Sesame Spinach

Spinach, simply blanched and then topped with a savory sesame sauce that features sesame in three forms. Toss and mix, then it's ready to eat! This is a great spinach side dish that can be prepared in advance. Enjoy hot, at room temperature, or chilled.

Why This Recipe Works

Hooray for spinach!

There are a million ways to eat spinach and this is one of my favorites. You just quickly blanch the spinach (for just a minute) and then drain and squeeze out the water. It's topped with super delicious sesame sauce. And then you eat it!

The magic in this dish is the sesame sauce. It's a savory, garlicky mixture of many great pantry ingredients. The foundation of this sauce is sesame paste. The sesame paste is seasoned with soy sauce and oyster sauce and a bunch of garlic.

Then we stir in sesame oil and roasted sesame seeds. So you get three types of sesame in this sauce! It is super onolicious.

Neat tip: This sesame sauce can be used to dress many other vegetables. I love tossing this sauce with green beans, sugar snap peas, and broccoli. Or you can even use it as a dip for raw vegetables!

Ingredients

Here are all the ingredients you'll need:

• Spinach
• Sesame paste
• Oyster sauce
• Sesame oil
• Soy sauce
• Garlic, minced - Feel free to double the garlic if you like things super garlicky ^_^
• Roasted sesame seeds - Optional but recommended.

We keep all these ingredients ready in our pantry because they are used in many other popular local recipes. You can find these ingredients at the Japanese and/or Chinese supermarket.

In Hawaii, you can find all the ingredients (except for the sesame paste), at nearly all local supermarkets.

Sesame Paste

The one ingredient I get the most questions about is sesame paste. Sesame paste is not as common as sesame seeds or sesame oil. But I feel like it's starting to get more and more popular, so that's a good thing.

Sesame paste is made from roasted sesame seeds that are ground up super fine (beyond the stage of a powder) to the point where it becomes a thick liquid or sauce.

It's rich and flavorful and serves as the foundation for so many great dishes including my favorite Wontons with Sesame Sauce and Green Beans with Sesame Dressing (Gomaae).

There is both golden/white sesame paste and black sesame paste (which we use for dishes like Black Sesame Toast and Black Sesame Sauce On Steamed Tofu).

When people just say "sesame paste" they are most likely referring to the golden/white version.

I rotate between two brands for sesame paste:

• Wangzhihe Sesame Paste - Can find at 99 Ranch and pretty much all Chinese markets. Affordable and can buy online.
• Wadaman - Japanese brand. More pricey.

Note: Tahini is not the same as sesame paste. Tahini is made from not-roasted sesame seeds. Sesame paste is made from roasted sesame seeds.

Step by Step Directions

Let's begin! This is very easy, just three steps.

Prepare the spinach.
Wash and then blanch the spinach for 1 minute. Drain and squeeze dry. Arrange on a plate or bowl.

Tip: Make sure not to overcook the spinach. We want it just cooked, so it's still bright and green.

Make the sesame sauce.
Now we make the sauce! In a small bowl, mix together the sesame paste, oyster sauce, sesame oil, soy sauce, minced garlic, and roasted sesame seeds.

Note: If you prefer the sauce to be a little thinner (so that it's easier to mix with the spinach later), add 1-2 teaspoons of hot water and mix well.

Mix and eat.
Spoon the sauce over the spinach. Mix and eat!

You can enjoy this dish hot, at room temperature, or chilled.

FAQs and Tips

Sesame Spinach Recipe

See below and enjoy ^_^