Vietnamese Shrimp Salad with Mint Chile Dressing
This salad has a nice bit of heat to it thanks to the fresh chile. For added flavor, you can add chopped fresh mint, cilantro or Thai basil to the salad.
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Fiery, sweat-inducing capsaicin is found mostly in the white pith (and the seeds that come into contact with the pith), so devein and seed the chile if you want to cut back on spiciness.
Ingredients
Dressing
- 1/3 fresh mint
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp diced red onion
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 small clove garlic, peeled
- 1/4 tsp raw honey
- 1/8 tsp chile paste
Salad
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 12 oz medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- pinch of ground black pepper
- 6 cups chopped romaine or butter lettuce
- 2 cups bean sprouts or julienned zucchini
- 2 Persian cucumbers (or 1/2 English cucumber), diced or thinly sliced
- 1 large carrot, julienned or grated
- 1 red Thai bird's-eye chile or red finger chile, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup raw unsalted peanuts, toasted
Preparation
- Make dressing: In a blender or food processor, purée dressing ingredients until smooth. (Or, for a chunkier texture, mince the garlic, chop the mint and whisk all ingredients together.) Set aside.
- Make salad: In a medium skillet on medium, heat oil. Add shrimp and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, turning halfway, until shrimp are pink and opaque, about 4 minutes.
- In a large bowl, combine lettuce, sprouts, cucumbers, carrot, chile and peanuts. Top with shrimp and drizzle with dressing; toss to coat.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size 1/6 of salad
- Calories 234
- Carbohydrate Content 9 g
- Cholesterol Content 68 mg
- Fat Content 3 g
- Fiber Content 4 g
- Protein Content 14 g
- Saturated Fat Content 2 g
- Sodium Content 205 mg
- Sugar Content 4 g
- Monounsaturated Fat Content 11 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat Content 3 g