Recipe

April 20, 2017

Food52’s Thai Pork Salad With Crisped Rice 

Recipe: Emily Connor 

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Try this recipe for Thai Pork Salad With Crisped Rice from the cookbook Food 52: Mighty Salads.
Food52_Mighty SaladsA play on pork larb, this layered salad is everything you want from Thai food: bright, clean flavors, a heady depth from crispy pork bits and fish sauce, and heat that tickles rather than burns. Despite a long ingredient list, this dish comes together quickly and holds up well (just be sure to pack up the lettuce in a separate container). If you’re not a pork person, swap in ground beef or chicken.

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 3⁄4 cup crisped rice cereal, such as Rice Krispies
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
  • 2 tablespoons fish sauce, or to taste
  • Large pinch of sugar
  • 1 pound ground pork
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 3 fresh red Thai chiles, minced, or a pinch of red pepper flakes
  • 1 shallot, thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice, plus more as needed
  • 4 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
  • 1 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
  • 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, coarsely chopped
  • 1 large head Bibb lettuce, or 2 to 3 heads Little Gem lettuce, leaves separated
  • 2 Persian cucumbers or 1 ⁄2 English cucumber, thinly sliced

Directions

Yield: Serves 4

  1. In a large nonstick skillet or a wok, heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the crisped rice cereal and cayenne and stir until browned just slightly, about 2 minutes, turning down the heat if necessary to prevent burning. Transfer to a bowl and wipe out the pan.
  2. In a small bowl, stir together the fish sauce and sugar.
  3. In the same skillet, heat the remaining tablespoon of vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook, stirring frequently to break the meat into small pieces, until it is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, chiles, and shallot, stirring to evenly distribute them with the pork, and continue to cook, pressing down firmly to help the pork brown and stirring just once or twice, until the pork is golden and crispy, 3 to 5 minutes. Drain and discard any excess oil. Stir in the fish sauce-sugar mixture and cook a few seconds longer to warm through. Off the heat, add 2 tablespoons of the lime juice. Taste and adjust the heat, acidity, and sweetness if needed. Let cool for about a minute, then toss in the scallions, cilantro, and mint.
  4. On a large serving platter or plates, arrange a layer of lettuce leaves, then top with some of the pork mixture and cucumbers. Continue layering in the same way until you’ve used all of your ingredients. Scatter the crisped rice over the top. Serve immediately.
Photographer:

James Ransom

Source:

Copyright © 2017 by Food52 Inc. All rights reserved.Published in the United States by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division ofPenguin Random House LLC, New York.

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