Spicy Thai Shrimp Salad
A simple, healthy Thai shrimp salad with an authentic sour-savory-spicy-sweet combination of fresh lime juice, fish sauce and chili paste, showered with fresh herbs and crunchy roasted peanuts.
Prep Time12 minutes mins
Cook Time3 minutes mins
Total Time15 minutes mins
Servings: 4 servings
Author: Emily Clifton - Nerds with Knives
- 5 tablespoons lime juice from about 3 limes
- 2 teaspoons lime zest finely grated
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons sugar
- About 1 - 2 tablespoons sambal (or use chili-garlic paste or Sriracha)
- 1 pound large shrimp shelled and de-veined
- A large shallot thinly sliced
- 1 cup cilantro leaves and tender stems (or basil), roughly chopped
- ½ cup mint leaves roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped
- Jasmine rice or rice noodles for serving
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
In a large bowl, combine lime juice, lime zest, fish sauce, sugar, and chili paste. Taste, and adjust with any of the ingredients. It should taste quite sour, but also a little salty, spicy and sweet.
Turn heat off and poach the shrimp in the water until just cooked through, 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to overcook. Drain well.
Add the warm shrimp to the sauce and toss well. Add the shallot, cilantro and mint leaves. Toss, and transfer to a serving bowl. Scatter over the peanuts and garnish with a few more herbs. Serve immediately with hot rice or rice noodles.