Today’s main ingredient is gobo – burdock. Even though the last two recipes were simple, I wanted to make something even more simple to draw out the earthy flavor of it instead of creating a dish with other ingredients.

Some of you might have heard of burdock as a medicinal herb but gobo is a root part of burdock and it’s eaten as a food in Japan. We make simmered-gobo, sir-fry and deep-fry it, or even make pickles form it. It’s one of common vegetables in Japan.

There was a story in WWⅡ comic I used to read as a child. During WWⅡ, Japanese citizens found an injured American soldier. They prepared him a traditional Japanese meal consisted with rice, miso soup and some vegetable dish with gobo. They wanted the soldier to get well, but because of its appearance and crunchiness, he thought evil Japanese were forcing him to eat some twig. He recovered and returned to the US and told other soldiers the story of the twig torture. I don’t know why I remember that particular scene. I guess I found it funny.

We eat burdock in a regular basis. All I knew was it makes me gassy that I secretly dreamed that I would be able to fly one day if I eat enough of it. Well, while my dream never came true, there are many benefits of burdock.

In traditional Chinese medicine, burdock is often used with other herbs for sore throat and colds. It’s also been used as a blood purifier to clear the toxins, and as a topical remedy for skin problems such as eczema, acne, and psoriasis. The medicinal uses of burdock in treating chronic diseases such as cancers, diabetes, and AIDS have also been reported according to the university of Maryland medical center. Extracts of burdock root are found in a variety of herbal preparations, as well as homeopathic remedies.

Burdock contains inulin – a natural dietary fiber to improve digestion. Burdock possess considerably stronger antioxidant activity than common vegetables and fruits. In fact, recent studies confirm that burdock has prebiotic properties that could improve health.

To tell you the truth, I didn’t know burdock had such health benefits until I started seeing burdock in many supplements in the US and started searching for it. I’ve always liked burdock for it’s flavor and crunchy texture without knowing all those great benefits! No wonder why we live the longest. Now go get some burdock and let’s fly together!

• burdock /ごぼう　1 / １本
• tamari soy sauce /たまり醤油　1Tbsp /大さじ１
• mirin /みりん　1Tbsp / 大さじ１
• kuzu or arrowroot powder / 葛粉かアロールーツパウダー 　as needed / 適宜

Read this post about kuzu.

http://deliciouslife.wpengine.com/?p=1891

For the cashew mayonnaise (This recipe makes about 1 cup / ２３９mlぐらいできます）

• raw cashews / 生のカシュー　1/2cup / １１８ml
• oil / オイル　1/4cup /５９ml
• lemon juice or vinegar /レモン汁かお酢 　1/4cup / ５９ml
• sweetener (raw honey, maple syrup, etc.) / お好きな甘味料 　about 2tsp / 小さじ２
• mustard / マスタード 　about 1 tsp / 小さじ１ぐらい
• natural salt / 天然塩 　as needed / 適宜
• pepper / 胡椒　as needed / 適宜
• water / 水　as needed / 適宜

Directions / 作り方

• Grate the garlic and mix with the tamari and mirin.　すりおろしたにんにくと、醤油とみりんを混ぜておく。
• Wash (leave the skin on) and cut the gobo to make thick julienne.　ごぼうをよく洗い、皮を残したままスティック状に切る。
• Marinade the gobo in tamari for an hour (or over night).　ごぼうを３０分以上マリネする。
• Dust the gobo with kuzu or arrowroot powder and deep-fry until crispy.　葛粉かアロールーツパウダー（片栗粉でも）をまぶし、カラッと揚げる。

To make the cashew mayonnaise　カシューマヨネーズの作り方

• Soak the raw cashew for at least 4 hours (or over night), rinse and drain well.　生カシューを、最低４時間水につけたら、よく洗い、水気を切る。
• Mix everything except water in vitamix. (Adjust the seasoning to your own liking.)　水以外の材料を全てvitamixでガー。
• Add water little by little (like a tsp) to reach the desired　 consistency.　水を少しずつ加え、好きな硬さになるまでのばす。（小さじ１杯ずつぐらい）

You can use olive oil and lemon for more fruity version, or use sesame oil and rice wine vinegar for more Asian flavor. You can use white pepper for more “regular” mayo-like or black pepper to give a punch. You can use mustard powder or mustard seeds or omit the mustard if you want. Play around and find your favorite version. It’s so creamy and delicious, I can’t find any reason to go back to the regular mayo!

フルーティーなマヨネーズを作るにはオリーブオイルとレモンジュース、アジアンぽいマヨネーズを作りたいなら、ごま油と米酢に変えてみたり、なるべく普通っぽいマヨネーズには白胡椒、パンチを効かせたいなら黒胡椒、マスタードの粉でも粒でもいいし、入れなくてもいい。色々試して、お好きな味を見つけてください。とってもクリーミーで美味しいので、普通のマヨネーズを食べる理由が見つからない！

I sprinkled a little tamari and shichimi on top of mayo.

今回は、お醤油と七味をたらしました。

Shichimi (means seven-flavor) is a common Japanese spice mixture containing seven ingredients. Combination varies depend on the area but it usually consists of poppy seeds, tangerine peel, black sesame, sansho (Japanese pepper), hemp seeds, seaweed and ginger. We use it for soba noodle soup and variety of dishes.

I rarely do deep-frying but I wanted to share this crispy goodness.  It’s a good start to begin incorporating good-for-you vegetable in an easy and delicious way if you’ve never had gobo before. In fact, you don’t even need mayo. It’s hard to stop tasting it as you deep-fry them. Be patient and share them with your loved one!

Itadakimsu!

Source: Burdock | University of Maryland Medical Center http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/burdock#ixzz3YmSKYbxt