One of my favorite salads to eat - the Larb salad is a refreshing Thai salad (particularly from Laos or Northern Thailand) made with meat instead of vegetables.
Fresh minced meat, with beef being my favorite (chicken, beef or pork) is mixed with lots of fresh herbs and a spicy, tangy dressing. The toasted sticky rice in this adds a wonderful textural crunch and the fresh herbs especially the mint and coriander bring it all together rather beautifully. You can eat it on its own, serve over a bed of rice or noodles or even in lettuce leaves as salad cups. However you serve it, the combo of meat and herbs and dressing will remain the star!
Ingredients:
Beef mince - 500 gm
Shallots sliced - 4
Coriander leaves - a big handful
Mint leaves - ¼ cup
Spring onions, finely sliced - 2
Dressing:
Glutinous rice - 2 tbsp
Fish sauce - 3 tbsp
Brown sugar or coconut sugar - 2 tsp
Lime juice - 2 tbsp
Chilli flakes - to taste
Method:
For the dressing, toast the rice in a dry frying pan over high heat until golden brown. Remove from heat and use a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder to grind rice to a fine powder. Mix the rice powder with the remaining dressing ingredients.
Place a non-stick pan over high heat. When it’s hot add ½ cup of water. Then add in the mince. Break up the mince as it cooks in the water. When cooked, use a slotted spoon to transfer the mince to a large bowl (discard the cooking liquid). While the mince is warm, add the shallots and toss. Add the dressing and mix to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more chilli powder, fish sauce and/or lime juice as required. Serve with coriander, mint and spring onion.
finger licking 💖