Thai Pork Salad (Laab)

Meat as a Condiment, Family Meal

Every time I visit my favorite neighborhood Thai eatery, I order laab, a spicy, tangy salad of minced pork, fresh herbs, and shredded vegetables. One of the best versions I have ever had was at Saffron Thai Grilled Chicken, a modest but authentic restaurant in San Diego run by cookbook author and Thai food expert Su-Mei Yu, who makes laab with roast duck and other meats. The appeal of this salad is its contrasting textures, from crunchy to soft. It is decidedly spicy.

SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 tablespoons boiling water
• 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar, or more to taste
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 fresh Thai bird or serrano chiles, stemmed, seeded, and minced
• Salt (optional)
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1 pound ground pork (85% lean)
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, or more to taste
• Salt
• 3 tablespoons minced shallots
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped scallions
• 3 kaffir lime leaves (fresh or frozen; see Sources), shredded, or 1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce, or more to taste (optional)
• ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 12 fresh mint leaves, torn
• 3 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
• 10 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 12 green beans, cut into thirds on the diagonal
• 10 arugula leaves or watercress sprigs
• ½ cup julienned English cucumber
• ½ cup dry-roasted salted peanuts

INSTRUCTIONS:

DRESSING:

1. Combine the boiling water and brown sugar in a small bowl and stir until the sugar is mostly dissolved.
2. Stir in the lime juice and fish sauce and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
3. Cool, then stir in the garlic and chiles.
4. Taste and add salt if needed.

MEAT:

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the pork, ginger, and garlic and cook, mashing the meat with a fork to break it up into small pieces.
3. When the meat is just going from pink to gray, stir in the fish sauce and lime juice and cook for 1 minute more.
4. Add salt to taste.
5. Transfer the meat to a medium bowl and stir in the shallots, scallions, and kaffir lime leaves.
6. Add 2 tablespoons of the dressing and the Sriracha (if using).
7. Taste the mixture. It should be sweet, sour, spicy, and salty.
8. If not, adjust the flavors with brown sugar, lime juice, Sriracha, and/or salt.
9. Toss in the cilantro and mint.

ASSEMBLY:

1. Spread the lettuce on a platter, then scatter on the tomatoes, green beans, arugula, and cucumber.
2. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and spoon on the meat.
3. Garnish with the peanuts and serve immediately.

ALTERNATIVE CUTS:

• Ground beef or ground lamb;
• Grilled rare beef steak, finely diced; or
• Grilled pork tenderloin, finely diced.

COOK’S NOTES:

• This salad will get soggy almost immediately, so make it right before serving.