Yields approx. 8 cups

This salad is equally delicious with shredded chicken or turkey instead of the shrimp. Or if you would prefer a vegetarian salad, simply omit the shrimp! I like to have this confetti-like salad for a light lunch.

Spicy Shrimp Salad

For the dressing:

3 tablespoons sugar

4 tablespoons fish sauce

illustration cup lime juice

2 tablespoons prepared chili sauce

For the salad:

¾ pound cooked shrimp

¼ cup chopped mint

1 small red onion, thinly sliced

2 green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced

2 cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced

Bibb lettuce leaves

  1. In a small bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients. Stir until the sugar dissolves completely.
  2. In a large bowl, combine all of the salad ingredients except the lettuce. Pour the dressing over and toss to coat.
  3. To serve, place the lettuce leaves on individual plates. Mound a portion of the shrimp salad on top of the leaves. Serve immediately.

illustration Peeling Tomatoes

The trick to peeling tomatoes is to quickly blanch them in boiling water before removing the skin. Bring a pan of water to boil, then throw in the tomato for 15 to 30 seconds. Using a slotted spoon, remove the tomato from the water and run it under cold water until it is cool enough to handle. Using the tip of a knife, pull up a small piece of skin, then simply pull the skin off the flesh.