Jagaimo to satsumaimo no sansho gomaae / potato and sweet potato in sansho sesame dressing

A small starchy dish with mildly rich tahini dressing and the zesty note of sansho leaves.

<Ingredients>

1 smallish medium (approx. 100-120 g) potato
4-5 cm satsumaimo sweet potato

For sansho gomaae dressing
1 tbsp sake + mirin in combination (equal parts, or slightly more sake)
1 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp tahini sesame paste
3-4 sansho leaves


<Directions>
1.

Chop sansho leaves.
Thickly julienne potato and sweet potato. With sweet potato, peeling is optional. Removing skin blemishes is good enough (for color in final dish).

2.

Boil potato and sweet potato until just tender, for about 5-7 minutes.

Drain, and let cool.

3.

Meanwhile, microwave sake + mirin for 30-40 seconds to get rid of alcohol (optional).

 Put tahini while sake + mirin is hot, and mix well.

Add soy sauce, and mix well.

When cool (room temperature or lower), add sansho, mix, and set aside.

4.

When potato and sweet potato are cool (room temperature or lower), add to tahini mixture, and gently mix.

<Notes>

• Potato or sweet potato can be in any proportion (only potato or sweet potato is fine, too). One medium or slightly larger potato (approx 150 g) is a good amount for two small servings.
• To prevent potato from crumbling, do not boil too long.
• If sake + mirin mixture is reduced too much and become syrupy, dilute with sake.
• If fresh sansho leaves are not available, use sansho powder (tiny amount, adjust according to taste). Fresh sansho powder is quite powerful.