Good Math, Bad Math

Today's recipe is something I made this week for the first time, and trying it was like a revelation. It's simple to make, it's got an absolutely spectacularly wonderful flavor - light and fresh - and it's incredibly versatile. It's damned near perfect. It's scallion ginger sauce, and once you try it, it will become a staple. To quote David Chang, whose cookbook I learned this from: if you've got ginger scallion sauce in the fridge, you'll never be hungry.

There are two main variations of this: there's a cooked version, and a raw version. Mine is the raw version. I love the freshness of flavor, and while cooking it will intensify some of the flavors, it will also detract from that delightful freshness.

Ingredients

• Fresh ginger - roughly one inch, peeled.
• A bunch of fresh scallions.
• A teaspoon, give or take, of coarse salt.
• 1 tablespoon of soy sauce.
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar.
• 1/4 cup oil - peanut oil, canola oil, or something other neutral oil.
• A dash of sesame oil.

Instructions

• Mince the ginger. Toss the minced ginger into a food processor.
• Cut the roots off of the scallions, cut them coarsely, and add them to the food processor.
• Add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor.
• Run the food processor until everything is finely ground into a smooth sauce.

That's it. Ginger scallion sauce. Taste it - make sure it's got enough salt. Don't add any soy sauce - just use plain salt if it needs any.

So what can you do with it? Just about anything. A few great ideas:

1. Ramen noodles. Just cook up a batch of ramen, and toss it with a tablespoon of the sauce. You can also add some stir fried meat and veggies to make it a bit more filling.
2. Grilled meats. Use a bit of the sauce as a marinade, then grill it, and dress it with a bit of the sauce when it's done.
3. Use it instead of mayo on a sandwich.
4. Add a bit more vinegar, and use it as a vinaigrette over a salad.
5. Sautee some shrimp, and toss some ginger-scallion sauce in just before they're done.
6. Get a nice whole fish, steam it cantonese style with just a bit of salt, soy, and sake. Spoon a bit of the sauce over it when it's done.

If you wanted to try to cooked version, you take the ginger, scallions, and salt, and puree them in the food processor. Then put them into a large pot. In a different pot, heat the oil up until it just starts to smoke, and then pour it over the ginger/scallion/salt mixture. When it cools, whisk in the rest of the ingredients.

But like I said - I think it's best to just stick with it raw.