Recipes > Vietnamese salad with nuoc nam

Ingredients

For the dressing

• 1 bulb Garlic, peeled
• 2 Chillies
• 75g Palm sugar
• 100ml Fish Sauce
• 150ml water
• 2 limes, juice only

For the salad

• 1 small Chinese Cabbage
• 4 red Shallots
• 1 Lebanese Cucumber, (a short dark green 'ridge' variety of cucumber)
• 1 firm red papaya, seeds removed
• 1 chilli, finely sliced
• 1/4 bunch Coriander, finely chopped
• 1/4 bunch Mint, finely chopped
• 1/4 bunch Vietnamese Mint, finely chopped
• handful Coconut
• handful bean sprouts
• 4 tbsp Shallots, fried in vegetable oil until crisp
• 50g roasted Peanuts
• 2 tsp Sesame seeds
• 10 sesame rice crackers

Preparation Method

1. For the dressing: blend the garlic, chillies and palm sugar to a paste in a blender or food processor (alternatively pound in a pestle and mortar). Add the fish sauce, water and lime juice and set aside.

2. Slice the cabbage, shallots, cucumber and papaya finely and place in a bowl. Pour over a generous amount of dressing and the finely sliced chilli, and scatter over the coriander, mint and Vietnamese mint.

3. Finely slice the coconut and add to the salad with the bean sprouts. Sprinkle with the fried shallots, roasted peanuts and sesame seeds.

4. Serve with the sesame crackers and more dressing on the side.