Thai-Style Salad with Shredded Cabbage Carrots Basil Peanuts and Sesame Seeds with Sriracha Lime Dressing
This salad is a “go-to” when it’s sweltering (or you are too tired to face that stove). Full of vibrant, fresh flavors, this dish is vegetable-centric, incorporates peanuts and toasted sesame seeds for protein, and is tossed with dynamic, slightly spicy Sriracha and fresh lime juice dressing --no oven needed!
In the style of traditional Thai salads, this recipe uses shredded and matchstick-cut vegetables rather than leafy greens, as a base. Julienne- cut green cabbage, jalapeno, carrot, cucumber, and chopped cilantro, create an interesting play of crunchy and soft textures on your tongue, creating a dish that is anything but boring! I recommend using a Japanese Benriner mandoline—use the ¼-inch blade for cukes and chile, and the 1/8-inch blade for the carrots unless you have chef-level knife skills.
What grabs your attention with this exceptional cuisine is the flavor profiles; salads and soups masterfully balance bold flavors: sour, sweet, salty and spicy with finesse, and…this dish is no exception. Cilantro is used in almost equal amounts to the green cabbage, and a generous amount of basil creates the herby flavor notes that come to the foreground in this dish. If you don’t like cilantro, try using a chiffonade of mint. Edamame or grilled tofu are excellent alternate vegetarian proteins that transform this light, vegetable-centric salad into a filling meal.
Thai-Style Salad with Shredded Cabbage Carrots Basil Peanuts and Sesame Seeds with Sriracha Lime Dressing
Serves: 2 as a main; 4 as a side
Ingredients
For Salad
½ cup roasted, salted peanuts
3 Tbsp. sesame seeds, toasted
2 green onions, green and white parts, sliced in a 1/2-inch diagonal cut
¼ cup Thai or African Blue basil leaves, sliced in a 1/3-inch chiffonade for Italian
2 Persian cucumbers, ¼-matchstick cut
1 carrot, peeled and sliced into a 1/8-inch matchstick cut
1 bunch cilantro, leaves and tender stems, rough chop
½ green cabbage, cored and thinly sliced into a ¼-inch cut
6 small tomatoes, mixed grape and sungold, sliced in half
½ jalapeno, seeded and thinly sliced (optional)
For Sriracha Lime Dressing
½ cup good-quality mayonnaise, (I recommend Best Foods)
¾ Tbsp. soy sauce
Fish sauce
1 ½ Tbsp. roasted sesame Seed Oil
1 ½ Tbsp. Sriracha
1 tsp. honey
1 tsp. white granulated sugar
¼ tsp. salt
½ tsp. distilled white vinegar
2 Tbsp. fresh-squeezed lime juice, about 2 large juicy limes
Zest of 1 lime
Preparation
Dressing
- Add all the ingredients to a medium bowl and whisk until incorporated into a creamy dressing. Top with additional lime zest if desired.
Salad
- Place the cabbage, cucumber, carrots, and green onion into a large salad bowl and toss gently to combine.
- Top with tomatoes, peanuts and sesame seeds.
- Drizzle with dressing. Serve with additional dressing on the side.
