vietnamese lotus root salad recipe

ingredients and cooking method

Ingredients : Serves 4
225g Jar preserved lotus stems, drained and cut into 5 cm strips
1/2 Cucumber
8–12 prawns, boiled/grilled shelled,cut them in half, lengthways
500g pork belly,boiled ,cut into thin strips
2 Shallots, finely sliced
24 g Fresh basil leaves, shredded
1 sprig Fresh coriander (cilantro) leaves, for garnishing

For the dressing
1 Lime, juiced
15-30 ml fishsauce
1 Red Thai chilies, seeded and finely chopped
1 clove Garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon Sugar
cooking method :
To make the dressing, mix together the dressing ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
Peel the cucumber and cut it into thin 5 cm strips.
Soak the strips in cold salted water for 20 minutes.
Put the lotus stems into a bowl of water. Using a pair of chopsticks, stir the water constantly so that the loose fibres of the stems wrap around the sticks. Drain the stems and put them in a bowl.
Drain the cucumber strips and add them to the bowl, then add the shallots, shredded basil leaves and the prepared dressing. Leave the salad to marinate for 20 minutes before serving.
Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.