This is a summer salad, light, refreshing and packed with flavour. The salad gets it name from the lightly cooked spinach that lights up the plate. I like to serve this salad in a plated fashion; I mould it in a bowl and garnish it with tomatoes, peanuts and a light sprinkling of chilli powder. The green chlorophylls from the spinach have a lovely earthy flavour and contrast with the freshness of the tart-sweet tomatoes, the scent of the ocean from the shrimp powder and fish sauce and the crunch from the peanuts. Aromatic and bright, I loved this salad.
This is my favourite cookbook for Burmese cuisine. It contains wonderful, well-researched recipes from all across Myanmar, and I often come back to it. I also have most of Naomi Duguid's other cookbooks and absolutely admire her work, writing, and all the travel and research she puts into every one of her books.
For more wonderful recipes from this cookbook, click here.
Ingredients:
1/2 lb spinach, stemmed
1 large tomato, diced or 6-8 cherry tomatoes halved
2 tablespoons peanuts, lightly chopped
1 tablespoon dried shrimp powder
1 tablespoon fried shallots with oil (See note)
1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
Salt, to taste
1/4 teaspoon chilli powder, or to taste
Wash the spinach well. Add it to a large frying pan or wok and cook for 1-2 minutes until just wilted. The spinach should maintain its bright green colour. If you cook it too long, it will become dull grey.
Remove the cooked spinach to a fine mesh sieve. Allow to drain. Press firmly when cool to remove excess water. Chop finely.
To serve, mix the salad with all the rest of the ingredients. You can add it to a mould or bowl to shape it. Garnish with a few tomato pieces, a sprinkling of chilli powder, and a few peanuts.
Note: To make the shallots, slice 3 shallots finely. Fry in 3 teaspoons oil on low heat until caramelized to a light golden colour.
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