Sticky prawn and cashew salad
- Prepare
- less than 30 mins
- Cook
- 10 to 30 mins
- Serve
- Serves 2
A fresh and flavour packed salad, with crunchy cashews and sticky soy prawns.
Ingredients
For the prawns and cashews
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 200ml/7fl oz tamarind paste
- 4 tbsp Thai fish sauce
- 2 tsp chilli flakes
- 4 tbsp palm sugar
- 4 tbsp soy sauce
- 6 large king prawns, head on, shell off and de-veined
- 100g/3½oz cashew nuts
- large pinch salt
For the toasted rice
- 100g/3½oz jasmine rice
- 1 tbsp salt
For the dressing
- 2 red chillies, sliced
- 1 tbsp chopped coriander root
- 2 garlic cloves, sliced
- 1 tbsp minced fresh root ginger
- 3 tbsp fish sauce
- 3 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp palm sugar
For the salad
- handful beansprouts
- bunch fresh mint, leaves picked
- bunch fresh coriander, leaves picked
- 3 spring onions, chopped
- 1 shallot, peeled and finely sliced
- 1 Thai red chilli, finely sliced
- 2 white cabbage leaves, to serve
Method
To make the prawns and cashews, heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the garlic until golden. Add the tamarind and all of the other ingredients except for the prawns, cashew nuts and salt. Mix well and take off the heat. Heat a griddle pan, add the prawns and grill for a few minutes on each side until cooked through. Keep the griddle warm. Sprinkle the cashews with the salt and toast the cashews on the griddle. Set aside with the prawns.
To make the toasted rice, preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan/Gas 7. Mix the rice and salt and place in a baking tray. Toast the rice and salt evenly for 10–12 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool, then transfer to a pestle and mortar. Grind to a fine powder. Set aside.
To make the dressing, blitz all of the ingredients together with a hand blender or food processor.
To make the salad, toss all of the salad ingredients, except the cabbage leaves, together in a large bowl. Add the prawns and cashew nuts to the salad, pour in the dressing and mix to combine. Pile the mixture into the cabbage leaves and serve.
