Yum Woon Sen (Thai Glass Noodle Salad) is a popular Thai salad dish. The word “Yum” literally translates to “mix or toss”, which refers to a type of Thai salad. While “Woon Sen” means “glass noodles”. Thai Glass Noodle Salad is a dish that every Thai home cook knows how to make by heart. It has many dimensions of flavors and textures, all different but coexisting in harmony: slippery, chewy glass noodles; crunchy Chinese celery, juicy tomatoes, snappy shrimp, and umami-packed dried shrimp and ground pork. Roasted peanuts add more crunch and nuttiness, and a spicy, zingy dressing of lime juice, fish sauce, palm sugar, and bird’s eye chili peppers brings it all together.
Serve 4-6
Prep time: 25
Cook time: 20
Thai Glass Noodle Salad Recipe
For the glass noodle salad:
6 ounces glass noodles
1 tablespoon avocado oil, or oil of your choice
5 tablespoons peanuts
3 tablespoons dried shrimp
½ pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
¼ pound ground pork
1 tablespoon fish sauce
½ small onion, sliced into thin slices
1 medium shallot, sliced into thin slices
2 stalks Chinese celery, sliced into thin slices, or replace with regular celery
8 small grape tomatoes, halved
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
For the dressing:
7 tablespoons lime juice
6 tablespoons fish sauce
1 ½ tablespoons palm sugar, or replace with granulated sugar
4 medium bird’s eye chilies, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
Thai Glass Noodle Salad Instructions
- Soak the glass noodles in water for 15 minutes. Drain.
- To make the dressing, mix the lime juice, fish sauce, and palm sugar, and whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Place in the bird’s eye chili peppers, and garlic. Whisk.
- In a pan over low heat, add the avocado oil (or oil of your choice) and peanuts. Stir-fry until golden brown for 2 minutes. (It’s ok to add the peanuts while the oil is still cool, so they will cook evenly and won’t be burned.) Remove and set aside.
- In the same pan over low heat, with the remaining oil, add the dried shrimp, and stir-fry until aromatic and crispy for 2 minutes. Take it out and set it aside.
- In a pot of water over high heat, bring to a boil. Place in the glass noodles and boil until al dente, about 30 seconds. Remove and drain.
- In the same pot of water over high heat, bring it back to a boil. Put in then deveined shrimp, and boil until pink for 2 minutes. Remove and drain.
- Discard most of the water in the pot, leaving about 1 cup remaining. Over high heat, add the ground pork and fish sauce. Stir until well done for 3 minutes. Take it out and drain.
- To assemble the salad, in a large mixing bowl, toss in the glass noodles, pork, shrimp, dried shrimp, onion, shallot, celery, tomatoes, cilantro, and dressing. Mix well.
- Serve on a plate and top with the peanuts.
