Thai Mango Salad

This salad is meant to be bold and spicy. The pungent aroma of fish sauce mixed with sesame oil and the burn of the chilli spice is sure to whet your palate. Pair this with your favourite Asian dish, or have it on its own as a light brunch or lunch. It is also perfect as a main dish when you toss in a protein of your choice – prawns or even a seared steak on the top works perfectly here.

Ingredients

• 1 cup mango sliced thinly
• 1 cup mixed salad leaves
• 1 red onion sliced thinly 
• 10 slices thinly sliced cucumber 
• 5 cherry tomatoes halved 
• 1 fresh chilli sliced thinly 
• ½ cup coriander chopped
• ½ cup mint chopped
• ¼ cup peanuts

Dressing 

• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• ½ tbsp sugar or maple syrup 
• ½ tbsp sesame oil 
• 1 fresh piri chilli chopped finely
• 1 coriander stem chopped finely 
• 1 clove garlic grated

Instructions

The easiest way to make the dressing is to bring all the ingredients together in a little jar with a lid and shake for a count of ten – yes it’s as quick as that. You can even make the dressing a day in advance – perfect for a busy day. 

Now, mix all the ingredients for the salad (reserving a little bit of the coriander, mint and peanuts) in a big bowl. A spoonful of the dressing goes over, toss for a bit. 

Chuck in the remaining fresh herbs and nuts and then top with the rest of the dressing. As a side portion this recipe works for two. As a main, perfect for one. Enjoy!

Top tip

If you’d like to add a protein, I would do a quick marinade of salt and pepper and a dash of fish sauce with your choice of steak, prawn or even chicken. You can dull the spice by cutting back on the chilli or removing all together. 

Joy Entry is a Malaysian home cook based in Lagos who is obsessed with the provocative, unapologetic flavours of South-East Asian cuisine. 

Instagram: @thatasianhomecook

joyentry@gmail.com