Let’s make super easy Japanese pickled Daikon together. You will not need a jar or container only the ingredients. Prepare the ingredients and mix them all together in a ziplock bag and put it in the fridge. That’s it! You will be addicted to this crunchy and refreshingly flavoured daikon with Yuzu with hint of bird’s eye chili spiciness. This is a pickle especially for adults.
Table of contents
What is Pickled Daikon with Yuzu(ゆず大根）
Pickled Daikon with Yuzu is a Japanese side dish popular in the Kyoto area. It is a simple, easy and quick recipe for pickled daikon radish in rice vinegar with yuzu peel. Pickling daikon radish with yuzu adds a unique refreshing citrusy flavour to the ordinary pickled daikon taste.
Ingredients for Pickled Daikon
Daikon – read more about Daikon radishes nutrition benefits, where to buy, how it is used in Japanese cooking, how to store etc. in “Ultimate guide to Japanese daikon radish”
Yuzu – is a citrus fruit which originated in China but is widely cultivated in Japan. Because of its distinctive elegant scent which makes food and sweets refreshing, it became popular to use Yuzu overseas as well as in Japan.
Rice vinegar – is made from fermented rice and has a mellow and slightly sweeter flavour than white vinegar. It is used widely in Japanese cooking and is a key ingredient for sushi rice.
How to pick good ingredients?
Choose a Daikon radish which has white and smooth skin and which is firm and taut to the touch. When you hold it, it should feel heavy and solid. Choose a Daikon which has not had the leaves cut off, as the leaves are edible too. If the leaves have been cut off then avoid Daikon where the cut area has dried and new leaves are shooting as this indicates it is an it is not a fresh daikon.
For Yuzu, pick yuzu fruit that has a taut and firm skin. Avoid squishy and wrinkled yuzu fruit, and choose fruit that feels heavy when you hold it and has a beautiful fragrance. You will find both Daikon and Yuzu in asian grocery stores. If you can’t find any of the ingredients, see FAQ for substitutes.
How to Pickle Daikon with Yuzu?
If you can get a whole Daikon, use the bottom part of the daikon as it has less moisture than the top part of the daikon. Seasonings more easily penetrate the dryer bottom part so it is preferred for pickles.
Rinse the daikon, julienne it and sprinkle salt over the julienned daikon and leave it for at least half an hour to remove some of the moisture from the Daikon. Peel the yuzu and squeeze out the juice. Squeeze moisture out of Dakon with your hand and place it in a ziplock bag. Add all vinegar pickling ingredients into a ziplock bag and leave it in the fridge for two (2) to twelve (12) hours.
Three Tips to Make Delicious Pickled Daikon
1. The white pith of Yuzu peel has a strong astringent taste. Remove the white part as much as possible when you peel the yuzu.
2. You can eat the. pickled daikon after 2 hours but the longer you pickle the tastier it gets as the sweet vinaigrette penetrates through the daikon.
3. Use rice vinegar and sea salt if possible or table salt if not.
What to Serve with?
Pickled in a sweet vinaigrette with the refreshing Yuzu flavour, this pickled daikon recipe is very popular especially in the Kyoto area. Because of the refreshing taste and crunchy texture, “Yuzu Daikon” is often used as Hashi yasume dishes, which are small side dishes served between mains or appetisers. It is good to serve with the following main dishes.
Karaage Japanese Fried Chicken
FAQ
A: Yes, Daikon is a vegetable and contains minerals such as calcium iron, folic acid and Vitamin C, E and potassium and other nutrients.
A: No, fermentation does not occur in the pickling process.
A:After daikon has been pickled for 2 hours or longer, transfer the yuzu daikon to an airtight container or mason jars and store it in the refrigerator.
A: Yuzu daikon is prepared by dehydrating the daikon with sodium. Removing moisture with salt suppress the growth of bacteria and prolongs the freshness. It will keep for 3-5 days refrigerated. Since it is so easy to make, it’s best to make a small batch each time and store it in the fridge.
A: Daikon can be replaced with any other radish available in your local area, and you can use a lemon instead of yuzu. Also rice vinegar can be substituted by apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar. See the Japanese food substitutes post here.
Related Recipes
Stay Connected
If you like the recipe please rate the recipe and leave comments below. Also don’t forget to follow me on Youtube, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This way you keep up to date with all the latest happenings on Chopstick Chronicles. Don’t forget to Sign up for a weekly newsletter so you never miss out on new authentic delicious Japanese recipes! Sign up form is on the right-hand sidebar.
Easy Pickled Daikon with Yuzu
Ingredients
- 9 oz Daikon * or 250g
- 1 Yuzu *1
- 1/2 tsp sea salt * or kosher salt
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar *2
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 birds eye chili (Optional) *3
Instructions
- Rinse and jullien the daikon.
- Place the daikon in a mixing bowl and sprinkle with the salt. Set aside for 20 minutes.
- Prepare yuzu by peeling the yuzu fruit and cutting it into strips.
- Juice the yuzu. Squeeze out yuzu juice at least 1 tbsp.
- After 20 min, drain the liquid from the salted daikon and squeeze any further moisture out with your hands.
- Place all the prepared ingredients, daikon, yuzu peel, yuzu juice, rice vinegar, sugar and dried chili into a zip lock bag.
- Massage all ingredients over the ziplock bag and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours. *4
- Serve or transfer the pickled daikon into an airtight container for storing.
Another combination of two favorite Japanese ingredients. I love pickled daikon and the addition of yuzu makes it really something special.
Thank you Richard, I am glad you liked it 😀