delicious recipes from a messy kitchen

It would only have taken 5 minutes to swing into the grocery store and pick up a bunch of mint, but seriously, I could not be bothered . It had been a longish day at work, and all I really wanted to do was come home, change into my pajamas, make a half-hearted attempt to kind-of-cook something in the kitchen, then sink into the couch and watch Gossip Girl with a big bag of chocolate chips.

It’s too bad, because mint would have been a lovely addition to this quick, flavourful Thai Ground Pork Salad with Cilantro. But it’s perfectly fine without it and made the recipe even easier to prepare. Try it tonight. Dinner in minutes.

{RECIPE} THAI GROUND PORK SALAD WITH CILANTRO & MINT

{INGREDIENTS}

1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

1 bunch fresh mint, chopped (optional)

1/2 small head white or green cabbage, finely sliced (I like to use Taiwanese cabbage when available for its more subtle texture and flavour)

2 small shallots, finely sliced

10 oz. lean ground pork

1 tsp salt

2 limes, halved

2 TB Asian fish sauce (preferably Thai naam pla)

1 tsp chili flakes

{DIRECTIONS}

one. Remove stems from cilantro (and maybe mint). Chop leaves and toss into a large mixing bowl.

two. Finely slice cabbage, as if it were for coleslaw. Toss into the same bowl.

three. Put ground pork into a small sauce pan. Add just enough water to cover the pork, then toss in 1 tsp salt. Take one of the lime halves, squeeze the juice into the pan and toss the entire thing into the pot (rind and all). Bring the pan to simmer on the stovepot until the pork is just cooked, about 2 to 3 minutes. Occasionally stir  the pork with a fork to break into pieces.

four. Drain the ground pork in a sieve and discard the lime half. Toss it into the cabbage/herb mixture.

five. Squeeze the juice from the remaining lime halves directly to the bowl, along with the fish sauce and chili flakes.

six. Toss the entire mixture with a fork. Serve at room temperature, with or without rice.

{INSPIRED BY}

Gourmet Magazine’s Thai Ground Pork Salad with Mint & Cilantro

Tags: cabbage, pork, salad