This Japanese persimmon tofu salad (柿の白和え/kaki no shiraae) features toasted walnuts and pieces of sweet, juicy persimmon enveloped in creamy tofu and sesame. This dish that is a beautiful presentation of autumn seasonal flavours. Elegant Japanese shiraae pairs wonderfully with white wine or sake.
Do you love persimmon as much as I do? This Japanese fall persimmon salad is a light and refreshing dessert salad that features the delicious fruit.
What is shiraae?
Shiraae (白和え) is a Japanese-style salad dressed with mashed tofu and white sesame and/or white miso. It is an elegant dish that can be found served at home, as well as in high-end kaiseki restaurants (restaurants that serve traditional, multi-course Japanese meals) in Japan. The earliest known record of shiraae is a recipe that dates back to 1643.
The persimmon is an autumn signature in this cuisine, as it is in season between October and November. It tastes wonderful in this shiraae dish. Moreover, it looks very impressive when served in a hollowed out persimmon bowl.
The word 'shiraae' is pronounced 'shi-ra-ah-eh.' It comes from the combination of 'shiro' (白 - white) referring to the tofu in the dish, and 'ae' (和え - to dress or season). Combining the two changes the pronunciation of 'shiro' to 'shira.' And the resulting word means [vegetables] dressed in tofu.
Shōjin ryōri
Shiraae is a type of 'Shōjin ryōri' (精進料理), the traditional cuisine of Japanese Buddhist monks. This cuisine was popularized by the wide spread of Zen Buddhism in Japan in the 13th century. Following Buddhist traditions, this cuisine is completely vegan - made without any animal products. Also, it avoids using strong flavours, such as onion or garlic.
Typically, a soybean-based food, like tofu, is used to provide protein in the diet. And it is served along with seasonal vegetables and fruit that are packed with flavour and nutrition. Far from bland, the meals are colourful and feature a variety of flavours that come naturally from the plants used, rather than added as seasoning.
Ingredients
- Persimmon - Persimmon has a taste of its own: sweet, rich, and tangy. Persimmon needs to be ripe to taste good. An unripe persimmon will be firm. A ripe persimmon will be quite soft, kind of squishy feeling like it might burst through the skin soon.
- Firm tofu
- Spinach - Or, garland chrysanthemum greens.
- Soy sauce
- Walnuts - We will toast these, enhancing the nutty flavour and aroma, and adding a nice crunch to the dish to contrast the soft persimmon and tofu.
- Granulated sugar
- White sesame paste
- Salt - You add salt to this dish to balance out the sweetness of the persimmon. Add it according to your taste preference and the sweetness level of your persimmon.
- Toasted white sesame seeds
See the recipe card below for quantities.
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Substitutions
Firm tofu - Use firm tofu is you want little pieces of tofu remaining, or use silken tofu if you want a creamier dressing.
Spinach - Japanese persimmon tofu salad is often made using garland chrysanthemum greens, rather than spinach. The bitter chrysanthemum balances well with the sweet persimmon. However, for the sake of ease in finding ingredients for my readers outside of Asia, I made mine with spinach. You could use either.
White sesame paste - You can substitute it in this recipe with a tablespoon of ground white sesame seeds.
Variations
While Japanese persimmon tofu salad contains persimmon and spinach or chrysanthemum greens, there are many other variations of shiraae that use other vegetables. Here are some of the other vegetables you can use instead:
- Green beans
- Julienned carrot
- Konjac
- Hijiki seaweed
- Edamame beans
- Broccoli
- Broccolini
- Shimeji mushrooms
Instructions
Boil salted water in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Add the firm tofu in one solid piece and boil it for 2 minutes.
Remove the tofu from the saucepan (do not discard the water), wrap it in paper towel, and set it aside.
Add the spinach into the same water. Boil it for a few minutes until tender.
Drain the spinach, pressing the water out of it. (You may now discard the pot's water.) Drizzle the spinach with soy sauce, and squeeze the liquid out once more. Set it aside for now.
Next we will toast the walnuts. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add in the walnut pieces, and cook while stirring for a couple minutes until browned and fragrant. Remove the walnuts from the heat and set them aside.
A mortar and pestle is helpful for this step, but not necessary. Break the tofu up into large pieces and put them into the bowl, along with the sugar.
Then grind them together until the tofu has become a paste and the sugar is well incorporated.
Add the sesame paste and bit of salt, and mix together once again.
Peel a persimmon and cut the amount you need into bite-sized pieces. Add the sliced persimmon in with the tofu. The persimmon will be quite juicy and delicate, so gently mix them together.
Add in the spinach and walnuts, and mix. Taste test and add a bit more salt if desired.
Note: You add salt to this dish to balance out the sweetness of the persimmon. Add it according to your taste preference and the sweetness level of your persimmon.
Serve the Japanese persimmon tofu salad immediately, sprinkled with toasted white sesame seeds.
How to make persimmon bowls
If you plan to serve the shiraae in a beautiful persimmon bowl, you will need two persimmons to hollow out.
