Vietnamese Green Mango Salad with Prawns and Squid

Vietnamese Green Mango Salad with Prawns and Squid © kvalifood.com

Salad xoài hải sản is a shredded green mango salad with prawns, squid, and Vietnamese coriander (rau răm / laksa leaf). The sharp, unripe mango takes a fish sauce and lime dressing well. A good summer dish.

Ingredients

Serves 4

  • 2 green (unripe) mangoes
  • 150 g prawns, shell on
  • 150 g squid (or tofu for vegetarian)
  • 1 carrot
  • 50 g bean sprouts, optional
  • cherry tomatoes, halved, optional
  • 50 g Vietnamese coriander (rau răm)
  • 60 g roasted peanuts
  • 1 chili, seeded and finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, minced

Dressing

  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp lime juice (or kumquat juice)
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce (or soy sauce for vegetarian)

Directions

Prepare the seafood

  1. Boil the prawns for 2-3 minutes until pink. Peel, remove heads, and split lengthways. Boil the squid briefly and slice thinly. Or: slice tofu thinly and deep-fry until crispy.

Dress and serve

  1. Peel the mangoes and carrot. Julienne both into thin strips.
  2. Combine the mango, carrot, bean sprouts, and tomatoes in a large bowl.
  3. Make the dressing: warm the fish sauce and sugar together until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, add lime juice, garlic, and chili. Stir well.
  4. Pour the dressing over the mango mixture and toss. Leave for 10 minutes to absorb.
  5. Finely chop the Vietnamese coriander and mix into the salad.
  6. Add the prawns and squid (or fried tofu) and toss briefly.
  7. Top with roasted peanuts and serve.

Notes

  • Green mango is the key ingredient - it should be hard and sour, not starting to ripen. Found in Asian grocery stores.
  • Vietnamese coriander (rau răm) has a peppery, slightly lemony flavour. Regular coriander can substitute in a pinch.
  • If fish sauce is unavailable, soy sauce works but the flavour will be different.