ref=”https://thinktasty1.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/bg-salad.jpg”>
I had five pounds of blueberries in my refrigerator, down from ten pounds a couple of nights before, and I was ready to do something new with them. Some were destined for freezer jam, many would be eaten on cereal or out of hand as snacks, and there were always pie and muffins, at least if the weather cooled off enough. But everyone already knows about all these.
Somewhere online I saw a recipe that called for blueberries combined with fresh ginger in a relish for pork teriyaki. Though I wasn’t sure about serving them at dinner with meat, the combination of blueberries, ginger, and Japan rattled around in my mind until it settled into a thought: why not try sushi ginger with blueberries? Though it would be a sweet dish, the pickled flavor of the ginger would keep it from being too sweet, making it more of a fruit salad than a dessert. Salad instead of dessert — it sounded healthy already. (However, if you want it actually to be as healthy as possible, use honey or stevia instead of the sugar.)
- 2 cups fresh blueberries
- 10 large pieces pickled (sushi) ginger (also called gari)
- 2 tablespoons vinegar from ginger jar, or more to taste
- ¼ cup white sugar, or less to taste
- Wash and pick over blueberries. Drain on a paper towel.
- Gently mix all ingredients in medium bowl and serve cold.
- You could add other mild-tasting fruits, like melon, to the salad. The ginger and vinegar give a little zing without being overpowering.
- Other berries, such as strawberries, might be a little too acidic already to work well.
- I once tried to pickle my own ginger, but it never turned pink the way it was supposed to. Maybe I should’ve hauled out the meat slicer and cut it as thin as I was supposed to; maybe the ginger was just too mature — it should be young for pickling. Maybe I used the wrong kind of vinegar.
- Anyway, I know I can always find commercial sushi ginger at the grocery. If you can’t, look for it in places Asian groceries are sold.
- When I can think about baking again, I might even try this combination as a filling for pie or a crumble.
- I’ve never used anything pickled in baking before and I don’t know if it would be a good idea — but if it was good, it would be very good.
