This is a tasty little snack or side dish. Shio Kombu Sweet Potato is healthy and delicious. You only need three ingredients: sweet potato, olive oil, and shio kombu. Eat warm and enjoy!
What Is Shio Kombu?
Shio Kombu = thin sheets of kelp boiled in shoyu / soy sauce, mirin, and sugar. The sheets of kelp are then dried and cut into thin strips.
Shio Kombu is composed of two words:
Shio = Salt.
Kombu = Kelp.
It tastes sweet and salty, and super umami. If you taste shio kombu straight from the bag, it is a little chewy and packed with flavor.
You can use shio kombu in numerous ways. Mix it with rice. Or mix it with rice and canned tuna to make Shio Kombu Tuna Rice. Use it to make onigiri. Make Shio Kombu Tofu. Add it to stir fry or noodle dishes. Mix it with raw fish to make Shio Kombu Sashimi (so good with ahi / tuna and salmon). Use shio kombu when you want an extra flavor boost.
Many Japanese markets sell a variety of shio kombu. There's the regular version, the lower sodium version (pictured above), and even a finely chopped version (it looks almost powdered) of shio kombu.
Ingredients
Here's what you'll need:
- Roasted sweet potato - You can roast the sweet potato at home, or buy already roasted sweet potato (which is what I prefer to do). I have more info below in the Top Tip section about buying already roasted sweet potatoes.
- Shio kombu - You can buy this at any Japanese supermarket. It's also available online but prices are so much better in store.
- Olive oil - Because this recipe calls for few ingredients, it's worth using your "good" olive oil for this.
- Sea salt or Maldon salt - Optional but tasty! Just a sprinkle at the end. Omit if you're trying to eat less salt.
Instructions
Here's how to prepare this...it's very easy:
While the sweet potato is still warm, peel the sweet potato and discard the skin. Place the sweet potato in a bowl.
Add the shio kombu and olive oil to the bowl.
Use a fork to gently mash and mix everything together.
Then sprinkle a little sea salt or Maldon salt on top (this is optional). Eat warm and enjoy! That's it ^_^
Top Tip
You can make roasted sweet potatoes at home, but buying already roasted sweet potatoes will make your life a lot easier!
Many supermarkets in Hawaii have hot roasted sweet potato stands. Pictured above are roasted sweet potatoes from Tokyo Central (a Japanese supermarket) in Kailua.
It's usually in the prepped food area. The roasted sweet potatoes are individually bagged. Hot and fresh! Help yourself, it's priced per piece (usually about $3-4).
It's more expensive than buying raw sweet potatoes but half of the time we buy sweet potatoes, they end up going bad before we roast them. No one wants to do the work of roasting haha.
FAQ
If you bought a roasted sweet potato from the market but it's been in the fridge (or no longer warm), just wrap the sweet potato in foil and put it in the toaster oven. Bake at 350F for 15 minutes.
You can also peel the roasted sweet potato, place it in a bowl, cover with a damp paper towel and microwave it for a minute.
Leftovers keep in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. Reheat in the microwave (15 second increments) or steam it over medium heat (this is the preferred method).
Yes! I love this recipe with purple Hawaiian sweet potato - that's actually my first choice.
If I roast the potatoes at home, I always use purple Hawaiian sweet potato.
But because I try to save time and buy roasted sweet potatoes, we usually make this with regular sweet potao. Either way is good ^_^
Shio Kombu Sweet Potato Recipe
Shio Kombu Sweet Potato
Ingredients
- 1 whole roasted sweet potato
- 1-2 tablespoons shio kombu
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
- sea salt or Maldon salt optional
Instructions
- While the sweet potato is still warm, peel the potato and discard the skin. Place the potato in a bowl.
- Add the shio kombu and olive oil to the bowl.
- Use a fork to mash and mix everything together.
- Sprinkle a little sea salt or Maldon salt on top (optional). Eat warm and enjoy!
Mahalo for Reading!