Asian Noodle Shrimp Salad

I was so happy to host our monthly birthday Canasta afternoon last Thursday. Once a month we celebrate all the birthdays that fall in that month with a joyous luncheon before beginning the games. On Thursday we had 9 in attendance including the two birthday girls, Bonnie and Francine.

Here they are standing behind the dessert, which will be included in an upcoming blog: Vanilla Rum Panna Cotta with Salted Caramel. I have to say it kinda-sorta stole the show, but the whole meal, which is always contributed by all, was really spectacular.

Here’s the whole crew, missing Carmen, who took the picture.

We don’t always have a theme, but this time we went Asian. I wish I had taken pictures of all the food, as it was really delicious and I could tell that everyone fussed. We had Curried Shrimp with tons of toppings; super delicious Coconut Rice; Home-made wontons with dipping sauce and rice noodles, also sauced; Shrimp Tempura; and Asian inspired chicken thighs.  And the Asian Shrimp Noodle Salad, which was my contribution. I hope I haven’t forgotten anything. Lots of food, indeed, and all GOOD! It was a very festive day filled with fun, celebration, and lots of love!

The most difficult part of this dish is chopping the veg, which really isn’t difficult at all, just time consuming. Start by dicing red, orange, and yellow Bell Pepper to make 1 1/2 cups. Same amount with an English cucumber and 1 1/2 cups of grated carrot. I like to grate the carrot using a vegetable peeler so it comes off in little thin strips.

Finely dice 1/4 cup red onion and 1/2 cup scallions, mainly green tops for topping the salad. Shell 1 cup of Edamame beans (that is tedious) and drain 1 can of sliced water chestnuts. Have the cashews ready (1 cup) as they go in at the end.

FOR THE DRESSING:

I made more dressing than this salad requires as I knew it would be good on other dishes. Mix all dressing ingredients together: 1 cup creamy peanut butter; 4 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar; 6 Tbsp. soy sauce; 4 Tbsp. honey; 4 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice; 3 tsp. Sesame oil; 1 tsp. freshly grated ginger root (about a 1 inch piece); 3 Cloves grated garlic; 1 tsp. Siracha (more if you like it spicy); 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt; 6-8 Tbsp. water to thin to desired consistency.

This is really a subjective taste and texture thing. Keep tasting as you are adding and remember you can always add more, but once it’s in you can’t take it away, so taste, taste, taste! Same with the consistency. You want it to totally coat the noodles and veg, but not be too thick, or too runny.

I attempted to cook rice noodles, but had never done it before and was not happy with the texture. You actually do not cook these noodles, you just pour boiling water over them, cover, let them sit 2 minutes, stir, cover again and let sit another 2 minutes and they are done. What I didn’t realize, and my good friend Carmen pointed out after the fact, is that you need to separate the noodles after they have soaked/cooked so they don’t get all clumpy. She suggested I make a shrimp noodle soup with lots of veg to use the noodles and that is what I am doing today. I also made some stuffed red peppers today with ground beef, finely diced pepper, onion, lots of garlic, chopped tomato, oregano, and used the noodles in place of rice. They are rice noodles, after all! Thanks Carmen!

My friend, and the best one for raucous, contagious laughter in our group, is Carmen, originally from the beautiful island of Saipan. And our son, Justin has been stationed there for the last 3 months as an engineer in the merchant marines. The island has a fascinating history. If you want to learn more, click here:

https://www.britannica.com/place/Saipan

And this is our son, Justin on a break from work in Saipan.

BACK TO THE REIPCE!

Living on the Mexican border we are fortunate to get really delicious and fresh shrimp. It is the best! After you peel and clean the shrimp (don’t want any feces in your food!), gently boil in salted water for about 3 to 4 minutes. These shrimp are grande, so if yours are smaller it will take less time.

Assembling the salad is easy, but first, when I didn’t like how the rice noodles looked I just cooked 1 lb. (also more than needed for the salad) of Barilla spaghetti al dente and used that instead. Cut the spaghetti in thirds after cooking so it is easier to eat in the salad. To assemble, mix all the veg in a large bowl, add the cooked noodles, half of the cashews, and the shrimp. Pour the dressing over and mix with tongs or your hands until salad is evenly coated.

Sprinkle with remaining cashews, top with sesame seeds and green scallion.

The 4th of July is next week, enjoy with friends, family, food and the celebration of our great country.

I learned a new Irish expression from my friend Laura Martyn from Connemara….GRA MOR! It means in Gaelic…BIG LOVE…so BIG LOVE to all of you and thank you Laura!!

And to close…my grandmother’s favorite flowers were gladiolas. She grew them in her vegetable garden and harvested them by the armload. I love them, too!!

GRA MOR! 

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5 from 1 vote

Asian Noodle and Shrimp Salad

Packed with flavor and textures. If you like umami you will LOVE this salad. Refreshing on a hot summer night!

Ingredients

• 1 LB. Spaghetti More than you will need.
• 2 lbs. Shrimp, peeled, cleaned and cooked
• 1 1/2 cups Mixed Red, Yellow and Orange bell peppers
• 1 1/2 cups English cucumber, diced
• 1 1/2 cups Carrot, shredded
• 1/4 cup Red onion, diced
• 1 can Water Sliced Water chestnuts
• 1 cup Edamame beans, uncooked
• 1/2 cup Scallion, green tops for garnish
• 1 cup Cashew pieces

FOR THE DRESSING:

• 1 cup Peanut butter, smooth/creamy
• 4 Tbsp. Rice wine vinegar
• 6 Tbp. Soy Sauce
• 4 tsp. Honey
• 4 Tbsp. Lime juice, freshly squeezed
• 3 tsp. Sesame oil
• 1 tsp. Ginger root, freshly grated
• 3 Cloves Garlic, freshly grated
• 1 tsp. Siracha
• 1/2 tsp. Salt
• 6-8 Tbsp. Water to thin the sauce

Instructions

• Cook the noodles until al dente. Be sure to add at least a tbsp. of salt to your cooking liquid. When done, drain, but do not rinse. Cut the spaghetti in thirds to make it easier to eat in the salad.
• Chop and prep all veggies.
• Shell and clean shrimp. Remove the vein from front and back of shrimp.
• Mix all dressing ingrediens together. Whisk it well and add enough water to get the desired consistency.
• In a large bowl, add the noodles, all the veg, half of the cashews, and the shrimp.
• Pour the dressing all over the salad and mix with tongs or your hands to completely coat the salad.
• Sprinkle with remaining cashews and sesame seeds. Top with scallion.