Vietnamese Prawn and Herb Salad

Ingredients

• 500g raw king prawns, peeled and deveined
• 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 1 tbsp groundnut or vegetable oil
• 200g dried vermicelli rice noodles
• 300g white cabbage, finely shredded
• 2 carrots, peeled and julienned or coarsely grated
• 1 cucumber, halved lengthways, seeds scraped out, thinly sliced
• 20g fresh mint leaves
• 20g fresh coriander leaves and fine stems
• 15g fresh Thai basil or regular basil leaves
• 4 spring onions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
• 3 tbsp fish sauce
• 3 tbsp fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 1 garlic clove, finely grated
• 1 fresh red chilli, finely sliced
• 3 tbsp warm water
• 50g roasted salted peanuts, roughly chopped, to serve
• 1 fresh red chilli, finely sliced, to serve
• 1 lime, cut into wedges, to serve
• Prawn crackers, to serve
• Vietnamese pickled daikon and carrot (đồ chua), to serve

Method

1. Make the nuoc cham first so the flavours have time to marry. Whisk the fish sauce, lime juice, caster sugar, grated garlic, sliced chilli and warm water in a small bowl until the sugar has fully dissolved — rub a drop between your fingers to check for grit. Taste: it should land sharp, salty, sweet and a little fiery, with no single note shouting over the others. Adjust now — a touch more sugar if it bites too hard, more lime juice if it feels flat. Set aside.
2. Tip the vermicelli into a large heatproof bowl and pour over just-boiled water to cover. Soak for 4–5 minutes until tender with a little bite, then drain and rinse thoroughly under cold running water to stop the cooking and wash off the surface starch — sticky noodles won't take the dressing.
3. While the noodles soak, combine the shredded cabbage, julienned carrot and sliced cucumber in a large mixing bowl. A pinch of salt over the vegetables now wakes them up and starts to soften the cabbage's raw edge.
4. Pat the prawns thoroughly dry with kitchen paper — water means steam, and steam means no sear. Toss with the grated garlic and season generously with salt and pepper.
5. Heat the oil in a large stainless steel or cast iron frying pan or wok over a high heat until it shimmers and just starts to ripple. Lay the prawns in a single layer — work in two batches if your pan is crowded, because crowded prawns boil in their own juices instead of catching colour. Cook for 1 minute on the first side until the underside is pink and lightly bronzed, then turn and cook for another 60–90 seconds until curled, opaque and just firm to the touch. The garlic will smell fragrant and look pale gold — pull the pan off the heat the moment it threatens to go past that, because burnt garlic turns the whole dish bitter.
6. Add the drained noodles to the vegetable bowl and pour over two-thirds of the nuoc cham. Toss thoroughly with your hands so every strand and shred is glossy with dressing — hands work better than tongs here, you can feel when it's evenly coated.
7. Fold through most of the mint, coriander leaves, Thai basil and spring onions, keeping a small handful of each back for the top. Taste a forkful and season again if it needs it — most of the salt is doing its work through the fish sauce, but a final pinch ties the herbs and noodles together.
8. Divide the dressed noodle salad between four bowls and lay the seared prawns on top, scraping any garlicky pan oil over them.
9. Drizzle the remaining nuoc cham over the prawns, then scatter with the reserved mint, coriander, Thai basil and spring onion, the sliced red chilli and the chopped peanuts.
10. Plate the đồ chua alongside, tuck a lime wedge against the rim of each bowl, and serve immediately with prawn crackers — a final squeeze of lime over the prawns at the table sharpens everything one last time.