Editor’s note: The theme of Gohan Lab is to help people make simple, tasty “gohan” (meals).

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This New Year’s staple can be quickly whipped up as a Japanese-style salad that will surely brighten up your dinner table.

This is the second entry in our series on ways to enjoy traditional Japanese cuisine more casually, this time focusing on “namasu,” a vegetable dish made more festive by adding smoked salmon.

Preparation takes just a few easy steps of rubbing salt in the vegetables, squeezing out water and then seasoning with sweetened vinegar.

Ryohei Hayashi, chef at Tenoshima, a Japanese restaurant in Tokyo’s Aoyama neighborhood, has determined the perfect amount of seasoning needed for this recipe based on the weight of the ingredients. The goal is to strike the right balance between the salty, sweet and sour tastes so it has an unwavering flavor throughout the dish.

The salt should weigh 2 percent of what the chopped vegetables weigh, creating a saltiness that tastes just right once the water is tightly squeezed out. That ratio also applies to vegetables with high water content such as cucumbers, celery and turnips, and creates a dish with unique textures for you to enjoy.

To make the sweet vinegar, the sugar should weigh 10 percent and vinegar 5 percent of the total weight of the vegetables after the water is squeezed out. This ratio achieves a spot-on flavor.

The arranged version features apple. Both dishes can be kept in the fridge for three to four days. If you begin to grow tired of the flavor, you can mix it up with some olive oil. It also goes well with wine.

DISH OF MANY PROVERBS

Namasu is written with one kanji character, but there are two ways to write it. One way consists of a left-side radical that denotes “meat,” while the other uses “fish.” The right-side radical of both denotes “to meet.” Although it was originally a dish where strips of raw meat or fish were seasoned with salt and vinegar, “shojin namasu” (vegetarian namasu) emerged later.

The proverb “Atsumono ni korite namasu o fuku” literally means, “Learning the hard way with hot soup, blow on the namasu.” It implies being overly cautious after a bad experience. The phrase is said to have originated from a Chinese person more than 2,000 years ago, suggesting that namasu is just as old.

Another saying, “Jinko ni kaisha suru,” means to be so widely known that everyone talks about it. The Chinese-derived reading of the character for namasu is “kai,” while “sha” means roasted meat--in other words, food anyone can enjoy. The literal meaning of “jinko” is “people’s mouths.”

BASIC COOKING METHOD

(Supervised by Ryohei Hayashi in the cooking aspect and Hiroya Kawasaki in the cookery science aspect)

* Ingredients (Serve four)

400 grams daikon radish, 100 grams red “kintoki” carrot, 10 grams (little more than 1/2 Tbsp) salt, 30 grams (3 and 1/3 Tbsp) sugar, 15 grams (1 Tbsp) vinegar, 100 grams smoked salmon, some yuzu zest

About 100 kcal and 1.8 grams salt per portion

1. Peel daikon radish and carrot, and finely slice in rounds with slicer. When slicing daikon radish, push against slicer harder so the slices turn out somewhat thicker. On the other hand, move the carrot in more of a stroking manner to get thinner slices. Both can be finely sliced or cut into fine strips using a kitchen knife. Place both in bowl, weigh them (PHOTO A) and have salt weighing 2 percent of the weight ready.

2. Add salt, mix in lightly so it coats each slice of daikon radish and carrot. Water will emerge and they will take on a transparent look with time. Leave for 5 to 6 minutes, mixing occasionally. They are done if a slice feels tender in your mouth. Pick up an amount that fits in both hands, tightly squeeze out water (PHOTO B). Weight will fall to about 300 grams.

3. Measured against the weight of the squeezed vegetables, add 10 percent sugar and 5 percent vinegar (PHOTO C). Mix content with hand to dissolve sugar and let flavor permeate.

4. Add smoked salmon, cut into bite-size pieces right before eating and mix lightly. Serve and top with yuzu zest.

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Ryohei Hayashi is the owner-chef of Tenoshima, a Japanese restaurant in Tokyo’s Aoyama. Hiroya Kawasaki studies the science of tastiness and cooking method in collaboration with top chefs at Ajinomoto’s Institute of Food Sciences and Technologies.

ARRANGED VERSION

Namasu with daikon radish and apple

Replace carrot with 100 grams of apple, finely sliced with skin. The steps to add salt and squeeze out water are the same as in the carrot dish. The arranged version turns out milder with the aroma and sweetness of the apple. You can give it a Western spin by simply topping it with dill, a fitting herb. Yuzu zest or fine strips of ginger will also work.

COOKERY SCIENCE

When salt is rubbed into the vegetables and they are left to sit, they shed water from the osmotic pressure. By applying pressure and squeezing, the amount of water is further reduced, resulting in the cooking method called “shio-momi,” literally “kneading with salt.” That softens the texture of the vegetables and leads to a softer mouthfeel for the dish. Different textures can be achieved by choosing different vegetables or ways to cut them.

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This column, translated from The Asahi Shimbun's Gohan Lab column, will next appear on Jan. 27.