Vietnamese Salad

This Vietnamese salad is our go-to summer salad as it’s fresh, crunchy and delicious. The herbs, nuts, crispy shallots and dressing make this salad so flavoursome. Add some shredded chicken to make it a meal, or serve it alongside barbequed meats for something different to your usual salad. You may find green papaya in the neighbours garden (so make friends with them), or in your local fruit shop or Asian grocer. Enjoy!

I use a Benriner mandolin to slice and shred the vegetables.

Vietnamese Salad

Enjoying a fresh, crunchy and delicious summer salad topped with herbs, nuts, crispy shallots and dressing to make this salad so flavoursome.

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Course Side Dish

Cuisine Vietnamese

Equipment

Mandolin (for time management, otherwise a knife is perfectly ok)

Ingredients

½ white cabbage finely shredded
1 green apple finely shredded
2 carrots peeled and finely julienned
⅓ cup mint leaves torn if large
⅓ cup coriander leaves
⅓ cup basil leaves torn if large
¼ cup roasted peanut or cashews roughly chopped
¼ cup crispy shallots either store-bought or home-made
1 red chilli finely sliced

Dressing (Nuoc Cham)

2 tbsp sugar
½ cup boiling water ie. from the kettle
¼ cup fish sauce
¼ cup white vinegar
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tsp chilli paste
1 tsp ginger finely grated

Instructions

Dressing

In a jug or bowl, combine the sugar and boiling water, stir to dissolve the sugar. Add the fish sauce, vinegar and lime juice and stir well. Taste - it should be sour, salty and sweet - adjust if necessary. Add garlic, ginger, chilli paste and lime juice, stir to combine.

Salad

It’s all about preparation. I find a mandoline with a julienne blade to be a great tool to get the vegetable prep done. Otherwise, a small julienne peeler may be a good option for you; this will work well for the apple and carrots. Then use a sharp knife to shred the cabbage finely.

Crispy Shallots - homemade

Peel and finely slice about 10 red eschallots (these look like small red onions). Heat some neutral oil in a wide frying pan to 170C, you will need the oil to be about 3cm deep. When the oil is hot add the sliced shallots and cook until golden and crunchy. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel. Store any leftover in a glass jar.

Notes

If you are not using all of the dressing ONLY add the garlic, ginger and chilli to the amount you will use. Put the rest in a bottle in the fridge to use another time.

Keyword Salad