Winter Squash with Louisiana Rémoulade

by Jim Dixon of Real Good Food

Classic French rémoulade is mayonnaise flavored with capers, herbs, and the tiny pickles called cornichons. The Creole cooks of Louisiana make a red version, often using ketchup, that’s more piquant.

Ingredients:

  • 4-6 cups grated winter squash (pref. ‘Sweet Meat’)

  • 4 green onions, sliced

  • 1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

  • 1/2 cup finely chopped celery, preferably the inner, light green stalks with leaves

  • 2 Tbsp. freshly grated horseradish (or 1 Tbsp. prepared horseradish)

  • 1 Tbsp. cane syrup or raw sugar

  • 2 Tbsp. tomato paste

  • 2 Tbsp. stone ground mustard

  • 1 tsp. salt

  • 3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

  • 4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

Directions: Mix together the horseradish, cane syrup or sugar, tomato paste, mustard, salt, vinegar, and olive oil. Add the grated squash, green onion, parsley, and celery. Toss well.

Notes: It’s easiest to grate the squash in a food processor, but a box grater will work. For most winter squash, you can leave the peel on; butternut squash should be peeled. Jim prefers ‘Sweet Meat’ squash for this dish, but others will suffice.
You can substitute a couple tablespoons of ketchup for the tomato paste and cane syrup.

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil. Tease apart noodles & drop into boiling water. Start a timer for 2 minutes. Stir occasionally to loosen noodles. When the timer rings, drain noodles in a colander and rinse under cold running water, using your fingers to loosen and turn them until all the noodles are chilled. Shake the colander thoroughly to remove all the water and set aside.

Place the Brussels sprouts in the tube of the food processor fitted with a large slicing disc. (No need to core them.) Process the Brussels sprouts until they’re all sliced. In a large skillet (preferably non-stick), heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the sliced Brussels sprouts, onions, 1-1/2 teaspoons salt, and heavy grind of black pepper and sauté, stirring frequently, for about 4 to 5 minutes, until tender but still bright green. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Set aside.

While pan is still hot, add remaining 1 tablespoon oil and cooked Umi noodles. Stir, loosening noodles while they cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Add vegetables back to the pan. Add Oliver sauce or other yakisoba sauce, mix well, and cook over medium-high heat for a few more minutes or until you see a nice “yaki” color on the noodles and vegetables. Remove from heat, add 2 teaspoons of optional aonori and mix.

Serve, topping each portion with an extra sprinkle of aonori, a pinch of kizami shoga, and a squeeze of Kewpie if you have them.

Itadakimasu!

—

Optional: 2 teaspoons aonori (powdered seaweed), Kewpie or other mayonnaise, kizami shoga (pickled ginger matchsticks)

*If you don’t have easy access to yakisoba sauce, you can create a pretty good replacement by mixing equal parts ketchup, soy sauce or tamari, and Worcestershire sauc