I LOVE the flavour profile of Vietnamese food. So happy I finally figured out how to make this at home. Plus the recipe comes together in 30 minutes. This dish has so many layers. The rice noodles to slurp, the vegetables to crunch and the herbs and Vietnamese dipping sauce that make it so addictive. This used to be my favourite take out in my single-just-starting-my-first-real-job-days. Ten years later, I finally figured out the recipe and make a variation of it once a week. Serves four.
Vietnamese style chicken + rice noodle salad
Ingredients for the chicken:
1 clove garlic roughly chopped
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Ingredients for the salad:
Half of a package rice noodles (makes four one cup servings)
2 grated carrots (or chopped red peppers)
½ cucumber cut into thin matchsticks
½ cup chopped unsalted peanuts
1/2 cup chopped cilantro (or mint)
Ingredients for the sauce:
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
Pinch red pepper flakes
1-2 tablespoons water to dilute the sauce (optional)
Juice of half a lime
Slice chicken lengthwise. Combine the garlic, hoisin and chicken and marinate for 20 minutes while you prep everything else.
Pour just boiled water over the noodles in a bowl. Let noodles soak for 4 minutes before straining. After straining well, pour a few drops of rice wine vinegar over top to keep them from sticking.
Scrape off a little of the chicken marinade. If it’s too saucy, it won’t crisp up. Sear it on either side until cooked through on medium-high heat in a non stick pan (or cast iron) or toss it on the BBQ. It cooks quickly because it’s so thin.
Plate the noodles, vegetables, fresh chopped herbs, peanuts and chicken with sauce on the side. Serve with soy sauce, siracha hot sauce and lime wedges on the table if you like. Dig in! Also very delicious the next day cold or warm as leftovers. [wink, wink]
