Growing up I loved most vegetarian foods, except salads. So far as I could tell, a salad was a bowl filled with iceberg lettuce - surely the most bland, watery ingredient on the planet. The lettuce du jour of 1980s Australia was also a salad hog, leaving little room for other ingredients, and forcing the few that did exist to the hidden depths of the salad bowl.

Yummy shiso… suck din iceberg lettuce!

Thankfully, the comparatively urbane 1990s soon rolled around, bringing with them the exotic new lettuce substitutes like rocket and baby spinach. Suddenly salad greens became edible, dressings could be more adventurous, and there was room for a whole host of other tasty ingredients. Hurrah!

These days, there are more and more lettuce and herb varieties available, meaning there’s just no excuse to revert to the bad old days of iceberg lettuce salads. One of my favourite new salad ingredients is shiso, or perilla. It has a rich, nutty taste and slightly rough texture, and is a great addition to salads and sandwiches.

Shiso noodle salad

Ingredients
1 cup fresh sorrel
1 cup fresh elkhorn lettuce
5 - 6 green shiso leaves
200g thin soba noodles
Asian style marinated tofu (I recommend Soyco’s Japanese version)
2 zucchini
3 tbsp vegetable oil

For the dressing
1 dessert spoon sesame oil
1 dessert spoon rice wine vinegar
2 dessert spoons tamari
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
1/4 cup light miso stock

Method
Halve the zucchinis, cut into thin strips, and grill in a light vegetable oil. When cooked, chop into thinner strips. Cook the soba noodles according to the instructions on the packet. Wash and dry the shiso, elk and sorrel. Roughly chop the elk and sorrel, and halve the shiso and cut it into thin strips.

If you’re using store bought marinated tofu, chop it into small cubes. Otherwise, follow this recipe and then chop the tofu into small cubes once it’s cooked.

Add the dressing ingredients and mix together. Throw all the salad ingredients into the bowl, making sure to tease out the noodles so they don’t cling together. Add the dressing and toss well. Serve.

Notes on the recipe

All about shiso

This week’s weekend herb blogging is hosted by its founder, Kalyn from Kalyn’s Kitchen. Make sure to visit her site so you can see the full recap.

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