Hot and spicy Thai squid salad (Yam pra-muek)
This delicious spicy seafood salad combines the four elements of Thai cooking: salt, sweet, bitter and sour.
Each serving provides 217kcal, 17g protein, 12g carbohydrate (of which 12g sugars), 11g fat (of which 1.5g saturates), 2.2g fibre and 2.3g salt.
Ingredients
For the dressing
- 3 bird's-eye chillies, finely chopped, seeds optional
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 2 heaped tbsp palm sugar
- 2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
- ½ lime, juice only
For the salad
- 400g/14oz baby squid, tentacles reserved
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 20 garlic chives with flowers (or a bunch of chives), cut into 2.5cm/1in lengths
- 5 spring onions, trimmed, cut in half and quartered lengthways
- 5 Thai shallots (or 1 banana shallot), finely sliced
- 20 plum cherry tomatoes, halved
- ½ cucumber, cut in half, seeds removed, thickly sliced
- large handful mint leaves
- handful Thai basil leaves (alternatively use normal basil)
- thumb-sized piece of ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Method
For the dressing, grind the chillies and garlic together with the other dressing ingredients in a pestle and mortar. Set aside.
For the salad, clean and prepare the squid, cutting it in half and keeping the tentacles. Remove the skin and score. Set aside.
Combine the garlic, garlic chives (or chives), spring onions, Thai shallots (or banana shallots), cherry tomatoes and cucumber in a large bowl with the fresh mint leaves and Thai basil leaves (or normal basil).
Heat a wok or large frying pan with the vegetable and sesame oil. Once hot, fry the ginger and cook until just turning golden-brown. Add the squid and tentacles and cook for about another 1½ minutes, or until the squid has curled up and is just cooked.
Add the dressing from the pestle and mortar to the hot squid and toss through, then add the hot squid to the salad and mix thoroughly, serve straightaway.
