Shrimp Salad with Rice Noodles (Bun Thom)

Shrimp Salad with Rice Noodles

(Bun Thom)

  

Vietnamese salad is one of my favorite things to eat.  In fact, I think my husband will tell you it's all I ever eat.  But can you really blame me when it's 105 degrees outside?  For the carb-conscious, you can take it easy with the rice noodles or just skip it altogether.  I personally like very little to no rice noodles, not because I'm a carbophobe, but I just love love love the way the greens, veggies, cilantro and basil tastes with fish sauce and peanuts.  There's so much going for this dish that you hardly miss it at all. 

If you're aiming for a straight salad, you'll be extremely pleased to know that there's no cooking involved whatsoever!  Yeay!  Even if you want rice noodles, it's only 5-10 minutes to prepare.  Simply boil water in a pot. Add the rice noodles and boil for about 5-6 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water and let it sit in the strainer while you prep your bowl.  

To save you the hassle of boiling and peeling shrimp, I highly recommend buying the 2 lb. bag of frozen cooked shrimp from Costco.  Place it in the microwave for 1 minute and drain. 

For the salad:

-Greenleaf Lettuce

-Earthbound Spring Salad Mix

-Julienne Carrots and Cucumbers

-Bean Sprouts

-Chopped Scallions

-Crushed Peanuts

Prep Bowl:

There's no right or wrong way to do this.  Place greens on the bottom followed by the rice noodles.  Next come the veggies.  By this time, the bowl is getting ready to pop out and that's fine because next comes the shrimp to tame it down.  Finally, garnish with scallions, cilantro, basil, red hot chili pepper, and peanuts.  Bring on the fish sauce and you can now chow down!

NOTES:

I highly recommend this if you're planning for a picnic, any outdoor eating or if you're bringing a dish to a party.  It travels well.  Just put everything in a cooler until you're ready to prep.  

You can also slice the shrimp in half horizontally if you wish. If I'm making this for a big party, this is usually what I do. People go crazy over shrimp!!! 

If you bring this to work for lunch, be prepared to share.  Also make sure you have a jar with a nice tight  lid for the fish sauce and not the plastic containers.  I use baby food jars. They work perfect.