This Japanese inspired wakame salad is bold, savory and umami-tasting! It is ready in 15 minutes and super easy to make. Plus, this seaweed salad is naturally vegan, and makes a great appetizer or side dish!
If you ever dine in a Japanese restaurant, chances are you will be familiar with this dish! Wakame salad is an extremely popular Japanese appetizer, and it is with good reasons too! It is tangy, flavorsome and light with a nice chew to it.
💚Why you will love this recipe
- Easy and quick to make - You can make this dish in literally no time! Plus, all you need is a handful of simple ingredients to make this amazing seaweed salad.
- Tasty, bold and refreshing - Featuring chewy wakame tossed in a savory sesame soy dressing, it will definitely leave you wanting for more!
- Versatile and customizable - This salad pairs beautifully with almost every mains, and you can easily swap or add in ingredients to suit your taste buds.
- Healthy and wholesome - Unlike restaurant ones, this version is made without colorings or artificial flavorings. Wakame is also a good source of nutrients and fiber.
🤔What is wakame
Wakame is a popular edible seaweed that is widely used in Asian cooking, especially in Korean and Japanese cuisines.
Wakame is salty, umami with a hint of sweetness, and have a slight crunchy and chewy texture. Hence, it is commonly added to salads and soups to give flavor and texture.
Rehydrating wakame
Dried wakame needs to be rehydrated before using. You can easily do so by soaking them in cold water for 10 minutes. After rehydrating, drain well and gently squeeze out excess water using your hands.
Where to buy
You can find dried wakame in any well-stocked groceries, usually in the international aisle. It can also be found in Asian markets or groceries. I usually purchase my wakame online.
🧂What you will need
📃Notes/substitutions
- Soy sauce - Tamari or shoyu can be used in place.
- Rice vinegar - Can be substituted with mirin or sake.
- Sugar - Any granulated sugar will work here, like brown sugar, white sugar or even coconut sugar.
- Oil-free - Omit sesame oil and sprinkle on some sesame seeds before serving.
🔪How to make
Start by rehydrating your wakame in water for 10 minutes. Then, drain well and gently squeeze out excess water using your hands.
While your seaweed is soaking, make the dressing by combining soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil and sugar.
Pour dressing over your rehydrated wakame and toss to coat. Give it a taste and add more seasonings, if needed.
Optionally, top it with toasted sesame seeds and chopped green onions. Your chuka wakame salad is ready to be enjoyed!
✔Helpful tips
- Remember to drain your seaweed well and squeeze out excess water before adding in the dressing. Or not, your salad might turn out watery and the flavors diluted.
- If you can't find precut wakame, you can easily cut large ones into smaller strips after rehydrating.
- If possible, let your seaweed salad chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour before serving. This helps the flavors develop more. Plus, it is traditionally eaten cold!
✨Variations/add-ins
Seaweed - Although I am using only wakame here, you can definitely jazz things up by mixing in other kinds of seaweed! Or, you could just use a bag of assorted seaweed.
Spicy - If you love spice, toss in some sambal oelek, chili flakes, or simply drizzle on some hot sauce or sriracha before serving.
More veggies - You can definitely toss in other vegetables into your wakame salad! Thinly sliced cucumber, shredded cabbage and carrot are some great additions. You might have to double the ingredients for the sauce.
Dressing - Feel free to change up the dressing to whatever you fancy! I sometimes will season mine using teriyaki sauce. Or, you could also make and toss in some miso dressing.
🍙How to serve
Serve this wakame salad as an appetizer or side dish along with Japanese mains like vegan teriyaki chicken, teriyaki soba noodles, wakame miso soup or some sushi.
Or, you can serve it as a component of your poke bowl or salad bowls.
You can even use it as a filling for sushi or onigiri.
❔Commonly asked questions
Leftover seaweed salad can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. Store them in a sealed container before keeping.
I would not recommend freezing this wakame salad. Rehydrated wakame is quite delicate, and will fall apart upon freezing and thawing.
Most restaurant made or store-bought chuka wakame salad contains some sort of synthetic colorings to dye it bright green in color. This homemade one will be duller in color as no colorings are used in this recipe.
Wakame and nori are 2 different types of seaweed. Nori comes in a flat sheet-like form and is used for wrapping sushi and onigiri. It can also be eaten raw.
On the other hand, dried wakame usually comes in small stripes, and have to be reconstituted before using. Unlike nori, wakame is used in soups and salads.
Yes, seaweed salad is usually vegan and only contain plant based ingredients. It usually only consist of wakame and seasonings like soy sauce, sesame oil and sugar, sometimes with the addition of artificial colorings and flavorings.
🍽More vegan Asian side dishes
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📖 Recipe
Japanese Chuka Wakame Seaweed Salad
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup dried wakame
- 1 ½ tablespoon soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons sugar (any granulated sugar will work)
Instructions
- Start by rehydrating your wakame in water for 10 minutes. While your seaweed is soaking, make the dressing by combining soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil and sugar.
- Then, drain well and gently squeeze out excess water from wakame using your hands.
- Pour dressing over your rehydrated wakame and toss to coat. Give it a taste and add more seasonings, if needed.
- Optionally, top it with toasted sesame seeds and chopped green onions. Your chuka wakame salad is ready to be enjoyed!
Notes
- Remember to drain your seaweed well and squeeze out excess water before adding in the dressing. Or not, your salad might turn out watery and the flavors diluted.
- If you can't find precut wakame, you can easily cut large ones into smaller strips after rehydrating.
- If possible, let your seaweed salad chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour before serving. This helps the flavors develop more. Plus, it is traditionally eaten cold!
Nutrition
Nutrition info calculated is just a rough estimate and is provided as a courtesy. Bear in mind that value will vary based on variables like specific brand or type of product used. To obtain the most accurate representation, it is highly recommended that you calculate it on your own with the actual amount and type of ingredient used.
Kathy
I know you mention oil can be omitted but what are your thoughts on replacing the oil with tahini?
Meesha
I would not recommend that as the texture and taste of tahini is quite different than sesame oil. 😊