Renkon no ebi-hasami-yaki, gin-an-gake / sauteed lotus root with shrimp, with pale thickened dashi sauce

Plump shrimp sandwiched between somewhat crunchy lotus root slices, served with slightly salty thickened dashi sauce. Making the shrimp filling (chopping shrimp, mixing with potato starch and egg white) and putting it between lotus root slices may seem complicated at first, but it is easy when you actually try it. The assembled pieces can be kept in the fridge until ready to cook, and sauteing them does not take much time. Below, the pale thickened dashi sauce is made in the microwave for quick preparation as well.

This dish provides soothing comfort on cooler days. As summer approaches here in the Pacific Northwest it is getting a bit too warm for this dish, but we may still have a few nights cool enough to enjoy it ...

1/2 of recipe:
76 calories; 6.9 g protein; 1.3 g fat; 9.4 g carbohydrate; 8.4 g net carbs; 85 mg sodium (with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce); 45 mg cholesterol; 1.0 g fiber; 289 mg potassium

Miso yasai raamen / vegetable ramen noodles with miso-flavored soup

Finally, a sodium-savvy ramen with plenty of vegetables and great-tasting soup! More toppings mean more soup going into your mouth, especially when toppings are cut or sliced into small sizes, as a greater surface area is likely to carry more soup into your mouth. So for a reduced-sodium version, having lots of toppings is counter-intuitive, yet we opted for julienned vegetables for the extra flavor they add.

After being on a reduced-sodium diet for more than three and a half years, this is quite salty for us and definitely tasty. The recipe below is at the low end of the sodium content spectrum (soup has a salt level of 0.8% whereas soup at ramen shops averages 1.5%). Feel free to add more seasonings to taste, at your own risk ...


1/2 of recipe (approx. half of soup left in bowl): 
515 calories; 17.0 g protein; 9.3 g fat; 88.1 g carbohydrate; 15.8 g net carbs; 781 mg sodium* (with reduced-sodium miso and shoyukoji made with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce); 11 mg cholesterol; 7.5 g fiber; 706 mg potassium 
*Stir-fried vegetable toppings alone contain 100 mg sodium per serving.

Kuzukiri to daikon, kani no sarada / kudzu arrowroot starch noodle, daikon radish and crabmeat salad, with citrus-flavored soy sauce dressing

Cold, clear kudzu noodles have a pleasant slippery and chewy texture. The soft spiciness of fresh julienned daikon radish adds a refreshing punch, while local Dungeness crab works as an accent in the dish. Versatile citrus-flavored soy sauce dressing ties everything together.

1/2 of recipe:
100 calories; 5.6 g protein; 1.2 g fat; 15.8 g carbohydrate; 15.5 g net carbs; 198 mg sodium (with ponzujoyu made with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce); 20 mg cholesterol; 0.5 g fiber

Nasu no hisui somen / eggplant jade noodles

Pretty, light-green noodles with a refreshing jelly-like texture. Served with dipping sauce with tomato below for a summery marriage of flavors.

1/2 of recipe (nasu somen noodles with condiments):
69 calories; 1.2 g protein; 0.1 g fat; 16.5 g carbohydrate; 14.1 g net carbs; 0 mg sodium; 1 mg cholesterol; 2.4 g fiber

When served with dipping sauce with tomato:
122 calories; 2.7 g protein; 0.2 g fat; 26.1 g carbohydrate; 21.9 g net carbs; 281 mg sodium; 1 mg cholesterol; 4.2 g fiber

Hiyayakko / chilled soft tofu with condiments

This simple tofu dish is a favorite of my father. For him, thinly sliced green onion and grated ginger are essential as condiments or toppings, and whatever is available in the garden -- including shiso perilla leaves and myoga Japanese ginger buds -- are sliced up and added in summer.

1/2 of recipe:
89 calories; 8.2 g protein; 4.9 g fat; 2.7 g carbohydrate; 1.9 g net carbs; 94 mg sodium (with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce; 173 mg with regular soy sauce); 0 mg cholesterol; 0.8 g fiber