and let sit for at least 30 minutes, and up to 2 hours.  There is something about the miso that tenderizes the meat so that it’s extra juicy and flavorful. 

Miso-glazed chicken breasts marinating in a pan.
Marinate boneless chicken breasts for 30 minutes in homemade miso glaze.

A grill pan works great!

Remove the chicken from the glaze and wipe off any excess.  At this point, you can either grill the chicken for 10 minutes (flipping mid-way) or pan fry.  We don’t have a grill in Singapore, so we purchased a grill pan and it’s been a total life-saver! I was looking for an eco-friendly, non-stick ceramic grill pan and chose the Scanpan grill pan, which is a Danish brand that wasn’t super expensive but has great quality.  If you don’t have a grill pan, and don’t feel like firing up the grill, you can easily pan fry.  Heat up a bit of  canola oil and cook the chicken breasts around 5 minutes per side.

Miso-glazed chicken breasts can be served this with a variety of side dishes, but I had a bunch of spelt on hand and wanted to make use of it.  I know this sounds strange, but as expats, we often empty out our pantries and alcohol cabinets before moving home. My dear friend Gabriela was an amazing cook with a vegan husband, beautiful children and pantry full of healthy staples.  Though we personally suffered from their departure, my kitchen definitely benefited. Instead of half-empty bottles of liquor, I was the lucky beneficiary of spelt, several bags of hazelnuts, madagascar bourbon vanilla extract, organic cocoa, and a variety of amazing spices.  

Bulgur salad with roasted corn in a bowl.
Roasted corn and bulgur salad with radish, fresh herbs and a miso dressing.

Toasted corn and spelt with miso dressing

This was my first time trying this recipe for a toasted corn and spelt salad with a miso dressing and we were pleasantly surprised. We made a few changes, based on what we had in our pantry (regular almonds, not smoked, and regular rice vinegar, not brown), but it still turned out great. You could also pair this with any rice side dish and salad, preferably with a soy-sauce or Japanese dressing.

Grilled chicken breasts and a spelt salad on a plate.
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Miso-Glazed Grilled Chicken Breasts

Miso-glazed chicken breasts are super easy to make, flavorful and sure to be a new family favorite.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Japanese
Keyword miso chicken, miso-glazed chicken
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Marinating time 30 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 4 people
Calories 295 kcal

Ingredients

  • 4 Chicken Breasts about 1/4 lb each
  • 2 tablespoons Miso Paste red or white
  • 1 tablespoon Soy Sauce or water
  • 2 teaspoons Sesame Oil
  • 1 teaspoon grated ginger or ginger paste

Instructions

  1. Whisk together 2 tablespoons of miso paste, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce (or water), 2 teaspoons of sesame oil, 1 teaspoon of grated ginger or ginger paste, and 1 clove of minced garlic. The consistency should be smooth, like a creamy paste.

  2. Cover 4 chicken breasts with the marinade and let sit for at least 30 minutes, and up to 2 hours.

  3. Remove the chicken from the glaze and wipe off any excess. You can either grill the chicken for 10 minutes (flipping mid-way) or pan fry by heating up 1 tablespoon of canola oil and cooking the chicken breasts around 5 minutes per side.


Salmon and Udon Noodle Stir Fry

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Super yummy Salmon and Udon Noodle Stir Fry featuring baby broccoli  (broccolini) and edamame can be on the table in less than 30 minutes.

Salmon and udon noodle stir fry
Salmon and udon noodle stir fry
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Easy way to get your salmon fix

After returning to Singapore after a long summer break in the USA, my kids wanted me to make one of their favorite recipes, Salmon and Udon Noodle Stir Fry.  Salmon isn’t my favorite fish, but I really love this dish because it’s flavorful, healthy and has bite size pieces of fresh salmon. The salmon doesn’t seem overwhelming with this delicious mix of ingredients. If you do like salmon, than you’ll definitely get your fix! If not, this is a great way to start eating this healthy fish and it looks beautiful in the bowl with all the colors and textures.

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