Salmon Carpaccio with Shiraga Negi

"Shiraga" means silver hair in Japanese, as the white part of Negi sliced into immaculate thin strips resembles beautiful silver hair. Leaving Negi strips in water for a few minutes would cause them to curl up, which in turn would make Negi look more voluminous, adding elegance to your plate.

Makes 2 servings 

Ingredients

• 2 ounces salmon (smoked or sashimi)
• 1 stalk Negi
• 1/4 lemon
• Sea salt and black pepper, to taste 
• Olive oil 
• Garnish: 
• Diced red and yellow bell pepper
• Radish, sliced into 1/4" thin rounds 
• Italian parsley, to taste 

Preparation

1. First, Slice off the root and the green part of Negi (you can use the green part of Negi for other cooking). Slice the white part of Negi into 2-inch lengths. 
2. Make a lengthwise incision and remove the soft yellow green core of Negi.  Stack the remaining white part of Negi, hold them flat against the cutting board, and carefully slice into fine julienne strips. Soak in cold water for 10 minutes.
3. Drain water from Negi, and layer generously over salmon.
4. Garnish with radish, bell pepper and Italian parsley.
5. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper to taste. 
6. Lightly drizzle olive oil over the Shiraga Negi, and squeeze lemon as a final touch.

Enjoy!