A Trip To Flushing – Vietnamese-Inspired Salad
Last weekend my wife and I dropped off our son at LaGuardia Airport in Queens for his return flight to college. Whenever I’m in Queens I can’t help but take a detour to the neighborhood of Flushing, one of several Chinatowns in New York City. When you walk down Main Street, among the throngs of people, Asian grocery stores, restaurants, and other stores, you feel like you could be in China.
Our first stop on this frigid day was a small, open-air food cart where we ordered mini lamb skewers, for $1.50 each, grilled to order as we waited. Standing on the corner, as the wind whipped our hair, the grease dripped down our chins. They were perfectly fatty and salty, with a dusting of cumin and chili powder.
To get out of the wind and buy supplies for dinner, our second stop was a vast supermarket on the second floor of a mall. I have always loved going into Asian supermarkets to buy exotic produce, frozen dumplings, cookware, teas, and sauces of all kinds. Being a weekend, the market was full and buzzing with customers. There were practically more varieties of produce unknown to me in this market than total varieties in a typical American supermarket. The fish were piled high and swimming in tight schools in the fish tanks. We saw varieties of shellfish, the empty shells of which we see littering the beaches of Long Island where we live.
The final stop that day was at the duck guy – a sliver of a storefront with crisp roast ducks and pork hanging in the window dripping and forming icicles of salty fat.
Once we got home, we decided that despite the cold we needed a taste of spring. A Vietnamese-inspired salad with fresh cilantro, mint, and Thai basil and a fish sauce dressing would be perfect for this cold winter day.
Vietnamese-Inspired Salad
I am not going to tell you what vegetables or quantities to put in this salad, because it always depends on what is fresh and available. But here are some ideas:
Fresh bean sprouts
Finely shredded cabbage
Crunchy lettuce
Thin slices of cucumber
Shredded carrot
Daikon or other radish, thinly sliced
Snow or sugar snap peas
Slivers of red, yellow, or orange pepper
Sliced tomato
Top with piles of:
Cilantro
Thai basil
Mint
Chopped roasted peanuts
Add any of the following:
Poached shrimp
Shredded chicken
Sliced five spice tofu
Dressing, whisk together:
1/4 cup fish sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/8 cup water
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 Thai chili, seeds remove and finely minced
1/2 lime, juiced
1/2 small shallot, minced
