Curried Shrimp Noodle Salad
By Andrew Zimmern
This is my favorite cold noodle salad, topped with curried shrimp, a spicy herb sauce and lots of colorful fresh vegetables and herbs. I love the flavor combination of curry, coconut, tomato, garlic and ginger, so I’ve utilized that here as a marinade for fresh, head on shrimp. My secret weapon? This Madras Curry spice blend. It adds beautiful complexity and heat to the dish. If you have the time, let them marinate overnight to ensure the rich flavors have a chance to really penetrate into the shrimp. You can hard sear the shrimp over high heat in a cast iron pan, or fire up the grill and char over the hot coals.
Curried Shrimp Noodle Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound whole u-16 shrimp, peeled and deveined (head left on if you’d like)
- 3 tablespoons Madras Curry seasoning
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/4 cup coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons sake
- 2 garlic cloves, passed through a microplane
- 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
- 1/2 pound noodles, I like to use cooked and cooled ramen noodles, Chinese medium egg noodles, or Japanese somen
- 2 Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced
- 4 radishes, thinly sliced
- 12 cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 small head romaine, julienned
- 3 scallions, thinly sliced
Spicy Herb Sauce
- 1/4 cup hot water
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup peanut oil
- 1/3 cup Asian fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons naturally brewed soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon minced Serrano chiles
- 1 tablespoon Japanese or Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 garlic clove, smashed
- One-inch piece ginger, peeled and chopped
Instructions
In a medium bowl, combine the Madras Curry seasoning with the tomato paste, coconut milk, sake, garlic and ginger. Whisk to combine, then pour the marinade over the shrimp. Gently mix to evenly coat the shrimp. Refrigerate for 8 hours to overnight.
To make the spicy herb sauce, simply puree all of the ingredients together in a blender. Reserve.
Preheat a large cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil. When hot, add the shrimp in an even layer and cook until a nice char begins to develop, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook for another 2 minutes. Reserve to a platter and let rest while you make the noodle bowls.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until al dente. Immediately drain and plunge into an ice bath and let sit for a minute. Drain on hand towels and divide into 3-4 deep large bowls.
Divide the cucumbers, radishes, serrano, tomatoes, lettuce and scallions onto the serving bowls. Drizzle with the sauce. Add the shrimp and serve.
