Laotian Larb.
Sounds pretty gross, doesn’t it?
Well, it’s not, so hang up your hang ups and go and make it.
Here’s the scoop: Larb is the national dish of Laos. It consists of ground meat, onion, cilantro, lime, fish sauce, and chili all topped off with a magical rice powder. Nothing really magical about it except that it’s different and adds and unexpected flavor. Very nice.
A celebratory dish that is commonly made to mark a housewarming, the birth of a baby or the New Year, it can be made with any of chicken, beef, duck, fish, pork or mushrooms. So many options.
I actually loved this dish. Because I used ground sirloin, it was almost akin to Asian tacos. In fact, heat up the tortillas because this would be GREAT with those. It was actually easier and quicker than tacos.
Anyway, while often times eaten with lettuce, either atop or in wraps, I mixed mine in with some kale and it was absolutely perfect.
Larb Salad
2015-01-03 09:21:48
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 4 shallots, 2 sliced in thin rounds and 2 minced
- 5 spring onions, sliced into thin rounds
- 2 garlic cloves, sliced into thin rounds
- 2 hot chili peppers, sliced into thin rounds
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 TB fish sauce, or more to taste
- salt, pepper and lime juice to taste
- 2 TB rice powder**
Salad garnishes
- Herbs, sliced spring onions, mint, cilantro, handful of each
- Lettuce
- hot chili peppers, sliced into rounds
- 1 lime, sliced
Instructions
- Heat one tablespoon of oil in a frying pan, then add the shallots sliced in rounds (reserve the minced shallots for later), garlic, spring onions and chili peppers. When they have browned, add the beef, sugar and fish sauce.
- Once the beef is well cooked, add more salt, lime juice and adjust the seasonings. It should be well seasoned and richly flavored. Set aside to cool.
- Toss beef with herbs, minced shallots and roasted rice powder. Serve with garnishes on the side.
Notes
- **For the rice powder: Put 2 TB of rice into a frying pan without oil and toast, stirring frequently, over medium-heat until it turns brown and smells well toasted. Remove from the stove and crush into a powder. Store in an air tight container.
The Hungary Buddha Eats the World https://thehungarybuddha.com/
I don’t know what else to say about it except that it was sooo good. I have no more words.
