Herbal, creamy and peachy, just the thing for a late-summer afternoon.
Recipe by Jessica Thompson. Photos by Sherry Zheng.
Keep the shiso oil in a sealed jar in the fridge, but bring it to room temperature before serving for the aromas to relax. It’s best used fresh, same-day or within a week, and can be used on everything from salads to sandwiches and scrambled eggs.
1 peach, sliced into wedges about 8mm thick
10 cherry tomatoes, halved (multicolored, if possible)
200g ricotta
1 cup rocket
micro sprouts, for garnish (eg. daikon, broccoli)
ume salt
Shiso oil
125ml neutral oil
12 large shiso leaves
salt
Dressing
60ml olive oil
20ml white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp sugar
salt
Start the shiso oil at least a few hours ahead (overnight, preferably).
- For the shiso oil, prepare a colander for draining and a bowl of iced water. Blanch the shiso leaves in a pot of boiling water then add them to the iced water until chilled. Drain and pat dry.
- Roughly chop the shiso leaves then add them to a blender with the oil and blend until smooth. Add a touch of salt the blend again and taste to check the seasoning.
- Set up a coffee strainer and filter, or colander lined with paper towel, over a jar. Pour shiso oil into the filter and set aside to strain for 6 hours-overnight. Once strained, discard the shiso leaves and store oil in jar in the fridge.
- For the salad dressing, shake all ingredients together in a jar or whisk in a mixing bowl, taste for seasoning.
- In a mixing bowl, combine rocket, tomatoes, and salad dressing and mix together.
- In another mixing bowl, combine peaches and ricotta. Add rocket leaves and gently mix together with your hands.
- Transfer to a serving plate (or individual plates). Drizzle over shiso oil, sprinkle over ume salt, and top with sprouts.
