Asparagus salad with vinaigrette chinoise

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.01
  
       Title: Asparagus Salad with Vinaigrette Chinoise
  Categories: Salads
       Yield: 4 servings
  
       1 lb Thin asparagus, end trimmed
            -and stalks peeled to the
            -tip, if thick
     1/2    Head red-leaf lettuce
     1/4 c  Rice wine vinegar
       2 tb Soy sauce
     1/2 t  Sugar
     1/4 t  Dried red pepper flakes
       3 tb Corn oil
       4 t  Sesame seed oil
            Coarse salt
       1 t  Unsalted butter
     1/4 c  Raw sunflower seeds
       1 tb Diagonally sliced green
            -onion, green part only
  
   (From "Pacific Northwest Palate," by Susan Bradley.)
   
   Slice the asparagus in a long diagonal at 2" intervals. Blanch in a
   large pot of boiling water for about 4 minutes, until just
   tender-crunchy. Drain, refresh under cold running water, then dry
   carefully with paper towels.
   
   Whisk together the rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, red pepper,
   corn oil, sesame seed oil and salt, to taste. Toss with the
   asparagus. Cool, cover and refrigerate for several hours or
   overnight, if desired.
   
   Melt the butter in a small saute pan and stir-fry the sunflower seeds
   until golden brown. Remove and reserve.
   
   When ready to serve, toss the asparagus and vinaigrette again,
   arrange on red lettuce leaves on individual salad plates and top with
   toasted sunflower seeds and sliced green onions.
  
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