Spicy Korean-Style Green Tomato Salad

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Get everything you need to make the salad ready. It takes just a few ingredients, the main ones being green tomatoes, bell pepper, carrots, and garlic.

2. Step 2:

   

   Peel the carrots and garlic. Cut the bell peppers in half, cut off the stem, and remove the seeds. Wash the green tomatoes and vegetables under running water. Rinse the herbs as well. Parsley or cilantro are perfect for this salad. Adjust the amount to taste — it can be a big bunch or just a little for aroma.

3. Step 3:

   

   Grate the carrots on a julienne (Korean-salad) grater — the finished salad will look prettier and more appetizing that way. If you don't have such a grater, you can use a regular one.

4. Step 4:

   

   Grate the bell peppers on a coarse grater. For a more colorful dish, I often use peppers of different colors.

5. Step 5:

   

   You can mince the garlic for the salad however you usually do. I grated half the cloves on a fine grater and cut the other half coarsely by hand. The pieces of garlic look incredibly tasty in the finished dish! Put the carrots, bell pepper, and garlic in a deep bowl. Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet.

6. Step 6:

   

   Add the sugar and salt to the vegetables, pour the hot oil over everything, and mix with a spoon or fork. Taste the salad; if it needs more sugar or salt, add whatever's missing to taste.

7. Step 7:

   

   Cut the green tomatoes into smallish wedges; the thicker and larger the wedges, the longer the salad will need to infuse.

8. Step 8:

   

   Grate the chili pepper on a fine grater, adjusting the amount to taste — if you like it hotter, use more. I used a whole pod about 5 centimeters long plus a little dried chili. Add the tomatoes, chili pepper, and ground coriander to the bowl. Add the vinegar.

9. Step 9:

   

   Mix the salad thoroughly. It's easiest to do this by hand. I recommend wearing gloves, since if you have any cuts on your hands, the salt and vinegar will sting them.

10. Step 10:

    

    At this point, taste the salad again to see whether there's enough vinegar for you; add a little more if needed.

11. Step 11:

    

    Chop the herbs and add them to the salad, then mix again.

12. Step 12:

    

    Pack the tomatoes into a jar or food container. The salad needs to infuse for several hours — ideally, leave it in the refrigerator overnight.

13. Step 13:

    

    Pour the juice from the salad into the jar as well, and press down on top with a large spoon.

14. Step 14:

    

    The tomatoes and vegetables should be completely submerged in the fragrant juice. Put the jar in the refrigerator.

15. Step 15:

    

    When serving, you can sprinkle the salad with sesame seeds.