Ginger Scallion Oil Sauce

Sharp, aromatic, and no sugar. It's a good accompaniment with an asian dish that has honey and soy. A second sweet soy sauce on the rice would flatten the whole plate into one note. This goes the other way: raw ginger and scallion bloomed in hot oil, with vinegar for lift. It cuts the glaze and the smoke instead of echoing them. The oil base matters too, because brown rice is drier and nuttier than white and takes an oily sauce better than a thin one.

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Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

- 1 bunch scallions 6 to 8, sliced thin, white and green both
- 3 tbsp fresh ginger peeled and minced fine (a knob about 2 inches)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/3 cup neutral oil grapeseed, avocado, or canola
- 1 tbsp unseasoned rice vinegar
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- Pinch of white pepper

Method

Put the scallions, ginger, and salt in a heatproof bowl. Glass or metal, not plastic.
Heat the neutral oil in a small pan until it shimmers, about 350°F. Test it with one scallion ring: it should sizzle hard on contact, not creep.
Pour the hot oil over the aromatics. It will hiss and foam up, so use a bowl with room. Let it sit 10 minutes.
Stir in the rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and white pepper.
Spoon over the brown rice. Keeps a week refrigerated; bring it back to room temperature before serving, since the oil firms up cold.

Notes

The hot oil step is the whole technique. It takes the raw burn off the ginger without cooking away the aroma, which is what happens if you simmer it. Skip it and you get a harsh sauce.

Make it while the plank soaks. It is better after 30 minutes than it is at 5.

Sodium is 2 teaspoons of soy across four servings. Drop the soy entirely and add another 1/4 tsp salt if you would rather keep it off the plate, since the salmon glaze is already carrying soy.

For heat, add 1 tsp of red pepper flakes to the bowl before the oil goes in; they bloom the same way the aromatics do.