This week, we are making a Vietnamese salad you compose and serve in a plastic bag! It’s a delicious, easy recipe I learned about on a visit to Ho Chi Minh City and it really hits the spot in this heat wave.
Turtle Lake Park Salad
Ingredients
Nuoc Cham
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons lime juice or more to taste
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 1 hot chile, minced
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar or more to taste
- Ground black pepper
Salad Options
- 1 pack Banh Trang, thinly sliced with scissors
- Cilantro
- Mint
- Thai basil
- Toasted rice powder
- Gem lettuce
- Julienne tomatoes
- Bean sprouts
- Scallions
- Fried crispy shallot
- Cooked and sliced shrimp
- Toasted dried shrimp
- Crushed toasted peanuts
- 1 gallon Zip-Loc “extra strength” bags
Instructions
Make the nuoc cham: Combine and adjust the fish sauce/lime/sugar balance to your taste. You can double or triple this recipe as the number of people grows. This makes enough dressing for 2.
Make the salad: Place a big handful of rice paper strips in a Ziploc bag. Add a small handful of mixed herbs and a little of everything else. Add ¼ cup of nuoc cham dressing and zip close the bag… shake and shake for a minute, rice paper will soften, roll down sides of the bag and enjoy.
