Sauce for the salad (Nuoc Cham Dipping
Sauce):
1 clove
garlic, minced
1 serrano
chili, minced
½ tsp ground
chili paste
2/3 cup hot
water
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup fish
sauce
2 tbs fresh
lime juice
Pound the
garlic and fresh chilies into a paste. In a small bowl combine garlic mixture,
chili paste, hot water and sugar, stir well. Add the fish sauce and lime juice.
Let sit for at least 15 minutes.
Noodles:
8 ounces (225
grams) dried rice vermicelli noodles
Cook noodles
in boiling water, 3 to 5 minutes. Rinse until cooled in cool water.
The Shrimp:
2 tbls vegetable
oil
2 shallots,
thinly sliced
1 clove
garlic, minced
1 pound (450
grams) large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tbs minced
fresh lemongrass
2 cups
sliced white mushrooms
2 tsp fish
sauce
1 tsp sugar
Salt
Stir fry
shallots and garlic in the oil for about 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and
lemongrass and stir and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms, fish sauce
and sugar and cook and stir for 2 to 3 minutes.
Garnishes:
2 cups
lettuce
2 cups bean
sprouts
1 ½ cups
peeled, seeded, julienned cucumber
1/3 to 1/2 cup rough chopped mint
1/3 to 1/2 cup
chopped basil leaves
2 tbs
chopped peanuts
Cilantro
In
individual bowls put the garnishes, some noodle, shrimp mixture and sauce.
