POPPYPEACH'S VIETNAMESE CHICKEN NOODLE SALAD IMAGE ASHLEE DECAIRES This is a quick and nutritious salad that is fresh, super tasty and everyone loves. SERVES 4
4 organic skinless and boneless chicken breasts 2 thumbs of ginger, peeled and thinly sliced 1 red capsicum, deseeded and thinly sliced ½ cucumber 6 spring onions, halved and shredded handful of fresh bean sprouts handful of coriander (including stems) roughly chopped handful of mint, roughly chopped 150g rice stick noodles DRESSING
4 tbsp soft brown sugar 8 tbsp red wine vinegar 4 tbsp fresh lime juice 8 tbsp Thai fish sauce 1 tsp cornflour 1 medium fresh red chilli, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped GARNISH
60g peanuts, roasted and coarsely chopped coriander leaves lime wedges Bring to the boil one litre of water and the ginger in a sauté pan. Once boiling, add the chicken breasts and simmer for 5 minutes. Turn the heat off, and leave the chicken to cool in the liquid. Once cooked use two forks to coarsely shred the chicken.
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Put the noodles in a heatproof bowl. Cover with boiling water and set aside for 2–3 minutes or until tender. Drain. Rinse well under cold water and drain. Snip the noodles a little with scissors so they aren’t too long. For the salad, peel the cucumber, then cut it in half lengthways and scoop out all of the seeds with a teaspoon. Then cut the flesh into 5cm long matchsticks. Add them to a large bowl with the capsicum, spring onions, bean sprouts, mint and coriander and toss together. For the dressing put the sugar, vinegar, lime juice and Thai fish sauce in a small pan and bring to the boil. Mix the cornflour with a teaspoon of water in a small bowl, and then stir this into the pan and simmer gently for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and let cool, then stir in the red chilli and garlic. Add the shredded chicken to the salad ingredients, along with the noodles. When you are ready to serve add half of the dressing and toss lightly. Then place the salad gently into your serving dish, piled nice and high in the middle. Garnish with the peanuts and coriander leaves, then drizzle more dressing. Serve lime wedges on the side.