Cut the top of the persimmon off to form a lid. And cut the very bottom of the persimmon off to give a flat surface to stand evenly on.
Using a spoon, carefully scoop the flesh out of the persimmon.
Note: You can use the scooped out flesh from one of these persimmons in the shiraae. I used the extra fruit for snacking.
Spoon the shiraae evenly into your two persimmon bowls and sprinkle them with some toasted white sesame seeds.
Equipment
To make this recipe you will need the following:
- Medium-sized sauce pan
- Paper towel
- Skillet
- Mortar and pestle or suribachi and surikogi
- A very sharp knife - The knife will have to be quite sharp to cut through the tender, ripe persimmons cleanly to create the persimmons bowls.
Note: A suribachi and surikogi set is the Japanese version of a mortar and pestle. The suribachi (すり鉢) is a glazed pottery bowl with an unglazed, rough pattern inside that assists with grinding. And the surikogi (すりこぎ) is a pestle made of wood to avoid excessive wear.
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Storage
You could store leftover shiraae in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours, but I really recommend that you eat it right away because of the juicy persimmon. It will be best fresh.
FAQ
It is pronounced 'shi-ra-ah-eh.'
📖 Recipe
Japanese Persimmon Tofu Salad (Kaki no Shiraae)
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 7 minutes
- Total Time: 12 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Cuisine: Japanese
Description
Delicious Japanese persimmon tofu salad (kaki no shiraae) with toasted walnuts, spinach, and sweet persimmon enveloped in tofu and sesame.
Ingredients
Persimmon Shiraae:
½ persimmon
100 g firm tofu
100 g spinach *
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons walnuts, chopped
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon white sesame paste **
salt, to taste
toasted white sesame seeds
Persimmons Bowls:
2 persimmons
Instructions
Persimmon Shiraae:
Boil salted water in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Add the firm tofu in one solid piece and boil it for 2 minutes.
Remove the tofu from the saucepan (do not discard the water), wrap it in paper towel, and set it aside.
Add the spinach into the same water. Boil it for a few minutes until tender.
Drain the spinach, pressing the water out of it. (You may now discard the pot's water.) Drizzle the spinach with soy sauce, and squeeze the liquid out once more. Set it aside for now.
Next we will toast the walnuts. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add in the walnut pieces, and cook while stirring for a couple minutes until browned and fragrant. Remove the walnuts from the heat and set them aside.
A mortar and pestle is helpful for this step, but not necessary. Break the tofu up into large pieces and put them into the bowl, along with the sugar.
Then grind them together until the tofu has become a paste and the sugar is well incorporated.
Add the sesame paste and bit of salt, and mix together once again.
Peel a persimmon and cut the amount you need into bite-sized pieces. Add the sliced persimmon in with the tofu. The persimmon will be quite juicy and delicate, so gently mix them together.
Add in the spinach and walnuts, and mix. Taste test and add a bit more salt if desired.
Note: You add salt to this dish to balance out the sweetness of the persimmon. Add it according to your taste preference and the sweetness level of your persimmon.
Serve the Japanese persimmon tofu salad immediately, sprinkled with toasted white sesame seeds.
Persimmons Bowls:
Cut the top of the persimmon off to form a lid. And cut the very bottom of the persimmon off to give a flat surface to stand evenly on.
Using a spoon, carefully scoop the flesh out of the persimmon.
Note: You can use the scooped out flesh from one of these persimmons in the shiraae. I used the extra fruit for snacking.
Spoon the shiraae evenly into your two persimmon bowls and sprinkle them with some toasted white sesame seeds.
Notes
* This dish is often made with garland chrysanthemum greens, rather than spinach. But I chose to make it with spinach for ease of finding ingredients.
** Sesame paste can be found at some Asian food markets. Or, you can substitute it in this recipe with a tablespoon of ground white sesame seeds.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 367
- Sugar: 5 g
- Sodium: 226.4 mg
- Fat: 12.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 60.9 g
- Protein: 10.5 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Keywords: Japanese shiraae, tofu salad
Adelle says
Absolutely beautiful and delicious. I cannot wait to have company to served them this dish. Thank you for sharing.
Asha says
Thanks for the kind review 🙂
Terri says
Just WOW. This looked so appetizing I had to try it.Great recipe.
Asha says
Thanks! Glad you liked it.
Dana says
I love this. Never had persimmon before - it's amazing. Definitely going in my 'entertaining guest' recipe folder.
Asha says
Thank you. This is definitely a beautiful dish for entertaining.
Bethany says
This is an excellent recipe, the flavor is beautiful! I didn't have sesame paste so subbed a blend of tahini, miso paste and sesame oil. Delicious!
Asha says
Thanks so much Bethany, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Maria says
I lucked out and found some 'good' persimmons at my grocer. Was hoping I would to try this recipe.
It's soooo good. Cannot wait to show off to my friends when I serve these.
Asha says
Thanks Maria 🙂 Yes, unfortunately a lot of them seem to get banged up on their journey.