Thai Glass Noodle Salad (Yum Woon Sen)

Step 1

Soak the glass noodles in room temperature water for 7-10 minutes until soft and pliable.

Step 2

Meanwhile, make the dressing: Chop off the leafy half of the cilantro sprigs and set aside, and chop the stems-only half into small chunks and place in the mortar and pestle along with the garlic and chilies; pound into a paste. Add palm sugar and pound until dissolved. Add 2 Tbsp of the fish sauce and lime juice and stir to dissolve the sugar.

Step 3

Place the dried shrimp in a small heatproof bowl, cover the shrimp with room temp water then microwave on high for about 45-60 seconds. Let it sit for a few more minutes until cool enough to handle, then drain. Without a microwave, you can cover the dried shrimp with boiling water and let them sit for a few minutes.

Step 4

Place the tomato, onion and Chinese celery into a large mixing bowl. When the dried shrimp are ready, drain and pound them in a mortar and pestle until they are broken into smaller pieces. Alternatively, you can roughly chop them. Add dried shrimp to the mixing bowl.

Step 5

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Drain the glass noodles and cut them with scissors into 2-3 sections to shorten them. Boil the glass noodles for 2 minutes then remove them from the water with tongs (keep the water boiling) and place into a strainer to drain excess water; set aside.

Step 6

Add fresh shrimp into the remaining liquid and cook for 30-45 seconds or until they are done. Place the shrimp into the mixing bowl.

Step 7

Pour out the cooking water, leaving just enough water to cover the bottom, and return the pot back on the stove. Once the water boils, add the pork along with 1 tsp of fish sauce and stir until fully cooked. Use a slotted spoon to remove the pork from the liquid and place into the mixing bowl.  Then add about 1 Tbsp of the pork cooking liquid into the mixing bowl as well.

Step 8

Add noodles into the mixing bowl, pour the dressing over and quickly toss to combine.

Step 9

Roughly chop the leafy cilantro sprigs then toss them into the salad. Sprinkle with peanuts and serve immediately!