Harusame Salad (Japanese Glass Noodle Sunomono with Crab and Wakame)
This harusame salad is a Japanese sunomono (vinegared side dish) made with glass noodles, crab sticks, and wakame seaweed, tossed in a light dressing of vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and sesame seeds. It’s sweet-sour, refreshing, and takes about 10 minutes. In a Japanese set meal, a small bowl of something vinegary like this is what balances a rich main dish.
I followed a recipe from Nadia, a Japanese recipe site, with the same amounts. We had it next to miso-marinated pork from the supermarket, which I just cooked in a frying pan. Honestly, we buy pre-marinated miso pork far more often than we make it ourselves, and that’s very normal in Japan. A homemade side, a store-bought main, rice, and soup: this is what a real everyday Japanese dinner looks like.
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SaveThe Short Answer
If you just want the method:
- What it is: harusame salad is a Japanese side dish of glass noodles in a sweet-sour dressing. This version is a sunomono with crab sticks and wakame.
- For 2 servings: 30g glass noodles, 1½ tbsp dried wakame, 2 long crab sticks, and a dressing of 1 tbsp vinegar, 1 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp sugar, and 2 tsp white sesame seeds.
- The method: rehydrate the wakame, boil the noodles for the time on the package, rinse in cold water, cut, and toss everything with the dressing.
- How Japanese homes serve it: as a small side in a set meal, next to a rich main like grilled miso pork or fried food.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- 10 minutes. Mostly waiting for the wakame and noodles.
- Four-ingredient dressing. Vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and sesame seeds. No oil, no mayo.
- Light and refreshing. The tang cuts through rich or salty main dishes.
- Keeps for days. Make it ahead and it’s ready for the next couple of meals.
What is Harusame Salad?
Harusame (春雨, “spring rain”) are thin, clear glass noodles, usually made from potato or mung bean starch in Japan. Harusame salad is a staple side dish at Japanese home tables, supermarket deli counters, and convenience stores. There are two common styles: a Chinese-style one with sesame oil, cucumber, and ham, and a sunomono style like this one, dressed mainly with vinegar.
Sunomono means “vinegared things” — small, tangy side dishes that are an everyday part of Japanese meals. The best known is cucumber sunomono, but wakame, crab sticks, and glass noodles are all common additions. If you like tangy sides, try the crunchy smashed cucumber with ume too.
Ingredients (Serves 2)
| Ingredient | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Glass noodles (harusame) | 30g (about 1 oz, dry) | Mung bean or potato starch |
| Dried wakame seaweed | 1½ tbsp (about 4g) | Cut wakame |
| Crab sticks (kanikama) | 2 long sticks | Or 4–5 short ones |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp | Rice or grain vinegar |
| Soy sauce | 1 tsp | |
| Sugar | 1 tsp | |
| White sesame seeds | 2 tsp | Toasted |
Everything here is easy to find at an Asian supermarket, and crab sticks are in most US supermarkets as “imitation crab.” For the dressing, toasted white sesame seeds add a nutty flavor. Our soy sauce is a sweet Kyushu one, so regular soy sauce will make the salad a little saltier.
SaveHow to Make Harusame Salad
Step 1: Rehydrate the Wakame
Soak the dried wakame in water for a few minutes until it softens and expands. It grows a lot, so 1½ tbsp is plenty.
SaveStep 2: Boil and Cool the Glass Noodles
Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the glass noodles for the time on the package. Drain, rinse under cold running water, drain well, and cut into easy-to-eat lengths.
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SaveStep 3: Prep the Wakame and Crab Sticks
Rinse the wakame well, squeeze out the water, and cut it into bite-sized pieces. Tear the crab sticks into thin shreds with your fingers.
SaveStep 4: Toss with the Dressing
Put the noodles, wakame, and crab sticks in a bowl. Add the vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and sesame seeds and mix well, so the noodles soak up the dressing.
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SaveOur Dinner: Store-Bought Miso Pork, Grilled at Home
The main dish that night was buta no misozuke — pork marinated in sweet miso, which Japanese supermarkets sell ready to cook. I cooked the slices in a frying pan with the miso still on. The sugar in the miso scorches easily, so keep the heat moderate and watch it. Then I sliced them and served them with shredded cabbage, rice, miso soup, and this salad. If you want to understand the miso side of things better, see my guide to types of miso paste.
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SaveTips and Variations
- Drain everything well. Wet noodles and wakame water down the dressing. Squeeze the wakame and shake the noodles dry.
- Add cucumber. Thinly sliced cucumber, salted and squeezed, is a classic sunomono addition.
- Make it more Chinese-style. Add a few drops of sesame oil and some ham or egg strips.
- Adjust the sourness. If it’s too sharp for you, add a little more sugar.
What to Serve It With
- A rich main dish, like grilled miso pork as we did, or something fried.
- Rice and a bowl of soup, such as tonjiru (pork and vegetable miso soup).
- Another small side for a fuller spread, like lotus root salad.
Storing
Keep it covered in the fridge for 2–3 days. The noodles keep soaking up the dressing, so the flavor gets stronger over time. Give it a stir before serving. It doesn’t freeze well.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between harusame salad and sunomono?
Sunomono is any Japanese vinegared side dish. Harusame salad is a glass noodle salad that can be dressed either way — with a vinegar dressing like this, which makes it a sunomono, or with a sesame oil–based Chinese-style dressing.
What are harusame noodles made of?
Japanese harusame are usually made from potato starch, sweet potato starch, or mung bean starch. They’re naturally gluten-free, though the soy sauce in the dressing is not unless you use a gluten-free one.
Can I use Korean glass noodles?
They should work, though I haven’t tried them here. Korean sweet potato noodles (dangmyeon) are thicker and chewier, so cook them for the time on the package and cut them shorter.
How long does harusame salad last?
2–3 days in the fridge in a covered container. The vinegar helps it keep.
Harusame Salad (Glass Noodle Sunomono with Crab and Wakame)
Ingredients
Method
- Soak the dried wakame in water until soft.
- Boil the glass noodles for the time on the package. Drain, rinse under cold water, drain well, and cut into easy-to-eat lengths.
- Rinse the wakame, squeeze out the water, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Tear the crab sticks into thin shreds.
- Combine the noodles, wakame, and crab sticks in a bowl. Add the vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and sesame seeds and mix well.
