"WHOA, these suckers are hot!"

This was my response when I thought I was tossing a candied almond into my mouth and as soon as I bit down, realized othwerwise. Although frightened at first, after a few chomps I decided what I was eating was rather enjoyable... wasabi almonds!

Im sure anyone who has dined on Asian cuisine has a tale of wasabi. The stuff is absurdly hot but only at first... leaving you then confused but happy you narrowly escaped a wasabi overdose. I remember the first time I had it and I was trying to act all tough like I could handle more than a teaspoon at a time...boy was I wrong.

Alright, so what is wasabi? According to my favorite source at Wikipedia:

asabia japonica - is a member of the Brassicaceae family, which includes cabbages, horseradish and mustard. Known as "Japanese horseradish", its root is used as a spice and has an extremely strong flavor. Its hotness is more akin to that of a hot mustard than the capsaicin in a chili pepper, producing vapors that irritate the nasal passages more than the tongue. The plant grows naturally along stream beds in mountain river valleys in Japan.

These things are actually quite addicting. They taste great with a glass of Sapporo ;)

Another little treat I recently discovered are wasabi coated peas! They are so yummy and I could honestly eat an entire bag in one sitting. They are really good on Asian salads (instead of those cracker like noodle things). They are much less expensive at Trader Joe's FYI.

Marge's Zippy Asian Salad Recipe (Serves 2):

1/2 head of green or red (or both) cabbage shredded
2 grilled chicken breasts sliced
1 tbls. toasted sesame seeds
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 cup of your favorite 'peanut' dressing or sauce
1/2 cup wasabi peas

Toss and serve!