Two salads to try
SOUTHEAST ASIAN PRAWN AND PINEAPPLE SALAD
This is one of my favourite salads (I get cravings for it) — mouth-burningly hot, fresh, sweet and sour. You can add other ingredients such as green beans or avocado, and shaved fresh coconut is good on top. Serves 4 as a starter or small plate
INGREDIENTS
For the dressing:
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 long green chilli, chopped
2 tbsp palm sugar or granulated sugar
50ml rice vinegar 50ml fish sauce
50ml lime juice (about 2 limes) For the salad:
½ large pineapple or 1 small pineapple
10g mint leaves
10g coriander leaves
100g baby salad leaves
½ tbsp groundnut or coconut oil
400g raw king prawns, peeled juice of
½-1 lime
DIRECTIONS
Put the garlic, chilli and sugar in a mortar and bash to a purée. Add the rice vinegar, fish sauce and lime juice, and season. Peel and quarter the pineapple and remove the hard core from each piece. Cut each quarter, on an angle, into slices. Put the pineapple, herbs and leaves into a bowl. Heat the oil in a frying pan and quickly sauté the prawns until they turn pink. Immediately add the lime juice and season. Toss into the bowl with the dressing and serve, using a scooped-out pineapple half, if you like.
HOT PINEAPPLE, AVOCADO AND SPINACH SALAD WITH GINGER DRESSING
The pineapple here is cooked, but I also do serve this with raw (cored and chopped). If I do that I put the chillis in the dressing. It’s really important to get a mild, fruity olive oil for this. Serves 6
INGREDIENTS
For the salad:
1 tbsp palm sugar or soft light brown sugar
1 red and
1 green chilli, halved, deseeded and cut into little shreds juice of 2 limes
1 medium pineapple, peeled and cut lengthways into wedges
125g baby spinach leaves handful of coriander or mint leaves (or a mixture of both)
3 ripe avocados, stoned, peeled and cut into slices
For the dressing:
½ tbsp cider vinegar
¼ tsp Dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, crushed to a purée
1½ cm-square cube of fresh ginger, grated
½ tsp runny honey
½ globe preserved ginger, finely chopped, plus
½ tsp syrup from the jar
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
DIRECTIONS
Bash the sugar and chillis with a mortar and pestle until the chillis are almost a purée. Add the lime juice, stirring to help the sugar dissolve, put in a dish and lay the pineapple wedges in it. Leave to marinate for about 30 minutes, turning a few times. Line the grill tray with foil, season the pineapple wedges and grill them, turning occasionally, until slightly caramelised and tender (about five minutes). Leave to cool a little (the pineapple can be warm or at room temperature). Combine all the dressing ingredients in a bowl. In a separate broad, shallow bowl, gently toss the spinach, herbs and avocado together with three quarters of the dressing, then add the pineapple and serve with the rest of the dressing alongside.