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DIRECTIONS

PREPARATION Carrots: Cut the carrots into long thin strips. Put them in a saucepan with the dashi, soy sauce, sugar, and sake, bring to the boil and simmer for a few minutes until lightly cooked. Leave them to cool in the stock, then drain and set aside, reserving the cooking stock.
Green beans: Slice the beans on the diagonal into 11/2-inch lengths and parboil; the beans should be cooked but still crisp. Drain.
Mushrooms: Cut off and discard the mushroom stalks; slice the mushroom caps. Simmer them in the reserved carrot stock, or lightly saute them.
Dressing: Tip the toasted sesame seeds into a suribachi or mortar and grind until oily (or, if you like, you can use tahini, ready-ground sesame paste, instead). Add the drained tofu and grind well until the lumps have gone and the mixture is the texture of mayonnaise. Blend in the remaining dressing ingredients.
TO SERVE: Just before serving, make sure that all the vegetables are perfectly dry, then mix them into the dressing. Either serve the salad in the suribachi (wipe down the sides with paper toweling to make it perfectly clean), or serve individual portions mounded in small deep bowls. Garnish with a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds or a few slivers of toasted nori seaweed.