Sprouting a new recipe.

Sometimes you get a friend popping in for dinner at the last minute. Not always do you have enough food planned so you need to improvise. This was me. I had to quickly work out how to bulk up the meal I had planned. I had leftover bean sprouts from a pad thai meal I made a few days before so resorted to trusty Google for some inspiration on how to use them up in a side dish. The meal I had planned was fish fillets baked in the oven with chillies, garlic and ginger and a side of sauteed bok choy. Whatever I decided to make it had to go with the rest of the meal so I was on the lookout for a Thai-inspired side dish. Then I saw this recipe – Thai bean sprout salad. It sounded perfect.

I absolutely love fragrant food. I truly subscribe to the mantra that food shouldn’t be plain and boring. This recipe is definitely not that! Plus it goes wonderfully with the fish and bok choy.

Let’s talk about the humble bean sprout for a minute. Bean sprouts are substantial enough to stand-up to stir-frying. You can also include them raw in salads and in sandwiches. Mung bean sprouts are the ones commonly used in South East Asian cooking. They are low in calories, have fibre and B vitamins, and deliver a boost of vitamins C and K. Apparently in Thailand, the tiny root that is hanging at the end of the sprout is picked off. It is a tedious job and one I find unnecessary. Too time-consuming!

You can’t prepare this Thai bean sprout salad in advance because the sprouts will wilt and lose the crunchiness which you want. Because of this, I wouldn’t use canned bean sprouts or packaged sprouts that show any amount of liquid pooling in the bottom (sprouts have a high water content and this comes out as they wilt). So choose your sprouts carefully.

Thai Bean Sprout Salad

This Thai bean sprout salad is a simple salad to make. It goes perfectly as a side dish to any Thai or Vietnamese inspired meal. It's fresh an packed full of flavour.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 10 minutes mins

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

 

• 220 g bean sprouts, washed & drained
• 2 red capsicums, shredded
• 1/4 cup carrots, shredded
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons chilli, fresh & thinly sliced for garnish

Dressing

• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce
• 1 teaspoon lemongrass paste
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon honey

Instructions

 

• Place salad ingredients in a bowl.
• Whisk together all dressing ingredients and gently toss with the salad. Serve immediately.