Bon Appétit (June 2015)
In college, Zach had a roommate for a few years named Mevan.
Mevan was from Sri Lanka and, though he was fairly worldly, he hadn't been to the United States until he arrived for freshman orientation. Thus began a rich cultural exchange. Mevan taught Zach about Buddhism and the Sri Lankan Civil War. Zach taught Mevan about "Friends" and how to shotgun a beer.
And Mevan also taught Zach about mangos with chile salt.
Fresh mangos dusted with chile salt were Mevan's favorite snack. Zach had never tasted the pairing before. (It was East Tennessee in the '90s -- he'd barely had mangoes on their own.) But the cool, sweet mangos spiked with the heat of chile salt were revelatory.
When we saw this salad, which Bon Appétit says is inspired by chile salt-sprinkled mangos, we knew we wanted to try it.
Well, at the risk of spoiling the ending here, we don't think Mevan would approve.
It's not that this salad isn't tasty. It is. The jicama, radish, cucumber and plum are crisp and refreshing, and the spicy seasonings are on point. (We had sumac on hand but couldn't find either Aleppo or gochugaru, so we just used regular chile pepper and red pepper flakes. We also substituted Persian cucumbers for English cucumbers, because that's what was available at the market in early June.) And the finished accoutrements -- mint, crushed peanuts -- are great.
And it is undeniably gorgeous -- a pop-art explosion of summer colors.
Our problem was the sour plum sauce. Right off the bat, any summer salad that starts with 2 1/2 hours of prep just for the dressing is not our kind of summer salad. We understand the importance of the macerating, which breaks down the plums and helps extract the juice. And simmering it with aromatic ingredients like ginger, juniper and cardamom helps give you a sauce that's infused with flavor.
But we didn't think the plum sauce was that flavorful at all. Yes, we appreciated that it wasn't the sickly sweet kind of plum sauce you get with Chinese takeout. It's definitely a delicate taste. It just didn't seem anywhere near worth the extensive prep time.
How could you shortcut this? Well, here's one idea we might try if we make this again: You could swap in powdered ginger and powdered cardamom (in smaller quantities than the fresh ingredients called for in the recipe), and maybe omit the juniper, and just try blending all the ingredients of the sour plum sauce together. It probably won't give you the same jammy consistency as you get from 2 1/2 hours of steeping and simmering. But -- hey! -- you wouldn't have to spend 2 1/2 hours steeping and simmering.
It's maybe worth a shot, because the flavors in this South Asian-ish fruit salad are good.
Still, we'd probably be just as happy with a mango (or a plum) in one hand and a shaker of chile salt in the other.
Jicama, Radish, and Pickled Plum Salad
Bon Appétit (June 2015), recipe by Gerardo Gonzalez, El Rey, NYC
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(This photo: Christopher Baker/Bon Appétit)
Inspired by chile salt–sprinkled mangos, this salad is so deftly seasoned, you won’t even notice there’s not a drop of oil in the whole dish.
Servings: 4
INGREDIENTS
Sour Plum Sauce
3 red plums, each cut into 8 wedges
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1-inch piece ginger, peeled
2 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
¼ cup fresh orange juice
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon juniper berries
½ teaspoon gochugaru (coarse Korean red pepper powder) or ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Salad
1 red plum, sliced into thin wedges¼ cup unseasoned rice vinegar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more
1 medium jicama, peeled, cut into matchsticks
2 medium watermelon radishes, cut into matchsticks
½ English hothouse cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded, thinly sliced into half-moons, divided
⅓ cup unsalted, roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped, divided
¼ cup mint leaves, thinly sliced, divided
1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper, plus more for serving
1 teaspoon sumac, plus more
Flaky sea salt
Ingredient Info
- Gochugaru can be found at Korean markets. Sumac can be found at Middle Eastern markets and specialty foods stores. Both can be found online.
DIRECTIONS
Sour Plum Sauce
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Toss plums, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan. Cover and let sit, tossing occasionally, until plums have released their juices, at least 2 hours.
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Add ginger, cardamom, orange juice, vinegar, juniper berries, and gochugaru to plums. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, stirring often, until plums break down and become jammy, 20–25 minutes. Stir in lime juice; let cool.
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Strain sour plum sauce through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl; discard solids. Set aside.
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Do Ahead: Plums can be macerated 12 hours ahead; chill. Sauce can be made 3 days ahead; cover and chill.
Salad
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Toss plum, vinegar, and ¼ tsp. kosher salt in a small bowl. Let sit, tossing occasionally, until plum is lightly pickled, 10–15 minutes; drain.
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Toss pickled plum, jicama, radishes, half of cucumber, half of peanuts, half of mint, 1 tsp. Aleppo pepper, and 1 tsp. sumac in a large bowl. Add 2 Tbsp. sour plum sauce and toss to coat; season with kosher salt. Top salad with remaining cucumber, peanuts, and mint. Taste and drizzle with more sauce as desired. Serve sprinkled with sea salt, plus more Aleppo and sumac.
